While damage to a home is not something that most new owners want to think about, unfortunately- it’s something you have to. The AHH team likes to properly equip our valued customers with the knowledge to feel comfortable handling any situation. This includes damage related to fire. Did you know that on average, national firefighting services respond to more than 1,000 calls a day? We’d like to hope that this number can be drastically reduced, just by following these simple tips:
Keep an eye on your food, when cooking in a kitchen. We told you they’d be simple tips. We bet you didn’t think that they’d be this easy to follow. But you’d be surprised, how many are not able to follow pieces of advice like this one. Leaving your cooking unattended, even for a minimal amount of time, is one of the leading causes of fires in the home.
Clean that lint out of your dryer. What does your dryer have to do with house fires? Plenty. Dryer fires cause an average of $35 million in property loss, each and every year. Lint collects in the filter, and around the drum within your dryer. If left to its own, it an easily catch fire in tandem with high pressures and temperatures. Clean your lint filter every time you use the dryer. Bonus points for checking your dryer house, at least once every year.
Don’t compromise when it comes to cords. Just because they’re still working “okay,” doesn’t mean you’re doing yourself any favors. Cords that have been around at least a couple of years can cause electric shock, without much warning. It only takes a small shock to snowball into a large fire.
Blow out all candles before you leave the house. This might sound like another doozy, but candles can be unassuming sources of fires. They’re so small and innocent, but with one accidental mishap, they can easily cause a house fire that will spin out of control. Take special heed of this tip if you have pets around.
Keep some space in between your appliances. While minimalism is an increasing trend, and we know that you want to maximize the space available to you, the area that your appliances call home, is not where you want to scrimp on space. When you push your appliances close to each other, the heat that’s generated by each is not able to dissipate into the surrounding air. You should also make sure that each individual appliance is plugged directly into the wall, versus into an extension cord where multiple appliances are taking advantage of the power. Finally, sign up for recall notices, for each and every appliance you have. They’re the best way to be alerted if there is ever a power failure or functionality issue.
Questions? Comments? Concerns? As always, feel free to reach out to the Australian Heritage Homes team. We would love to hear from you.