Home Heating Tips
No matter what you use to heat your home, ensuring your heating devices and systems are in good working order is essential to learning some fall-fire safety tips. Many things can go wrong with heating equipment during spring and summer; verify that everything you need to keep your home warm throughout fall and winter is in good working order before you experience the season’s first cold snap.
Central Heating System Safety Tips
- Get your central heating system cleaned, inspected, and serviced by a certified HVAC (heating, venting, and air conditioning) contractor every year before using it.
- If you have a gas heater, ensure that you have a sufficient quantity of fully functioning carbon monoxide detectors installed in your home.
Fireplace Safety Tips
- Get your chimney inspected each year to make sure it is safe.
- Hire a chimney sweep to clean out your chimney every fall.
- Repair any cracks in fireplaces.
- Use fireplace screens to keep sparks and fire debris inside the fireplace.
- Do not ever use gasoline to start a fire in the fireplace.
- Never leave a fire unattended.
- Do not store combustible materials within three feet of your fireplace.
- Inspect all connections and lines before use each season for natural gas fireplaces.
- Remember that outdoor fireplaces can be just as dangerous as indoor units, and observe all safety precautions when using them.
Space Heater Safety Tips
- Make sure that any space heaters have at least three feet of space around them.
- Never place clothing or any other objects on a space heater to dry.
- Do not place space heaters near furniture or drapery.
- Turn space heaters off when you leave the house or go to bed.
- Avoid storing any combustible items near heaters.
Time Changes Mean Battery Changes
- Change the batteries in your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors every fall and spring when changing the clocks for Daylight Savings Time. It is also a good idea to check all fire extinguishers to ensure they are fully charged and in working order when you adjust the clocks each season.
- Family Fire Safety Tips
- Make sure that there are sufficient smoke detectors in your home.
- Teach your kids how to respond in the event of a fire.
- Make sure young children know how to dial 911.
- Establish and practice a fire escape plan with your family that includes a designated meeting area outside the home.
- Practice stop, drop, and roll with your children, so they learn how to escape beneath a fire.
- Teach everyone in your family multiple ways to escape from every room in the event of a fire.
- Make sure everyone in your family knows how to use a fire extinguisher.
- Do not place lit candles where children can reach them.
- Never leave burning candles unattended.
- Don’t leave cooking food unattended on the stove.
- Keep everything that might be flammable away from your stove.
- Ensure all flammable substances are stored correctly in safe containers and out of reach of youngsters.
Outdoor Fall Fire Safety Tips
- Clear your roof and gutters of the unnecessary build-up of debris, such as pine needles and leaves.
- Learn the outdoor burning regulations in your area, and do not engage in the illegal burning of leaves and other outdoor debris.
Safety Matters
There is nothing more important than the safety of your family. Everyone in your home needs to know how to behave responsibly to reduce the likelihood of experiencing a fire. Fires can start anytime without warning, and members of your household must know how to react in the event of a fire. It’s a good idea to review fire prevention and safety tips with your family every fall and several other times throughout the year.