How to Keep Your Home Safe From Fire
Fire prevention is an important safety precaution you must practice within your own home. While you may believe you are prepared, there are often areas you overlook when keeping your home safe from fire, especially if you have not updated or discussed fire safety in the last several years. Where you store flammable items and how you construct an outdoor fire pit are all things to be mindful of when you are trying to prevent fires from sparking in your residence. For those who have children, taking these safety precautions are crucial, as young children may be susceptible to causing accidents through no fault of their own.
Keeping your home safe from fire can be accomplished in a few basic steps, all of which you can complete over the course of a few hours. Reducing the possibility of an accident taking place is the primary focus when you are taking precaution against fires. Even a small fire can quickly grow out of hand and devastate your house, so do not take any risks by ignoring proper fire safety in your home.
Tip 1: Install Smoke Detectors and Fire Alarms in Your Home
The most important safety measure you can take to keep your home safe from fire is to install smoke detectors and fire alarms throughout your residence. A smoke detector can pick up the presence of smoke almost immediately and can then trigger the fire alarms to alert everyone in the home about this growing risk. Installing these detectors in common areas, such as your kitchen, living room and dining room, is the first line of defense if a fire is started in your home.
It is recommended you install a smoke detector or fire alarm in every room of your home and on every level of your residence. In doing so, you are ensuring your family is alerted to any potential threats while it is still early enough to control the damage. Fire alarms and smoke detectors help you, your family and your pets to safely exit your home in the event of a fire.
They also allow you to contact the fire department in a timely manner, which means you may be able to salvage your home from extensive damage by decreasing the amount of time it takes for fire personnel to show up. The distance between your home and a fire station should be one of the factors you consider when evaluating a potential living space. Once your fire alarms have been installed, it is important to test your alarms at least once a month to ensure the hardware is still working.
You must replace the batteries when the detector has indicated it is necessary to do so. Being prompt about when you replace the batteries in your smoke detector can ensure your safety is not being compromised due to laziness or negligence. A smoke detector is one of the most commonly used fire prevention tools, but do not grow complacent with your fire safety because you have a smoke detector.
Tip 2: Remain Alert When Cooking Inside or On the Grill
When you are cooking in your kitchen or outside on the grill, you must remain alert. Do not leave the area while you are in the process of cooking something, as it only takes a few moments for something to catch fire. Even if you are simply going outside to assemble a fire pit to make s’mores on a summer evening, you must be mindful of your actions to ensure you are not inadvertently creating a fire hazard.
Related Article: New Renters & Homeowners Resources
While you are cooking, remain in the kitchen or near the grill until your food has finished cooking. Remove all items from the area surrounding your stove or grill, such as dish towels or other flammable items. These items can catch on fire quickly if no one is around to monitor the situation. When you are building a fire pit in your backyard, be sure to spray down the area surrounding the fire pit to prevent sparks from catching on dried grass
Tip 3: Keep Flammable Items and Matches in A Safe Area
Storing matches, handheld lighters and flammable items in a safe area can prevent fires from being started in your home. People often store handheld lighters in a drawer for easy access, but this can cause a fire if the lighters are stored improperly.
You must always utilize the safety feature on these lighters, as many are equipped with a locking mechanism to ensure the button is not pressed down accidentally. If you live in a home with children, it is important to store lighters, matches and flammable items in an area where your children are unable to find them. You can teach your children about fire safety, but they may still cause an accident if they believe they know how to properly handle matches.
Additional items you must store out of reach of your children and out of range from your stovetop are flammable cleaning solutions and chemicals you store in your home. If you have a space heater or fireplace in your home, you must keep these areas free from flammable materials as well. Do not leave matches on top of your fireplace, as a spark from the fire can cause the book of matches to ignite, which can cause a serious accident in your home.
Tip 4: Purchase Fire Extinguishers for Your Home
Purchasing fire extinguishers for your home can help prevent a fire from escalating once it has started. If you live in a larger home, consider purchasing several extinguishers to place throughout your home to ensure you can easily access one in the event of an emergency.
It is important to store a fire extinguisher in your kitchen and to have one conveniently and easily placed on each level of your home. You may opt for leaving a fire extinguisher in each bedroom if you want to remain cautious about your fire prevention methods.
By utilizing a fire extinguisher during an emergency, you are reducing the possibility of the fire spreading while providing your family time to safely exit your home. If the fire has reached a point where a fire extinguisher may not prove helpful, gather your children and pets and quickly exit your home and allow the fire department to handle the situation from there.
Related Article: How to Lower Your Electric Bill
Share:
