Home! A word that is synonymous with safety, comfort and serenity. But how much of that is actually true about your home? Only you can say because it is you who live in it. In general, many Toronto homeowners fail to rejoice all these three at one place. Either they lack comfort & serenity at home or lack safety. Comfort & serenity, of course, can never come when there's no safety. Let's talk in particular about Winters. Did you know that the most house-fire incidents take place in Winters? And that is so because houses become less safer and more open to danger in Winters. Wonder why? Here's the answer; There are serious fire hazards that lie right inside of your home that if not treated and tackled the right way can be a sword hanging above you likely to fall anytime. Today, let us explore what major fire hazards are there in our homes.
#1 Unmaintained / Outdated home heating elements
Your Furnace can bring you warmth in chilly colds but it can also bring you a house fire and the same is true for Fireplace and other home heating appliances that are not maintained properly or are outdated. The dirty exhaust vents, leaking gas pipelines, reg tagged furnace etc, all have a high potential to cause massive unhappy incidents among which fire is the most probable. What to do? Maintain appliances are per the given requirements and have a professional diagnose your appliances once a year. Most importantly, replace when it is the time to replace. Don't keep dragging appliances or they will drag you; to the graveyard.
#2 Clogged Dryer Vents
In 2010, over 15,000 houses in America were reported to have caught house fire as a result of clogged Dryer Vents. As you do laundry and afterwards dry your clothes, the warm air is exhausted out of the dryer that is then vented outside of the house through a ductwork also called dryer vent. Just like the ductwork in your home accumulate dirt and debris even when there's a filter on vents, the dryer vents also accumulate the lint that is produced during the drying process. This lint over time makes up large buildups in the vent that hinder proper exhaustion and causes the heat to stay inside. This can be super dangerous in case of lint accumulation in large quantity. And since there are a lot of heat sources close to the washing area, there are high possibilities for the dryer vent to catch fire. What to do? Thoroughly clean dryer vents at least once a year. It is advised to consider professional help.
#3 C for careless cooking
Fire as a result of cooking doesn't refer to the fire that breaks out in large kitchens of lavish restaurants. It can take place in any kitchen when kitchen activities are not attended carefully. For the purpose of safety, never leave the stoves on when you are away for long periods. Don't go for hours of groceries when there's a pot on fire in your kitchen. Possibilities of how your slight carelessness can catch fire are many and you know many of them already. Practice safe cooking! What to do? Already said it! Make sure you're least careful when it's about fire things
#4 Old is gold but not always
Are you an antique lover? So many people are! With this love for vintage, homeowners are inclined towards purchasing old appliances from garage sales that can serve as home improvement units while also serve as classy antiques. But everything that looks cool isn't always cool. These old appliances usually do not fulfil the safety standards that are needed to be followed today and are thus an open threat for house fires. Keep your love for vintage and bring home all that appeals you but do not use them until and unless a professional certifies they are safe to use or make them so by adding ad on or replacing some threatful parts. What to do? Use old appliances only if they are verified as safe by a professional. Never otherwise
#5 Unseen frayed wires
We are talking about the unseen frayed wires when we have people that do not care even for the seen frayed wires. Torn or frayed wires are among the most common causes of house fires. And while the seen fires can help you take safety measure in time, the unseen wires can simply take away that chance and would make you aware of the danger only when enough damage is already done. What to do? Have a safety check of your home at least once a year. If anytime, you sense danger be it in the form of a burning smell or a tinkering sound of wires, take prompt action to figure out what is going wrong and where. It is just a tiny flame of fire that has the potential to burn everything. So never underestimate the source be it small or big. Fix it as quickly as you can. And before you leave, ask yourself, how many of these fire hazards do you have at your home and how many can you fix right now? Fix them!
