House Fires

Basics

• Fires in Residential Environments
• This page (at least for now) excludes Multi-Unit Housing and Forest Fires
  • ie just fires that start inside, and they are in Single Family Housing

Causes

• An Article by the Insurance Company "State Farm" Titled "Leading causes of house fires and how to prevent them"
  • Cooking
  • Candles
  • Heating Systems / Fireplaces and Electrical Wiring
  • Smoking
  • Christmas Trees

Potential Solutions

• Granted more / better sources needed; full on statistics etc
• HOWEVER:
  • Have Kitchen Fire Extinguishers in Place (Or Even Looking into those Kitchen Fire Suppression Systems (The automatic ones you see in Commercial Kitchens etc, also Kitchen Exhaust Duct Cleaning )
  • Typical Candle Safety Etiquette (Common sense stuff)
    • More risky than just putting stuff out (although to an extent it may be more Fail Safe) for Pillar Candles one could use one of these interesting Automatic Mechanical Candle Snuffer things like this
      • All we need a clockwork one for Yankee Candle-type glass jar ones...might be a project for another day (almost akin to a cantilever umbrella being lowered via a chain / wind up mechanism)
  • Don't use Space Heaters unless as a last resort
  • This one ties into both Space Heaters , Christmas Trees, and just In-General Use:
    • Use Properly Rated Extension Cords (One can plug in a small Wire Gauge one designed for a 15 Amp Outlet into a 20 Amp Outlet etc)
  • Keep Christmas Trees Watered/Green so they don't essentially become the great Firestarting Materials that are Pine Cones and Fatwood ...
  • Smoking Cessation (Although that is very hard, so simply having Designated Outdoor Smoking Zones and Proper Disposal etc)

Internal Links

• Single Family Residential vs Multi-Family Residential Code Comparison
  • Given the more strict codes in terms of Firestopping etc, a comparison may be interesting in terms of Property Damage and overall Mortality (Also occurrence)

External Links

• The Wikipedia Page On Structure Fires]