Don't Delay, Check Off Your Home Fire Readiness List!

The following list is something meant for every home. Do the following steps below to make your home fire ready!

Make sure once a month you go over all of the list below. 

Print out several copies so you have the list ready every 30 days. Or better yet, laminate it and get a magnet then post it to your fridge.Fedex Kinko's can laminate it for you. 

Cooking Safety Tips

  • 1.Refrain from cooking while sleepy or after consuming alcohol. Cooking inattentively can be dangerous. Only use stovetops when you know you can focus.
  • 2.Remain in the kitchen at all times while cooking food on the stove. Because unattended cooking is the leading cause of kitchen fires, it is important to remain in the room while frying, grilling, or broiling food.
  • 3.Use a timer or check the oven regularly as a reminder when using the oven. This includes foods that are broiled, simmered, and roasted.
  • 4.Keep anything that can catch fire away from the stovetop . A general rule of thumb is to keep flammable items three feet away from a stove and areas where hot food is prepared.

Candle Safety Tips

  • 1.Before leaving a room, remember to blow out any lit candles. This can help prevent anything unexpected from catching fire.
  • 2.Avoid using candles in sleeping areas. Because about one-third of home candle fires occur in the bedroom, make sure to be attentive with your candles.
  • 3.Use sturdy candleholders for every lit candle . Make sure you place all candleholders on a secure flat surface.
  • 4.Make sure to put out the candle before it gets too close to the bottom of the container. When a flame reaches the end of the wick, it can damage the candleholder and make it unusable.
  • 5.Never use candles during a power outage. Flashlights are safer than candles and lit flames. Use candles wisely.
  • 6.Never leave a child alone with a lit candle. Make sure lighters and matches are out of the child's reach.

Heating Safety Tips

  • 1.Keep anything flammable at least three feet away from heating equipment. This includes furnaces, fireplaces, and portable space heaters.
  • 2.Never use an oven to heat your household. Keep cooking equipment and home heating equipment separate.
  • 3.Have a professional check and maintain your heating equipment . This includes chimneys, stationary space heaters, and water heaters.
  • 4.Turn off portable heaters before leaving the room or going to bed . Only keep a heater on when you are awake, present, and can pay attention.
  • 5.Make sure your fireplace has a screen sturdy enough to stop sparks from flying into the room. Place ashes in a container made of metal. Before placing ashes in the container, wait until they are cool. Afterwards, keep the container a safe distance from the household.

Smoking Safety Tips

  • 1.Smoke outside. Remember to use fire-safe cigarettes whenever you smoke.
  • 2.Keep smoking materials out of reach from children. This includes lighters, matches, and cigarettes.
  • 3.Take out a cigarette with an ashtray only. Refrain from dropping it on the ground or soil where it can catch fire.
  • 4.Place an ashtray away from things that can burn . Be sure your ashtray is durable and deep.
  • 5.Douse ashes in water or sand before disposing them. A garbage file is not only dangerous but also smelly.

Electrical Safety Tips

  • 1.A qualified electrician should do all electrical work . Consider having Arc fault circuit interrupters or ground fault circuit interrupters installed in your home. AFCIs shut off the electrical circuit when dangerous conditions occur while GFCI shuts off the electrical circuit when it becomes a shock hazard.
  • 2.Test AFCIs and GFCIs once a month. Maintaining your electrical equipment is helpful to remain safe.
  • 3.Major appliances should be plugged directly into a wall receptacle outlet . This includes refrigerators, dryers, and washers. Do not use extension cords or power strips.
  • 4.Use extension cords temporarily. Have a qualified electrician install more receptacle outlets if you need more.
  • 5.Use light bulbs that match the recommended wattage of your lamps. This can prevent electrical shortages.

 

Smoke Alarm Tips

  • 1.Install alarms outside each sleeping area, inside each bedroom, and on each floor of the household. Larger homes may need more smoke alarms
  • 2.Use interconnected smoke alarms. This ensures that when one alarm sounds, the rest do as well.
  • 3.Use both ionization and photoelectric alarms in the household . Ionization fires respond more quickly to flaming fires. Photoelectric alarms respond more quickly to smoldering fires.
  • 4.Mount smoke alarms on ceilings or high on the walls . Smoke alarms should be a minimum of about 10 feet or 3 meters away from the stove.
  • 5.Test smoke alarms every month. Regularly checking your smoke alarms can save you and your household's lives in case a fire does occur.
  • 6.Replace smoke alarms every 10 years. After 10 years, the battery may be drained or you may be due for a new system.

Please email us and we will send you the check list in a customized format you can stick on your fridge!

 

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