About Rural Safety and Fire Prevention
More than a third of Americans use wood chimney stoves, wood stoves and other fuel burning devices as a main heat source for their homes. Unfortunately, many are unaware of the fire hazards in heating a home with wood and solid fuels.
Fires caused by heating are 36 percent of residential fires in rural areas each year. These fires are frequently caused by creosote accumulation in chimneys and chimney shafts. All domestic heating systems require regular maintenance to operate securely and efficiently.
The United States Fire Administration (USFA) wants to apply the following security steps against fires and heat your house safely. Remember, fire safety is your personal responsibility… You Stop the Fire.
KEEPING WOOD STOVES CLEAN
• Have the chimney or wood stove cleaned by a certified chimney specialist every year.
• Clean the furnace area. Remove rubble, decoration and flammable materials.
• Always use a mesh screen with stoves. Keep glass windows open while fire is burning.
• Install thermometers at the shafts in wood stoves.
• Open the vents; do not restrict air entrance in chimney stoves. Otherwise, creosote will accumulate and cause a fire in the chimney.
• Use fire resistant materials in the walls around the wood stoves.
HANDLE BURNING FUELS CAREFULLY
• Never use flammable liquids to start a fire.
• Only use treated lumber. Light small fires that consume completely and produce little smoke.
• Do not burn cardboard boxes, garbage or rubble in a wood stove.
• Place logs at the back of the stove in an appropriate support when lighting the fire.
• Do not neglect a lit stove. Put out the fire before leaving the house or going to sleep.
• Moisten hot ashes with water and place them in a metallic container outside of the house.
PROTECT THE HOUSE EXTERIOR
Pile the wood at least 30 feet away from the house.
Keep the roof clear of leaves, pine needles and other rubble.
Cover the chimney with a mesh screen to contain flying sparks.
Remove branches hanging over the chimney, vents or eaves.
PROTECT THE HOUSE INTERIOR
• Install smoke detectors at each level of the house. Check them once per month and replace batteries at least once a year. Consider installing new smoke detecting alarms.
• Install adequate vents for every heating equipment.
• Extend vent pipes at least 3 feet above the house.
• An operational smoke detector can help you and your family escape from a deadly domestic fire. It can also help saving the lives of firemen who, otherwise, would have to risk their lives to save the residents of a burning house. A smoke detector continually analyses the air to determine smoke presence, 24 hours per day and seven days a week. It never sleeps.
