With extremely cold weather in our area and even colder weather on the way, area fire departments are reminding you to take extra care when heating your home this winter. Home heating fires are the second leading cause of fires in the country, second only to cooking fires.
Remember to:
1) Have changed batteries in smoke and carbon monoxide detectors within the last 6 months.
2) Make sure all fire extinguishers are charged, in good working order, and stored in a good location.
3) Have your heating system cleaned, inspected, and serviced by a certified HVAC contractor.
4) Make sure that any space heaters are surrounded by at least three feet of empty space. Never place clothing or any other objects on or near a space heater. Do not place space heaters near furniture or drapery. Turn space heaters off when unsupervised. Never store any combustible items near any type of heater.
5) And finally, get your chimney inspected each year to make sure it is safe. Hire a chimney sweep to clean out your chimney every year. Repair any cracks in fireplaces. Use fireplace screens to keep sparks and fire debris inside the fireplace. Never use gasoline to start a fire in the fireplace. Never leave a fire unattended. Make sure that combustible materials are not stored within three feet of your fireplace. For natural gas fireplaces, get all connections and lines inspected before use each season.
