The Value of Planning for House Fires - How to Prepare & Plan
The fire damage repair professionals from Paul Davis understand how detrimental home fires can be. Not only can home fires eradicate your residence and personal possessions, but they are emotionally disconcerting and make you feel unsafe. Fires can happen in a matter of minutes and can be produced by a number of things, so a lot of the time they're out of your control like natural disasters or your neighbor's house being on fire. Nevertheless, there are still a few precautions you can take to decrease the risk of a home fire in your house.Design and Practice a Fire Escape Strategy for Your Property
Not all home fires are stoppable and you can only do so much. That's why it's essential to have safety procedures in place. Smoke alarms and fire extinguishers are a must, and always check that you have the right number to accommodate your residence. Nevertheless, you should think about using smoke alarms that can identify smoke from fires generated by electricity, because faulty wiring can be a cause of home fires. When there are children in the home, you'll want to teach them on how the smoke alarm sounds and what to do when in the incident where one goes off. Come up with fire escape routes and ensure everyone knows about them. It's crucial to have two exits from every room in the home. Also, you'll want to have a planned meeting spot outside of the home so that you're sure everyone makes it out safely. It's also a good idea to make digital copies of important documents like birth certificates, and you should consider a strong box to store them in. Make a list of your personal possessions too in case they are engulfed in flames. Either create a list or take pictures or videos to catalog your property.Things to Think about to Lessen House Fire Risk
While some fires aren't preventable, there are a few things you can do to decrease the prospect of a fire from happening in your house:- Cooking: Remain in the kitchen at all times while you're cooking and never leave it unattended. When you need to leave the kitchen, get someone to watch over the food until you come back.
- Appliances and Electrical: Perform a habitual examination on your appliances and ensure the plugs and cords are in working condition. Also, when switches for your lights are hot to the touch, then it's time to switch them out.
- Portable Heaters: Check that your space heater has a thermostat and a control mechanism, and it should switch off if the heater falls over.
- Fireplaces: Creosote is extremely flammable and it builds up in your fireplace and chimney after it's been in use, so make sure to get your fireplace cleaned regularly. Having a big, strong screen is also essential to avoid sparks from entering the room and log rollovers.
- Children: Store any matches or lighters in a location that is out of sight and out of reach from children to avoid their inquisitive nature from lighting a fire. Explain to your children that fire is not something to play with as well.
- Smoking: Cigarettes and cigars are serious fire threats, and smoking outside is the finest method to avoid a home fire. When you smoke inside, check that you have ashtrays with deep walls and that you never smoke in bed or while you're lethargic. Additionally, never smoke inside if someone in the home is using oxygen since this is highly combustible.