House fires kill and injure thousands of people every year. They cause injuries and deaths that could be prevented. They also cost millions of dollars in lost property. Preventing fires is something we’d all like to do and with a little extra care, it can be possible to prevent a fire in your own home.
The National Fire Protection Association says that most fires are accidental and most fires are electrical in nature. Those which are not are usually caused by problems in the home that could have been prevented if the home had been adequately and accurately inspected regularly for fire hazards.
What are Fire Hazards in the Home?
Every home, regardless of how safely it is maintained has a certain number of fire hazards. These can and should be reviewed for faithfully in the home to eliminate things that could cause a fire to take place. Fire Safety in the home is something that every member of the family can take part in, from the youngest to the oldest.
Self inspections can reveal a lot, particularly if you know what you’re looking for.
Take a look around your home. Some of the things that you’re looking for include:
Dangling extension cords that are subject to being tripped on and can fray or break.
Cords that are running beneath carpets, rugs, or across the flooring. These can be walked on and over time are going leave bare wires.
Appliances that are left plugged in all of the time. They can often fall or short out over time and cause a fire.
Dryer vents that are filled with lint and can ignite in a short time.
Take note of any time that you may see lights flickering without an electrical or power outage. This could mean that you have a short.
Check for too many extension cords or too many things plugged into one cord. This could readily lead to a fire and cause other problems besides that.
Make sure that you do not overload circuits. If you have a fuse or circuit that regularly blows when more than one thing is plugged in or running that circuit is quite likely overloaded. You will need to take steps to ensure that you’re not overusing any one area of the power and it may be time to call in a professional electrician.
At no time should smoking materials or anything that can offer an ignition source be left in any place where small children might find and be able to use them.
Make sure that nothing like paint, flammable liquid or other materials are stored inside the house, particularly near a source of ignition such as the hot water tank.
You can prevent house fires using a little common sense and a little investigating in your home. Fire protection is everyone’s business.
