Home Fires: How common are they and what can you do to prevent them?

Off Grid Survival
Planning, Preparedness: Preparing for Emergencies and Disasters, Prepping
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On a lot of survival sites, you’ll
find plenty of articles about how to start a fire; unfortunately, not many of
them focus on fire prevention or planning
and preparing for what you should do should the worst happen and your home
starts on fire.

The use and control of fire by people
in order to generate light, heat and
prepare food is considered to be one of the
greatest advancements of the human race. Today, we take it for granted, but it
is used in controlled settings by us almost every day, especially in our homes.
But what happens when fires grow beyond our control?

Home fires can be devastating,
occur rapidly and can cause extensive damage to property and to people especially children, the elderly and
the disabled.

According to FEMA, in 2017 there
were over 3,400 fatalities attributed to
fires, with 23.0 billion dollars’ worth
of losses from over 1.3 million fires that year. And although the National
Safety Council has reported a decrease in
fatalities from fires, down from approximately 5,800 in 1980, the data from
these agencies still indicate that death and injury by fire are significantly higher than it should be.

The NSC reported that it is still the third leading cause of death for
children between the ages of 1 to 14.

When fire strikes in the home, it is quick, and as highlighted above, it can be deadly. It takes less than 30 seconds for a small
fire to become a major one. However, the response time requirement for fire
departments according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is 80
seconds, which means once they hear the alarm they have 80 seconds to leave the
station. Now throw in travel times, which they estimate at an average of 4
minutes from the fire station to the fire,
and you can see that once first responders make it to the scene, there is a good chance the situation has
already turned deadly.

After looking at response times, and keep in mind we didn’t factor in the time it takes for
you to call 911 or the time it takes for them to trigger the alarm, it’s important
to look at both the fire risks in your own home and prevention methods to avoid
major fires. After looking at the risks in your home, it’s then important to formulate
a plan and practice responding to fire emergencies with your family.

In
order to understand how to prevent home fires, you must first understand
what elements have to come together to produce a fire. The fire triangle describes the three
elements of any fire, which consists of heat, oxygen, and fuel. To extinguish a fire,
one of these elements must be suppressed
because a fire cannot be sustained
without the presence of all three factors. Fires extinguishing agents such as
water, sand, blankets or chemical suppressing agents can remove oxygen or
lessen heat, which in turn reduces and extinguishes the fire at its source.

The National Safety Council
reports that cooking equipment is the primary cause of home fires, followed by
smoking. Over 50% of the residential building fire events that occurred in 2016
were caused by cooking.

Another cause that is gaining
more prominence as modern society and technology advances is the use of
electrical equipment and their associated charging devices. Two lesser-known
factors that may also cause a fire are
batteries and pyrolysis.

Cooking equipment — for example, stoves, microwaves, ovens, and toasters — can cause fires, particularly
when food is left unattended. It is
important to always to monitor food while
it is being prepared and keep young children out of the kitchen so that they don’t
inadvertently cause a fire or become burned by hot flames or surfaces.
Additionally, any utensils or items like oven mitts or dishcloths should be kept
away from appliances that create heat, especially the stovetop.

A quick way to extinguish minor
cooking fires is to place the lid over the fire to remove the element of
oxygen. This
should only be done if the fire is small
and there is no risk of injury. A fire extinguisher should be kept in the
kitchen that is capable of handling grease fires, such as an all-purpose portable ABC fire
extinguisher. Never use water on a
grease or electrical fires; this will only make a bad situation even worse, and it
will do nothing to extinguish the flames.
In fact, it could make the fire even
larger.

Believe it or not, smoking is
still one of the top reasons for home-related fires. Throw in the legalization
of Marijuana in many areas of the country, and
you have yourself a recipe for disaster.

For people who smoke, it is best
to use fire-safe cigarettes and smoke
outside whenever possible – trust me, it’s not only safer, but your guests will thank you when they don’t go
home smelling like they just walked out
of a bar.

