7 Common Fire Starters

5/18/2018 (Permalink)

Stay Fire Proof

House fires have a pattern—they start in some places more than others. Based on research from fires that occurred between 2010 and 2018, here are the most common places fires begin:

#1: Kitchen

Half of all house fires start in the kitchen. That’s no surprise since it’s where you do the most cooking and house many appliances. This is an easy place to prevent fires since they’re normally man-made. Just keep an eye on the oven, combustible items away from the stove, and you’ll already be safer.

#2: Bedroom

About 7% of all structure fires start in the bedroom. The amount of objects in bedrooms has something to do with it. Mattresses for one, can be very flammable unless they’re new. If you have a mattress that was made before 2007, it probably doesn’t abide by the Federal Mattress Flammability Standard. All mattresses made after 2007 are flame retardant and held to a higher safety standard. Do yourself a favor and go buy one!

#3: Chimney

Like everything else, chimneys need to be cleaned. We suspect 6 percent of all house fires happen in chimneys because people neglect to have them serviced. Every time you have a fire, sap and ash from whatever you’re burning coats the inside of your chimney. Determine if your chimney needs to be cleaned by doing a scape test. Open the flue, put on protective glasses, and get a flashlight. Then, shine a light up the chimney and scrape the inside with something sharp. If the residue is 1/8 inches thick, schedule a cleaning. If residue is closer to 1/4 inch, don’t have another fire until your chimney is professionally cleaned.

#4: Living Room

Living rooms or family rooms often contain candles, fireplaces, electronics, and heating equipment. They also contain couches and other flammable items. Since 4 percent of house fires start in living rooms, we can assume these factors have something to do with it.

#5: Laundry Room

Laundry rooms are where 3 percent of all house fires begin. Dryer lint is a main cause of laundry room fire. If you don’t clean vents and filters regularly, the heat could cause lint to catch fire. Try not to run the washer or dryer when you’re not home in case something gets overheated and you need to act.

#6: Outside

House fires start outside 3% of the time. This is where people keep grills, smoke, have bonfires, and light off fireworks. Just know that if you have a fire outside, it could catch onto your home if you’re not careful.

#7: Attic

Attics aren’t always accessible, so you might not know what’s going on up there. Whether it’s a crawl space or a walk-up, make sure to hire someone or check it out yourself. Not everything in homes are done to code (if people choose the DIY route), so you might find dangerous wiring that needs fixing