Fire Prevention in the Home

What would you do if all of a sudden you found yourself in the midst of a fire involving your residence? Have you taken the necessary steps to be ready; do you have the proper equipment for notification, the equipment to fight a minor fire, is your family ready and prepared to escape; and have you done your due diligence to check your home for fire prevention?

Smoke is responsible for three out of four deaths. The installation and the maintenance of your home smoke detectors can save your family’s life. These wonderful items have to be maintained though. They are basically maintenance free but there are still things that need to be considered:

Install smoke detectors on every level of your home and outside of sleeping areas.
Test every detector at least once a month
Keep smoke detectors dust free. Replace batteries with new ones at least once a year or sooner if the detector makes a chirping sound.
If you have a smoke detector directly wired into your electrical system, be sure that the little signal light is blinking periodically. This tells you that the alarm is active.
Inexpensive and specially designed smoke detectors are available for the hearing impaired.

Fire extinguishers remain one of the best methods to fight a small fire if you are there when the fire begins.

Fire extinguishers should be mounted in the kitchen, garage, and workshop.
Purchase an ABC type extinguisher for extinguishing all type of fires.
Learn how to use your fire extinguisher before there is an emergency.
Remember, use an extinguisher on small fires only. If there is a large fire get out immediately and call 911 from another location.

Thinking ahead, have you done a practice drill with your family, do you have a set meeting place, do they know not to go back into a burning building no matter what?

Prepare a floor plan of your home showing at least two ways out of each room.
Sleep with your bedroom door closed. In the event of fire, it helps to hold back heat and smoke. If the door feels hot, do not open it; escape through another door or window.
Easy-to-use window escape ladders are available through many catalogues and outlet stores.
Agree on a fixed location outside the house where family members are to gather for a head count.
Stay together and away from the fire. Call 911 from another location or cell phone. Make certain that no one goes back inside the burning building.
Make sure that all areas that are to be used to escape the fire stay free from obstructions and combustibles. I.e. stairways, corridors, etc.

Fireplaces are beautiful and add a certain ambiance to a living environment, but we must learn to respect them as we are deliberately bringing fire into our homes.

Use a fireplace screen to prevent sparks from flying.
Don’t store newspapers, kindling or matches near the fireplace or have an exposed rug or wooden floor right in front of the fireplace.
Have your chimney inspected by a professional prior to the start of every heating season and cleaned to remove combustible creosote build-up if necessary.
Install a chimney spark arrester to prevent roof fires.
When a lighting a gas fireplace, strike your match first, then turn on the gas.

Other items that must be considered and taken care of in order to protect our homes include such items as; furnace/space heaters; clothes dryers, electrical hazards i.e. extension cords, overloaded socket, and higher than necessary wattage of light bulbs.

The other considerations would involve items that we take for granted and forget to monitor such as: children and grandchildren; smoking inside of residence; and burning candles. A child with a match or an adult falling asleep in bed with a cigarette or forgetting to blow out a candle can all be very destructive to our homes and the safety of our families and associations. Simple procedures can save lives. Working together and knowing what to do in case of emergency may just make the difference.

Jan Svoboda
AMS®, Real Estate Broker
President/CEO, Prime Site, Inc.
Houston, TX