Safety
Tips: Hunting For Home Hazards
Follow these safety tips to reduce hazards
in your home
By taking the time to do a fire safety inspection,
you´ll reduce your family´s risk of being
harmed in a home fire. Download our "Team Up for
Fire Safety" checklist (624 KB*) and take about 20
minutes to inspect your home. When you´re done,
add up the points to find out your score!
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Never leave cooking food on the stovetop
unattended, and keep a close eye on food cooking inside
the oven.
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Keep cooking areas clean and clear of
materials that could catch fire, such as pot-holders,
towels, rags, drapes and food packaging.
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Give space heaters plenty of space.
Space heaters should be at least three feet (one metre)
away from anything that could burn. Always make sure
to turn heaters off when leaving the room or going to
bed.
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Create a "kid-free zone" around
the stove, keeping children and pets at least three
feet (one metre) away from the cooking area.
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Solid-fueled heating equipment, including
chimneys, chimney connectors, fireplaces, and wood or
coal stoves should be inspected by a professional every
year and cleaned as often as necessary. This also applies
to all other types of fueled heating equipment, including
central furnaces and space heaters.
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Lit candles should be monitored constantly
by an adult and extinguished when adults leave the room
or go to sleep.
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Use candleholders that won't tip over
easily, are made of non-combustible materials, and are
big enough to catch dripping wax safely.
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Never leave children alone with burning
candles. NFPA recommends against allowing children to
have candles in their bedrooms.
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Keep matches and lighters up high and
out of children's sight and reach – preferably
in a locked cabinet.
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Replace or repair any electrical device
with a loose, frayed, or broken cord.
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To reduce the risk of electrical shock,
install GFCIs (ground-fault circuit-interrupters). GFCIs
shut off faulty electrical circuits and equipment more
quickly than conventional fuses or circuit breakers.
The devices are inexpensive and can be hard-wired into
your home's electrical system by a professional electrician.
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Unwanted electrical arcing, often occurring
in damaged wires or cords, can generate high temperatures
and cause a fire. AFCIs (arc-fault circuit-interrupters)
protect against fire by continuously monitoring the
electrical current in a circuit and will shut off a
circuit when an unwanted arcing fault is detected. (The
National Electrical Code® requires AFCIs in bedrooms
of new residential construction.)
Never bring even a small amount of gasoline indoors.
The vapors are highly flammable and can be ignited by
a tiny spark.
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Liquids like gasoline, kerosene, and
propane are highly flammable. Make sure to store these
liquids outside the home in a properly ventilated shed
or garage. Store them only in small quantities and in
their original containers or in safety containers. Never
bring even a small amount of gasoline indoors. The vapors
are highly flammable and can be ignited by a tiny spark.
In the hands of an adult who knows how to use it, a
portable fire extinguisher can save lives and minimize
property damage by putting out a small fire or containing
it until the fire department arrives. But never forget
that fire spreads rapidly. Your first priority should
always be to get out of the house.