7 ways to protect your home from fire damage.

As much as no one builds a house or moves into one with the intent of having their home burnt in a fire, domestic fire damages are still a common occurrence and will likely continue for a while. The knowledge of how to protect your home from a fire is crucial as it could be the difference between life and death or injuries and loss of property.

When talking about fighting fires, it is common knowledge that it is better to be proactive than to be reactive. In this article, you will find seven ways you can drastically reduce the chances of having a fire incident in your home.

1. Keep flammable items away when not in use.

A lot of objects and materials require very little persuasion to burn easily. Some of the flammable materials are hay, straw, plywood, rugs, curtains, paper, and foil.

You can protect your home from fire damage that can be caused by these materials by ensuring that they are kept as far away as possible from any source of the fire. You should also ensure that there are no curtains or blinds close to your cooker or stove, as well as your fireplace in the living room.

2. Check your smoke detectors.

Ever heard the saying, “no smoke without fire”? Well, this isn’t always true, but you can’t afford to err on the side of caution here now, can you? 

Smoke detectors are an excellent way to inform you when there is a potential or actual fire threat to your home. They are reliable and can save you a fortune or a home.

Your smoke detector, however, has to be in good working condition for it to be of use to you. Ensure that your smoke detector is well-serviced, with the batteries in good shape, and place the sensor in a position where any alarm can be easily heard by the occupants of the house.

3. Control smoking within the home.

If there are members of your family who smoke, or you have visitors who tend to smoke when they visit, it would be wise to have a designated area or space in your home (preferably outdoors), where people who smoke can do so freely.

There should also be ashtrays to put ash and used cigarette butts after smoking. Not only will this practice reduce the risk of fires, but it will also protect the health of non-smokers in the home.

4. Keep lighters, matchsticks, etc away from children.

Because children are born without knowledge of their environment, they have a natural curiosity that makes them want to know, even if they cannot understand the elements of their environment. Fewer things draw their attention than fire, and they are naturally drawn to experiment with it.

To protect your home from fire damage, ensure that anything that can ignite a spark such as a lighter or a box of matches is safely kept away from your children, especially the very young ones. This will protect your home from fire and protect your children too.

5. Put away decorations when the holidays are over.

Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, 4th of July, etc. are cheerful times people spend with family and friends. These holidays are incomplete without decorations, and over time, these decorations have proven to significantly contribute to causing fires, as many lights used for decorations have a chance of starting fires.

To eliminate this risk, ensure that decorations that involve lights, especially candles, are kept in a safe place, and put away as soon as you can after the holiday has ended.

6. Safe use of appliances.

Electrical appliances within the room can increase the risk of fire damage in the home, especially when the house wiring is poorly done.

In addition, appliances such as electric ovens, cookers, hot plates, and pressing iron can start fires as a result of overvoltage or negligence.

Ensure that these appliances are in good condition before and during use, and put them away properly after use, if possible.

7. Proper awareness campaigns on fire risk and safety measures.

Family members and other home dwellers cannot afford to act on ignorance when fire safety is concerned. As everyone will potentially be affected by a fire incident, all hands must be on deck to ensure that such an event is avoided by all possible means.

To achieve this, other occupants of the home should be educated on the dangers of fire, safety drills in the event of an outbreak, the use of fire extinguishers, and how to dial 911 and report an emergency if a fire should break out.

While fire damage can be a result of mistakes and most times unexpected, you do not have to be affected by it. However, in cases of fire accidents, our crew of expert technicians is available 24/7 to be of help in your property restoration.