| This is the time of the year when many of us become more aware of home safety issues. When colder weather approaches our thoughts turn to home heating systems, fireplaces, wood stoves, portable heating devices and other things in the home that may be a fire risk. Of course, there are many fire and safety risks in our homes that deserve attention all year long. But as colder days are upon us and the Holiday Season is here we become more cognizant of some of these safety issues.
Particularly now with Christmas trees and Holiday decorations in our homes we ask you to be extra careful and take to heart these safety tips:
Water, water, water your tree. Live Christmas trees dry very quickly in your home and can be fully ignited in fire in less than a minute. A live tree needs a lot of water!!
Properly position your tree. Keep trees at least three feet from a heat source and never block a doorway or exit with a tree.
Check your lights. Make sure your lights do not have any cracked or broken sockets. Also make sure the wire is in good condition with no cracks in the insulation or frays.
Never overload your lights. You should never plug more than three strings of lights together.
Do not staple or nail cords. You greatly increase the risk of nicking or severing a wire by using staples or nails to hang your lights. Always use another means of attaching the lights. You can purchase hangers that will attach to the surface and then your lights will hang from the hanger with no risk of stapling or nailing through the cord. You can also make hanger loops with wire ties and then attach the wire ties to hang your light strands.
Do not leave lights on unattended. Always turn off your lights when leaving your home or going to bed.
Be very careful with candles. Always allow at least a one foot clearance around a candle and never place a candle on a counter under your kitchen cabinets.
Never leave a candle unattended for any reason.
Always have an escape plan from your home and a family meeting place.
Make sure you have the correct number of smoke detectors in your home and check their operation monthly. Be sure to replace the batteries at least once every year.
If you have any type of device in your home that utilizes a flame (natural gas, oil, wood stoves, fireplaces, etc.) then you should have carbon monoxide detectors appropriately placed throughout your home. |
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