The old proverb that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” in many instances holds true for fire prevention. Here we need to keep in mind that fires require a fuel, oxygen, and some form of heat to ignite and keep it going. Potential fuels are everywhere in a home setting and the oxygen is what we breathe. The goal is to keep the igniting source of heat isolated from the fuels.

What are the igniting sources in the home? The major obvious ones are the furnace, oil and gas pilot lights, wood burning stoves, cooking stoves and ovens, incandescent light bulbs, frayed electrical wiring, overly long extension cords, portable heaters, faulty appliances, clothes dryers, overloaded electrical circuits (fuses blow when circuits are overloaded and replacing with a higher capacity fuse only allows overloading), and matches and smoking tobacco. The goal is to keep the ignition sources away from the potential fuels.

Furnaces need regular maintenance to insure proper operation and that should include inspection of the exhaust pipes and chimney. Chimney fires do not require creosote, they can use carbon black resulting from poor combustion (soot). If the soot comes loose while a fire is burning, a very messy explosion can occur. With gas fed furnaces and hot water heaters, pilot lights are burning continually. It is particularly hazardous to bring the vapors of flammable liquids near pilot lights. Fire can flash back to the source and even more frightening is the fact that some apparently benign materials, for example turpentine, can form fuel air mixes which lead to explosions of considerable magnitude. Did you ever wonder how it is there will be news reports of explosions in storage silos for such diverse materials as flour, grain, sugar and coal?  In those cases, a fine dust of the fuel is mixed with air and a static electric discharge will set off the explosion.

Placement:  Furnaces and wood stoves are supposed to be far enough away from flammable materials as to prevent ignition. Ample space is supposed to be allowed for free circulation of air. Does your installation meet the recommended distances? Have you encroached on the space by stacking wood near the stove?

Chimneys need proper maintenance which includes sweeping and visual inspection for cracks and holes. This is especially true after a chimney fire. Holes and cracks offer access to the surroundings of the chimney and means of entry of very deadly carbon monoxide to the living space. Chimneys with elbows, lateral sections, tees, etc., are more prone to chimney fires since they will have pockets where soot and creosote can collect. When being swept, all of the exhaust system needs to be cleaned. The ideal chimney rises directly up from the bottom to top.

With electrical equipment we encounter a number of names and terms which sound familiar, but as they are without some form of definition, are nearly meaningless to all and, on this occasion, this includes the writer. He keeps the definitions written in the margins of some of his books.

We pay our electrical bill based on the number of kilowatt hours of energy consumed. This is a carry over from the English who also have an energy term, BTU (British Thermal Unit) while in Germany they express energy as t-SKU (tonne-Steinkohleneiinheit) and almost world wide the term barrels of oil is employed. The metric system employs kilocalories and kilo Joules. Alternatively we buy fire wood by the chord, oil by gallons or liters and coal by the ton. Fortunately we can survive without knowing the interrelationships of these terms. The basic terms we need to grasp are: Volts, Direct Current (DC), Alternating Current (AC), Amp, Watt, Ohm, VDC (volts DC) and VAC (volts AC) as well as frequency expressed as Hertz (Hz).

Amp Carrying Capacities of Copper Wire
source: Fretz and Sons

The size of a wire is specified as gauge The higher the gauge, the smaller the diameter of the wire. Note that the length has a role as well in choosing a fuse.

One should carry out a detailed inspection of the household electrical system. Prevention of electrical hazards begins at the main entrance panel and literally branches out from there. The entrance panel will contain either fuses or breakers. There is an Electrical Code which dictates the fuse or breaker to be applied for each branch of circuitry.  Consideration as to wire size is determined by usage of the branch and its associated load.  If a fuse blows or a breaker is thrown, a problem exists in the branch involved. If you cannot identify the cause, contact a qualified electrician.  If there is some form of electric motor in the circuit and you have fuses in the line, you may be able to substitute a time delay fuse of the same amperage. DO NOT substitute a fuse of higher rating than the fuse which has blown.

Extension cords can contribute to an overload of circuits by effectually increasing the over all length of wire. Employing outlet multiplying devices can facilitate plugging in more devices than the circuit can handle. This includes the use of power bars and surge protection devices.

When purchasing electrical devices and electronics, make sure that they are underwriter approved. Be especially careful with items manufactured in countries of origin where there is a history of poor quality control. If the country is sloppy with food quality control, what can you expect in less critical areas?

When purchasing big ticket items, always obtain a recent Consumers Report. If you cannot access one though the Net, use the public library or become a subscriber.