This
is an area of concern that most people never think about. Over 45,000
home electrical fires occur every year, with peak fire deaths between midnight
and 8:00 am. Faulty wiring, lighting or
equipment are major contributors to these types of fires, but they may also be caused by:

Electrical cords should always be
in good working order, and only one heating appliance per electrical port
should be used at a time. Extension cords should never be used with heating appliances, and their use should only be temporary with
other electrical devices in order to
reduce electrical fire risks.

That damn lint can be a killer! Dryers
are an often overlooked source of household fires. These appliances should always be used with a lint filter that is cleaned after every load of laundry is
completed. Air exhaust vents should be periodically checked for blockages, and the vent pipes should be cleaned of lint at
least once a year.

Some other Things you should be aware of:

Batteries and pyrolysis and lesser-known causes of home fires but their
risks should be understood as they can cause equally devastating fires. 9-volt
batteries may cause fires when the terminals of two batteries accidentally come
into contact with one another. This can
happen when batteries are discarded into
trash bins or recycling containers. To avoid this, duct tape can be placed over the
terminals so that the risk of contact is
minimized.

Pyrolysis is a term that
describes the contact of combustible materials with heat sources of 212⁰F or
more. Examples of this can include improperly operated heating systems or
chimneys that are not carefully maintained.
The combustible materials eventually break down and can ignite without the
exposure of a direct flame. Homeowners should always leave space between any type of combustible material and a heating source and remind all members of the family, especially children to ensure that items left
around the house are kept at an acceptable distance away from these heating
sources.

In a home fire, you
have less than minutes to escape. That make smoke detectors, especially when
people are sleeping, vital to your ability to survive a fire.

Between 2012- 2016, 60% of all home fire deaths happened in homes where smoke detectors were either not present of not working.

Important things to
Know about Smoke Detectors:

Recommended Smoke Detectors:

If you don’t have a sprinkler system
in your home, you need to seriously consider
installing a system throughout your home; it’s like having a firefighter
on call inside your home 24/7.

Sprinkler systems, both
residential and commercial, have been found to reduce fire deaths in the
majority of cases where they are present.
While safety is the foremost concern, home fire sprinkler installation
may have benefits that exceed property and life preservation, such as the
lowering of insurance premiums as well as a reduction in the amount of water used to extinguish a fire
as opposed to the huge amounts used by the fire department.

Still not sure about Sprinkler
Systems?

Check out this side by side video
of a fire with and without sprinklers:

When selecting a fire extinguisher, it’s important to choose the proper one for your situation. Fire extinguishers are divided into four categories, which are based on the type of fire. They also have a numerical rating which tells you what the extinguisher can handle. A higher number means more power to extinguish the fire.

It is Extremely Important to use the
right type of extinguisher. Using the wrong one for the wrong type of fire can
be Extremely Dangerous.

Recommended Fire Extinguishers

To operate a fire extinguisher, remember the word PASS:

If you woke up tonight to the
sound of a smoke alarm, would you have enough time to escape? If you have small children, older adults or
people with disabilities, would they be able to get out on their own?

Families and households should
practice fire escape drills so that all members, especially children, are aware
of safe evacuations procedures and the fastest exit routes. Practice exercise
and drills should include:

Children Should Be Taught

Safety Considerations:

Home Insurance: Protecting your home and Valuables

Homeowners should be in contact
with their insurances providers to understand how they may be covered in the
event of a fire and should a fire occur, the agent must be contacted as soon as
possible so that they will be instructed
on how to document fire damage. Photo
evidence is critical, and lists should be created to inventory the damaged
items for claims purposes. Damaged goods
should be kept until instructed otherwise
by insurance agencies, and once the
property is deemed safe for re-entry, appliances should not be re-connected
unless checked by a licensed professional. If the property is held under a mortgage, the lender must also
be contacted to inform them of the fire event.

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