What to do to prevent fire damage?
Throughout our years in this business, we’ve seen all too often how devastating home fires can be.
Here are some steps you can take to help reduce the risk of a fire in your home.
Do
- Keep your smoke detectors in good working condition
- Test your smoke alarms regularly
- Consider buying a small fire extinguisher to keep in your kitchen
- Respect the recommended amperage in your electrical panel
- Keep the cover of your electrical panel in place at all times
- Leave three feet of space around your electrical panel
- Hire a certified electrician to make any changes to your electrical system
- Have your electrical panel capacity checked every 20 years
Avoid
- Leaving candles burning when you’re not around
- Leaving combustible materials (paper, clothes) on a heat source
- Leaving cigarettes or cigars burning when you’re not around
- Smoking in bed
- Using an electric appliance with a damaged cord or exposed wires
- Using a barbeque indoors
- Leaving the stove unattended if you’re cooking with oil
If you have a wood-burning stove or fireplace
- Follow the manufacturer’s suggestions for safe operation
- Make sure there’s proper ventilation
- Leave four feet of space on all sides and five feet of space above it
- Use only paper or wood starter, never briquette gas, kerosene or gasoline
- Collect the ashes in a metal container
- Use a qualified chimney sweep