How to Prevent Home Fires: Step-by-Step Instructions and Pictures

How to prevent the most common fire hazards in your home. Read an overview on how to prevent home fires.
From The Family Handyman
Previous
How to Prevent Home Fires
Image 3 of 13
Next

Source: Heating Equipment

The Problem
Wood stoves and space heaters igniting nearby combustibles are responsible for the lion’s share of heating fires.

The statistics:
15% of fires, 13% of deaths

A True Fire Story
Winston-Salem, NC—An electric space heater caused the death of a 3-month-old infant left at home with her brother and her two sisters early one morning, fire officials said. Manuel, age 11, smelled smoke in an upstairs room and was able to get two of his sisters outside but was unable to rescue his 3-month-old sister, who was asleep in the master bedroom. An electric space heater in the bedroom appears to have ignited a nearby pile of clothes. The mother was driving her husband to work when the fire started. A smoke detector had been installed near the kitchen, but the family took it down because it would go off when they cooked.

Most deaths from heating equipment occur when wood stoves and space heaters are in use and ignite nearby combustibles while everyone’s asleep. Here are other common ways that wood stoves cause fires:

    If they’re not disposed of properly, embers in discarded ashes smolder for up to two weeks and can ignite other trash.
    Chimney disrepair and creosote buildup can combine to create a chimney fire that can ignite adjoining wall framing.
    Sparks or even just heat can ignite combustibles that are located too close to the wood stove.
M Box
Share Your Comments
Remaining Character Count:
 
Privacy Policy
 
By KEdwards2009, 04/15/2009, 10:29 AM EDT
Don't take any chances. Check out the StoveTop FireStop - an automatic fire suppressor designed specifically for the cooktop. StoveTop FireStop is about the size of a tuna can and magnetizes underneath the venthood. When flame activated it releases a fire-suppressing powder and automatically puts out the fire so you don't have to get close to an open, dangerous flame.

Advertisement

Advertisement