Our 2020 Home Heating Safety Tips for Your Family

1/29/2020 (Permalink)

Home heating safety picture

Being cold is a hard experience to forget. Fortunately, most U.S. homes in today’s modern era are fitted with gas and electric heating and air conditioning. We never have to experience being too hot or too cold inside our houses. The development of ways to keep ourselves warm or cool has been vital to the survival of the human race. But where there's fire or heat, there's always a danger, however minimal. 

Sophisticated home heating always carries a risk of malfunctioning or user-error. 

Home heating in its various forms can lead to five main types of danger:

• Electrical shocks
• Burns
• Fires 
• Carbon Monoxide poisoning
• Natural gas explosions and poisoning

While home heating mechanisms are very safe these days, they’re only safe when used carefully and as intended. Below are our top fire prevention tips to keep you and your family protected and comfortable during winter. 

Heating Safety Tips to Avoid Electrical Shocks

With many heating appliances running on electricity, shocks from careless use can be fatal. Make sure you stay safe by following these heating safety tips: 

• Replace any electrical cord that is cracked or frayed.
• Only use electrical heating appliances that have been approved and certified for use. 
• Ensure that your circuit breakers and fuses are the correct sizes and the proper current rating for their circuit.
• Don't overload extension cords or outlets.
• Never use a portable heater in the bathroom. 

How to Avoid Burns

Home heaters get hot. But, nevertheless are reasonably safe. The majority of burns in the home happen when people are cooking or using an iron. While a gas fire may become hot enough to burn fingers, most burns from heaters come from portable heaters. 

If you've warned the kids to stay away from certain areas such as the stove or fireplace, a portable heater is not in the rulebook, typically. And a portable heater may very well be in the way of tiny, curious hands.  

• Put heaters out of the way of curious fingers and warn children they aren’t allowed to touch or play with the heater. 
• Remember that coal and wood can be hot for many hours, and even the day after a fire is extinguished.
• Use radiator covers to protect kids from burns.
• Never leave kids unattended in a room with a heater.
• Set hot water heaters no higher than 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Protect your fireplace with a well-fitted screen to prevent sparks and embers from escaping.

Tips to Avoid Fires

By far, the most significant danger home heating poses are house fires. There are so many ways that home heating can cause a fire in your home, so here are a few heating safety tips to prevent this tragedy from striking: 

• When using an open hearth coal fire, make sure you always use a fireguard. It's so easy for a log to spit and throw out a small ember that can set a carpet on fire in minutes. 
• Never connect more than two extension cords.
• When using any portable heater, make sure it is sufficiently far enough away (at least three feet) from furniture and fabrics. 
• Never put clothes to dry on a fire. 
• Never run electrical cords under rugs.
• Don't use an extension cord or power strip for portable heaters.
• Don't tamper with the fuse box or use the wrong sized fuses.
• Unplug all electrical appliances when not in use. 

Heating Safety Tips to Avoid Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a tasteless, odorless, colorless poison gas. It’s produced when any type of fuel is burned. Every home should have at least one carbon monoxide detector. Carbon monoxide poisoning symptoms include dizziness, weakness, chest pain, headache, upset stomach, vomiting, and confusion. Here are some heating safety tips to help you avoid carbon monoxide poisoning:

• Get a carbon monoxide detector and make sure it has fresh batteries installed. 
• Only use certified and approved heating appliances and have them checked regularly. 
• Test your carbon monoxide detector regularly.
• Vacuum CO detectors to keep them dust-free and in working order.
• Replace CO sensors that are past their lifespan.
• Never remove or borrow batteries from detectors.
• If you suspect carbon monoxide poisoning, open a window to improve ventilation and get to an ER as fast as possible. If left untreated, CO poisoning is deadly. 

How to Avoid Natural Gas Poisoning and Explosions

Natural gas poisoning and explosions are rare, thankfully. Natural gas is an odorless gas that will easily blow up a whole house if given the wrong (or right) conditions. For this reason, natural gas has been tainted with an unmistakable odor so people can recognize when this potentially dangerous gas is on the loose. If you smell a natural gas leak, get out of the building and fast. 

• If you suspect gas, leave the doors and windows open, but not if that means you need to use an electrical switch as the slightest spark could ignite the gas and cause an explosion. 
• Make sure a qualified professional tests your gas appliances each year.
• Never use a gas oven with an open door to heat a room. 
• Only use certified and approved gas heating appliances. 
• Inspect the vents, flues, and chimneys of all gas water heaters, furnaces, and fireplaces to ensure proper ventilation of exhaust.

The Bottom Line on Home Heating Safety Tips

Preventable house fires kill thousands of pets and dozens of people each year. They also cause billions of dollars in damage. Home heating devices are major culprits in starting house fires. But in most cases, regular maintenance, service, and a bit of common sense will go a long way to preventing and stopping house fires. 

At SERVPRO of Richardson, we hope you have a safe and happy winter. Sadly, should you be a victim of a house fire, then we’re trained professionals here to help. Our technicians are the fastest on the scene when it comes to smoke damage remediation. Contact us, and we’ll find you a cost-effective way to restore your smoke-damaged home back to its former glory. We’re also happy to work with almost all insurance companies. It's good to know that should the worst happen, SERVPRO of Richardson is here when you need us.