Home Fire Safety Tips and Preparation
Since May is National Barbecue Month, now is the time to brush up on your home fire safety knowledge. As you roll out the grill and invite neighbors over for a backyard cookout, a fire accident is probably the last thing on your mind. The summer has arrived, and it’s time to enjoy it! But stepping into the situation without concern for home fire safety or any preparation could lead to disaster. Whereas, if you have gone through the necessary preparations, you’ll be better equipped to handle whatever happens.
So to give you and your family peace of mind this summer, consider these six home fire safety tips pertaining to grilling:
- Give Your Grill Space – Rain or shine, your grill should never be positioned beneath an overhanging tree, awning, etc. In addition, it’s best to have at least two feet of cleared space around the grill on all sides. That means you should keep it away from wooden railings and house siding, too.
- Assess Your Equipment – Before your first barbecue of the season, check for a rusty tank, cracked hose, or corroded couplings. Each of these would send out dangerous fumes that could lead to a yard or house fire.
- Kindle a Dead Flame – If your flame is dying, avoid using lighter fluid to revive it. Instead, opt for kindling. This home fire safety tip will help you keep the fire within your control.
- Be Vigilant – Don’t leave your grill cooking unattended, even for a few minutes. Keeping an eye on it allows you to shut the lid and suffocate the fire if anything seems awry.
- Proper Ash Dispersal – Ashes should be removed after each use and dumped into a bucket full of water. Make sure the bucket is metal. After a day has passed, bury the watery ashes in the yard.
- Extinguisher at the Ready – Knowing where you have a fire extinguisher in the house isn’t sufficient if the grill were to flame up. The minutes spent fetching it could mean the difference in salvaging your yard, deck, or entire house. It’s important to instead keep the extinguisher outside and ready in case of a problem.
Following these six home fire safety tips for grilling is a good foundation for a safe summer home. Another measure you can take in fire preparation is to inventory your belongings. Normal household spring cleaning is the opportune time to create a log by taking photographs. The photos should be stored online or away from the house. If fire, flood, or theft occurs, they can then be used to calculate the loss for insurance purposes. You can also use the log as a visual reference for things you’ll need to replace.
For further home fire safety improvements, consider an electrical inspection from Inspect-It 1st.