How to Keep your Family Safe from Fire

The 10 most common causes of house fires include: cooking, children playing with fire, smoking, the furnace, electrical problems, candles, the fireplace, clothes dryer, storage of flammable materials, and Christmas trees. No matter what the cause, your main concern is the safety of family members. Here are ways to keep your family safe.

Install Fire Safety Equipment

Here is fire safety equipment you need to not only keep family members safe, but reduce fire damage to your house and possessions:

·         Smoke Detectors – Lack of a properly functioning smoke detector is responsible for most fire-related deaths in homes. They need to be tested monthly and replaced every 10 years.

·         Carbon Monoxide Detectors – Carbon monoxide can make family members very sick or even cause their death. It is especially dangerous since it is colorless and odorless.

·         Escape Ladders – If you have more than one story in your house, you should have one fire escape ladder in each room on the upper floor.

·         Home Fire Sprinklers – These can put out a fire before it has a chance to grow and spread, saving lives and possessions.

·         Fire Extinguishers – There should be a multipurpose fire extinguisher in the kitchen, workshop, and garage.

Have and Practice an Evacuation Route

All members of the family need to know how to safely leave the house. The evacuation route needs to be practiced very often. Also practice alternate routes, such as using a different door or window, in case fire or dense smoke is blocking an exit.

Learn What to Do During a Fire

·         Leave the house immediately

·         Don't stop to get valuables

·         Test doors for heat and if they are hot, do not open

·         Bend down or crawl under smoke

·         If there is a lot of smoke, cover your nose with a T-shirt or wet rag

·         Stop, Drop, and Roll

·         Don't re-enter the house once you are out

·         Meet outside in a designated place

·         Stay a safe distance away from the house

Fire Safety Equipment for Your Home

As a homeowner, you want to protect your family and home from fire. One important element of fire

safety is installing the necessary equipment. Here is a list of fire safety equipment to keep your home fire safe.

Smoke Detectors

Three out of 5 home fire deaths occur in homes with no smoke detector or one that was not working. Most of the non-working ones had dead or disconnected batteries or no battery at all. Smoke alarms can be battery operated or hard-wired and you need to test them monthly. You should also replace smoke alarms every 10 years.

Fire Escape Ladders

People don't normally think about these but they are a necessity for multi-level homes. There are over 70 million homes in the U.S. that have two or three stories and only 6 percent have emergency escape ladders. They are easy to use and there should be one in each room with a window in the upper levels of your home.

Home Fire Sprinklers

Many people do not know that fire sprinklers are available for residences. Automatic sprinklers will save lives and can put out a fire long before the fire department arrives. This reduces the amount of property loss to your home by around 70 percent. Average cost to install is $1.60 per square foot.

Fire Extinguishers

Portable fire extinguishers can put out a small fire or keep it from spreading before the fire fighters arrive. Before using, make sure everyone is out of the house safely and the fire department has been notified. There should be a fire extinguisher in the kitchen, garage, and workshop. Buy a multipurpose one and make sure you understand how to use it.

Carbon Monoxide Detectors

Even though carbon monoxide detectors do not warn of fire, they are the reason behind many fire department visits. Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas formed when fuel does not burn completely. It is very dangerous and can poison or kill people. Combination smoke and CO detectors are available for purchase. 

What Your Fire Safety Evacuation Plan Needs to Have In It

When it comes to preparing you and your family for the event of a fire, coming up with a fire evacuation plan is essential in making sure everyone is safe. So how do you start to prepare your evacuation plan? Here are some tips on what it should have in it so that everyone is out of harm’s way in the event of fire.

A safe place – Every fire evacuation plan should have a safe place in mind for everyone to gather. The safe place can be across the street from your home, the large tree at the front of your house, or a neighbor’s yard. As long as the place is away from the home and fire, establishing your safe place ahead of time can help to save everyone’s lives.

Visible home numbers – Is your house street number visible from the road? If not, making sure that it is visible from that distance is a crucial step in your fire evacuation plan. This ensures that your home can be seen by emergency responders in the event of a fire. If your numbers aren’t visible from the road, painting them on your mailbox or having larger numbers installed on the exterior of your home can help.

Escape ladders – If you live in a multi-level home, consider purchasing an emergency escape ladder or two and including them in your fire safety plan. If the fire is in the bottom part of the home and is blocking all your exits to safety, having an emergency escape ladder in one of your upper floor rooms can help get everyone out of the home safely. 

Give the Gift of Safety

Holidays can be a happy and hectic time of year. Think of the ones you care for this season with the gift of safety in their homes. Here are a few facts about home fires and how you can keep your family and friends safer this holiday season!

·         Home fires result in death primarily between the hours of 11PM and 7AM. This is due to families being asleep and unaware of the emergency.

·         ¼ of all fire deaths begin in the bedroom. Having a smoke detector in every room of the house is essential for keeping your loved ones safe.

·         Cooking and heating equipment are the leading causes of home fire deaths. Keeping hot products on ONLY when someone is monitoring them will help to ensure the safety of your family.

·         According to the NFPA (National Fire Protection Association), only 1/3 of all families are prepared with a home fire escape plan during a time of an emergency. 

Having up-to-date smoke detectors is the first step in keeping your family safe. The second step is to give the gift of a bedroom fire escape ladder. The ladders at ResQLadder.com are specifically designed for homes and offices in times of an emergency escape. Taking the time to equip your family with the escape system they need will provide you with peace of mind.