Household Fire Hazards

Closets, lamps, blankets

Household Fire Hazards

Each of the following scenarios illustrates situations that can happen in just about any home. All were taken from real-life stories. One or both of us have experienced more than one of them as well.

Light at the Top

There's a cavernous storage closet on the lower level of your home. It has just one wimpy light fixture—an exposed bulb in a basic light holder. Pretty much everything gets stored here when not in use. Over the years, what used to be manageable stacks of clothing and other household items have grown tall, and a couple of them are inching near the light bulb.

Cause for concern? Yes, especially if clothing is allowed to pile up near the fixture. An estimated 12 percent of all house fires begin in a closet. An incandescent light burns at between 212 and 572°F. Wool can ignite at 442°F, cotton at 482°F. Even a 40-watt bulb can generate enough surface heat to ignite fabric or plastic.

Clothing should always be kept away from closet light fixtures. If the fixture in your closet is mounted too close to shelves or rods, remove them. If it's a bare-bulb fixture, often found in older homes, replace it with a glass-globe fixture.

Room with a View

You have a large closet in your master bedroom. So large, in fact, that your thoughtful architect decided to install big skylights to let more light in. During the summer, nearby trees shade the area, keeping your closet nice and cool. When the leaves leave the trees, however, things really cook in your closet.

Cause for concern? Possibly. Remember, fires need three things: an ignition source, fuel, and oxygen. Here, the ignition source is the heat from the sun's rays. It could build up high enough to cause spontaneous combustion. However, sun-scorched clothing is the more likely problem. If you're concerned, check into installing UV film on the skylights.

Let the Light In

You were shopping at your favorite thrift store and found a lamp you couldn't live without. When you got it home, you discovered that its cord was frayed, so you replaced it. You can't read what the lamp says about maximum wattage, so you figure it's okay to stick a 100-watt bulb in the socket. You also fitted it with a new, larger shade. It makes the lamp a little tipsy, but boy, does it look good

Cause for concern? Possibly. Exceeding a fixture's recommended wattage can cause overheating. Fitting a lamp with a too-large shade compounds the problem. If the lamp were to fall over and come to rest on something flammable, the overheated socket could cause a fire.

Nice and Toasty

You love sleeping under an electric blanket. Your dog, a Great Dane, loves sleeping on top of it. When it's really cold out, you crank the blanket up almost as high as it can go, and you and Rover hunker down for the night.

Cause for concern? Yes, and especially so if you also tuck that blanket in. Both practices can cause excessive heat buildup that can start a fire.

Cut glass, dryer lint

Rays and Rainbows

Out thrifting again (you just can't stay away), you find a beautiful old cut-glass vase. It probably isn't Waterford, but you don't care. It's big and heavy and you know it will look great on the new side table in your living room.

You bring the vase home, fill it with water and flowers, and place it on the table, which is located dead center under the picture windows in your living room. Your kids love the rainbows the sun creates when shining through the cuts in the glass, and delight when they fall on the upholstered sofa that sits near the table.

Cause for concern? Definitely! Water inside a bottle focuses the sun's rays to a very specific point -- a point concentrated enough to cause a fire.

How Dry I Am

Around the House

Dryer fires are amazingly common. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, they spark almost 16,000 fires annually, resulting in more than $84 million in property damages, about a dozen deaths, and more than 300 injuries.

A Fine Mess

Dryers that run noisy, that take too long to dry, and that make clothes feel really hot are fire risks. Don't keep running yours if you spot any of these warning signs.

Aunt Bea and family decide to stay with you for the summer. Instead of your usual four or five loads of wash a week, you're running about 20. Young cousin Betty Sue, however, is shouldering the lion's share of the work. It seems like she spends more time in the laundry room than outdoors, which is a sad state of affairs for someone who's just 11 years old, but she seems to enjoy her work. She also seems pretty competent at it, so you aren't hovering over her.

The last few loads of wash that Betty Sue has delivered to you are covered with dryer lint. You make a mental note to ask her about it, but it falls off your to-do list.

Cause for concern? You betcha. What little Betty Sue might not know is that she needs to clean out the dryer's lint trap before and after every load.

Lint buildup and improper venting are both concerns. Improperly maintained vents and screens impede the flow of hot, moist, linty air to the outdoors. Let it go for long enough, and the hot air can cause a fire.

Always clear lint filters before and after you run a dryer, and wipe away any lint that accumulates around the drum. Don't run your dryer when you're not home, and keep the vent pipes unobstructed. Check the outdoor vent flap regularly to make sure it's clear and working properly. They collect dirt and debris easily.

Common flammables, electrical ignition

Hubby's New Hobby

In the Nick of Time

Small storage fires are easily smothered by throwing a blanket or rug over them. Better yet, keep a multipurpose fire extinguisher near storage areas.

Dear husband comes home loaded with gear for his newfound hobby: making furniture. You smile and nod; maybe he won't discard this one after a couple of weeks like all the others. As it turns out, he likes making furniture and is creating all sorts of things in your garage. He's not the neatest craftsman, however, and you notice a growing pile of oily-looking cloths near his work area. He's also dumping funny-smelling rags in your wash basket on a regular basis.

Cause for concern? Yes, on both counts. Many of the products used in furniture building are flammable. Leave them sit in a pile in a hot garage, and they can ignite. Put oil-soaked rags in your dryer, and the hot air can ignite them.

Always let rags and cloths used with flammable liquids dry out before you wash them. When they're not in use, store them in metal containers with tight lids. Label the containers so everyone knows what's in them.

Other flammables to be careful with include…

  • Barbecue charcoal. Damp coal can ignite. Always store it in a cool, dry place—preferably an open area where self-ignition, should it occur, presents less of a problem. A metal pail or garbage can with a tight lid is ideal.

  • Stacks of newspaper. Yes, recycling is admirable and good for our planet. However, stacks of newspapers are fire hazards. Stack up enough newspapers, and they can generate enough heat to ignite. Store your stacks in a cool, dry place at least 3 feet from heat-generating sources. And don't let them stack up too high.

Hot Rock

Dear teenage son has caught the thrifting fever. He comes home from a foray thrilled to death over an amazing find: an electric guitar from the '60s and a larger-than-life to match. He hauls his booty downstairs to the cave he calls a bedroom, and you're soon treated to his eager rendition of some Jimi Hendrix tune. As you search for your earplugs, you reflect on the fact that you haven't entered your son's bedroom in months, and that you probably need to, as most of what goes into it rarely comes out of it.

Cause for concern? Probably. If a bedroom is crammed with stuff, chances are that lots of it is flammable. A guitar amp, like all electrical appliances, throws off heat. If placed too close to flammable materials, the heat could cause a fire. Given the amp'sage, bad wiring and burned-out insulation are also possibilities.

Waffling Over an Iron

Now your dear teenage daughter is getting into the thrifting act. She comes home one day with a very neat old waffle iron, which she proudly presents to you. You've wanted one for a long time, and you're thrilled. This one even looks like it's in great shape.

You decide to make waffles for breakfast the following Sunday. As you plug in the waffle iron, it smells kind of funky but it seems to work just fine. You figure the funky smell is from disuse, and you figure it will dissipate as you use the iron, so you go ahead and pour in the batter.

Cause for concern? Definitely. Never use any appliance that smells funny when you plug it in, or that gives off a shock, no matter how slight, until you can have it checked out by a repair person. The funky smell could be from deteriorated insulation around internal wires, which could cause a fire. Remember, all it takes is one tiny spark.


Previous:

Next: