Fire Safety In The Home: Top Tips and Advice

Congratulations! You have finally moved into your new home.

After all the stress and upheaval of moving to a new home, you are ready to start making your new home your own, these are exciting times.

You may, by now, have started to get yourself organised, have even unpacked all your moving boxes, and are slowly ticking off the items from your to-do list.

It is likely though, that you still have a hundred things to do in your new home.

But fire does not know, nor care. A house fire will not wait until you are prepared and ready to escape it.

Some Facts About House Fires

You have plenty of time to escape a fire, don’t you?

Just how fast does fire spread? 3 minutes is the average time for a fire to engulf your home.

When I used to train Fire Wardens I would always show the Bradford Stadium fire video to demonstrate just how quickly fire spreads. It is well worth watching if you have not seen it before.

Scary huh?

So here are a few more UK fire-related facts (Fire and Rescue Services) to focus our attention on:

• Last year there were 303 fatalities in household fires.
• 7661 people were injured in home fires.
• How common are house fires? Last year there were 162,000 household fires attended by the emergency services.
• How are most home common house fires started? 50% of home fires are started in the kitchen.
• 7% of home fires are caused by smokers – discarded cigarettes for example.
• 36% of home fire fatalities are as a result of cigarette smoking.

You may also like to read: How to Childproof Your New Home. In this guide, we take you through the process of childproofing your new home room by room.

Fire kills, and Kills Regularly

How quickly does a house fire spread?

From when a fire starts, you have 3 minutes to get out of your house to safety. Fire will spread that quickly.

It is, therefore, a priority to consider fire precautions in a new home.

Do you have a fire safety plan for your family and home? Did you make a fire evacuation plan?

No? Then you should make a fire escape plan NOW.

In this article, we will offer you top tips on preventing household fires, and crucially, how to make a fire escape plan for your home, should the worst happen.

Always remember:

Your number one priority, in the event of a fire, is to get yourself and your family out of the home, and to safety. GET OUT. STAY OUT. Never return to a burning building.

You may also like to read: Top Tips for Securing Your New Home. On the subject of keeping your family safe in your new home be sure to read this guide which offers lots of useful tips on securing your new home.

Fire Precautions for Your New Home

How do you prevent house fires? Here are our top tips to prevent a fire starting in your home.

• Get the electrical system and any gas appliances checked by a qualified tradesperson. If renting, ensure there is a valid electrical, and gas, safety certificate in place.
• Never leave candles unattended, and use only on stable surfaces, in suitable candle holders.
• When using candles consider where you place them, can the cat knock them over? Or can the dog hit the candle with its tail?
• Keep matches and cigarette lighters out of the reach of children.
• Position furniture at least two metres away from functioning open fires or electric fires.
• Have the chimney swept, and then swept regularly, if you have a functioning open fire.
• Empty cigarette ashtrays into a metal container outside the home before you go to bed.
• Ban smoking in the bedroom, one of the major causes of house fires.
• Keep a fire extinguisher on each level of the house.
• Keep a supply of batteries for the smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. You can guarantee they will need replacing in the middle of the night, or when the shops are closed!
• If hair tongs or hairdryers are used in the house, get a fireproof mat to rest them on when they have finished being used, this will allow them to cool safely before being stored.
• The best prevention of all is to ensure your family is aware of the dangers of fire and the hazards that contribute to a fire. Be fire-aware.

You may also like to read: How to Make a New Place Feel Like Home. In this guide, we share a strategy to help you get to know your new town or city quicker so that you easily settle into your new surroundings.

Fire Evacuation Plan

You should have prepared a fire escape plan before you moved into your new home as part of your home moving checklist.

If you did not, then you need to make a fire evacuation plan TODAY.

Consider each of the following points when you make a fire escape plan:

• Each room should have two routes of escape. Ideally through two doors, but a door and a window are more likely.
• Each fire escape option should have a different route to the exterior of the home.
• Keep exit passageways and doorways clear at all times.
• If using windows as an escape route, keep the areas beneath the window clear, inside and out.
• Make sure all the family knows where the keys are for the locked doors and windows that you will use as fire exits.
• Designate a family assembly point, at the front of, but a safe distance from, the front of the property.
• Ensure the whole family knows every fire escape route to take, from any part of the home, should a fire break out. Smoke, in the event of a fire, will disorientate you.
• Practice your fire evacuation drill regularly, at least twice a year. But preferably every few months.
• Practice the drill during the day and when dark outside. Things will look very different in the dark, especially for children.
• When planning a fire drill at home, make your home fire evacuation practices more challenging by blocking a main escape route, or removing the key to an escape door from its usual location.
• Teach the family to keep low during the fire evacuation practice. Smoke rises and the cleanest air will be nearest the floor.
• Use the smoke alarm test button during the fire evacuation drill so that the family gets used to the sound of the alarm, and therefore it will be an automatic reaction to evacuate in a real fire situation.
• Consider what would happen if the family were trapped in a room, with no means of escape. Teach them how to seal door frames to prevent smoke from entering the room using curtains, clothing, or towels. Teach them to stay low where the least toxic smoke is.
• Teach the family to use the back of their hand to test if a closed door they are about to open is hot. Do not grip metal door handles, test the door panels. If the door is warm, DO NOT OPEN IT. There is likely to be fire on the other side, and opening the door may cause a fire flash. Use an alternative exit.
• When evacuating a room or building, if it is safe to do so, and will not delay your escape, close any doors that you exit through. It will delay the spread of the fire.
• Teach the family to walk, not run when exiting the building in an emergency. You do not want to risk falling over and being injured.
• Ensure every member of the family, especially children, knows how to call the fire brigade, and what your home address and postcode are.
• Consider a collapsible fire escape ladder if you have upper floors in your home. Keep one on each upper floor, but make sure it is long enough to reach ground level, and you know how to safely use it.
• If there are any special considerations specific to your family, for example, a deaf or disabled person, create a fire evacuation plan taking their needs into account. This may include fire alarms with strobe lights or vibrating alarms. Ensure you designate family members to assist them, if it is safe to do so, in an evacuation.
• Remember to review your fire evacuation plans regularly, and certainly, if you make any alterations to your new home layout.
• Keep a fully charged mobile phone next to your bed at night.

You may also like to read: Simple First Aid Skills. In this guide, we share some simple first-aid skills that all the family can learn because the majority of accidents happen within the home.

Fire Safety in the Kitchen

What is the leading cause of home fires? Cooking.

The kitchen is by far the most likely place where a fire will occur.

Pay special attention to this part of your fire prevention planning.

• Ensure a fire blanket and fire extinguisher are kept in the kitchen, and ensure you know how to use them. They should be situated between the oven and the exit door.
• Check the expiry dates of extinguishers as required, and replace them when necessary.
• Never leave oven top pans unattended.
• Keep pot handles facing inward to prevent hot oils from being knocked over.
• Keep flammable items, like tea towels, away from the oven.
• Do not wear loose-fitting clothes whilst cooking as you could catch them on a boiling pan of oil.
• Never cook with hot oil having consumed large amounts of alcohol. Many fires are related to this activity.
• Ensure clothes dryer filters are cleared before each use. The lint is highly combustible.
• Place a heat-sensitive detector, rather than a smoke detector, or fire alarm outside the kitchen door. 
• You may even consider fire suppressant or fire retardant paint for the kitchen. These paints, or paint additives, will delay, prevent, or suppress the spread of flames. 

Smoke Alarms

3 out of 5 fire-related deaths occur in homes with no smoke detectors, or in homes where the smoke detectors have drained or removed batteries. Ensure you keep a supply of spare batteries in the house specifically for your detectors.

• There should be at least one smoke alarm on each level of the house.
• Extra alarms should be inside and outside each bedroom or sleeping area.
• Alarm batteries should be replaced immediately they indicate they need replacing, and at least once every year. Use a memorable day, like BST clock change day, so you know when to change the batteries.
• Test alarms monthly.
• Clean the detectors monthly.

Carbon Monoxide Alarms

• There should be one carbon monoxide alarm on each level of the house.
• Alarm batteries should be replaced immediately they indicate they need replacing, and at least once every year. Use a memorable day, like BST clock change day, so you know when to change the batteries.
• Test alarms monthly
• Clean the detectors monthly.

 Electrical Appliances

• Do not overload sockets with extension leads.
• Use extension leads that have a built-in fuse.
• Check that any electrical cables are not frayed or damaged.
• Ensure correctly rated fuses are used in all appliances.
• Floor-standing heaters should have a safety shut-off should they get knocked over. 

You may also like to read: How to Not Get Overwhelmed With Unpacking After a Home Move. Unpacking can be just as bad as packing and the danger is that boxes will be left unpacked and may even block an escape route during a fire. In this guide, we show you how not to become overwhelmed with unpacking after moving.

Fire Precautions for the Garden, Shed, or Garage and BBQ Fire Safety

Don’t forget to make a fire escape plan for your garden too. Fire will spread just as quickly outdoors as indoors, especially during the drier months of the year.

Fire Prevention Tips for Your Garden

• Use BBQs in areas at least 2 metres from anything flammable.
• Dispose of BBQ ashes in metal containers.
• If using a disposable BBQ, place it on a stable, non-combustible surface.
• If using a gas BBQ and you smell gas. Turn it off immediately.
• Only have a bonfire on wind-free days.
• Use a metal container for garden fires.
• Keep a bucket of sand, a bucket of water, or the hosepipe close by when having a garden bonfire.
• Keep flammable liquids out of direct sunlight.
• Only refill the fuel tanks of garden appliances in open spaces.
• Keep a fire extinguisher in the shed or garage.
• Write a fire evacuation plan for your garden, especially for those summer garden parties.

Another consideration for your new home should be a fire-proof safe, or box, for all your important and irreplaceable documents.

Alternatively, photograph or scan any important documents, especially insurance policies, and upload them to a cyber storage facility that has good cyber security.

Don’t forget that fire precautions are especially important when you have guests who are unfamiliar with your home layout.

You may also like to read: How to Throw an Unforgettable Housewarming Party. From planning to clearing up, here are some great tips to make your housewarming party a real success.

When you organize your home warming party, or a ‘’get to know your new neighbours party’’, don’t forget to consider your guests’ safety too, especially if they are staying in your home overnight.

Consider a fire evacuation plan posted on the fridge door, on the back of the front door, and on the back of bedroom doors. Ensure that your guests know your evacuation plan.

And after the celebration, make sure all those cigarette ashtrays are safely outside your home.

A few minutes of planning and a few sensible precautions will ensure it is a housewarming, not a house inferno.

We hope you found this guide useful so be sure to visit our home moving blog which has plenty more useful tips to help you settle into your new home.