Zimpapers Logo

THE winter season typically sees a peak in residential fires caused by heating equipment each year. Heating is the second leading cause of home fires after cooking.

Here is helpful list of winter heating safety tips to keep our customers and their families safe and sound throughout the season. With a little planning and a few simple steps, any homeowner can make sure their family stays warm — and safe — throughout the heating season.

Winter Safety Tips

Keep flammable materials at least three feet away from furnaces, fireplaces, wood stoves and space heaters. Twenty-nine percent of fires that spread past the object of origin happened because the heat source (space heater or fireplace) was too close to things that can burn.

Never use an oven or stove top to heat your home. Kitchen ovens were never designed for heating homes, only for cooking food.

Have a qualified professional inspect and clean your heating system annually. Check the area around your furnace or boiler. Many heating equipment fires are a result of flammable materials and substances being kept too close to the furnace. Keep fuel, paint and other flammable materials far away from your heating system.

Never leave space heaters unattended or run them overnight while you are sleeping. Space heaters should also be plugged directly into a wall. Do not use an extension cord or power strip as they can overheat and cause a fire.

Keep anything that can burn at least 1 metre away from heating equipment, like your furnace, fireplace or portable space heater.

Have a 1 metre  designated “kids free zone” around open fires and space heaters.

Plug only one  heat producing appliance (such as a space heater or portable radiator) into one electrical outlet at a time.

Remember to always turn portable heaters off when leaving any room or before going to bed.

Always use the correct fuel, specific by the manufacturer, for fuel burning space heaters.

If you smell gas in your home or coming from your gas heater, do not light the appliance. Leave your home immediately and call your local fire department or gas company.

Never leave candles burning unattended.

Heating equipment safety tips

Have a qualified professional install stationary space heating equipment, water heaters or central heating equipment according to local codes and manufacturer’s instructions.

Install wood burning stoves following manufacturer’s instructions or have a professional do the installation. All fuel-burning equipment should be vented to the outside to avoid carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning. We can help with your installation needs 

Have heating equipment and chimneys cleaned and inspected every year by a qualified professional.

Keep portable generators away from windows and use them as far away from the house as possible. We can help you with any portable generator installation, instruction or service 

Make sure that your fireplace has a sturdy screen to stop sparks flying into the room.

Fire ashes should always be cool before putting them into any kind of covered, metal container.

Never put ashes into a plastic container.

Keep fireplace ashes containers a safe distance away from your home.

Stay safe by using these home heating safety tips and remember, as your local home service experts, we can take care of all of your comfort needs. – meenan.com