A fire can happen anywhere, and many homeowners have fallen victim to home fires. That is why it is critical to ensure your home is fireproof. Keep in mind that excess electricity is also a fire hazard in your home. You can do some things to ensure you and your family are safe in case of a fire accident, like installing a smoke alarm system, fire extinguishers, an escape plan, and a fireproof safe deposit box to keep your valuables. Likewise, it is crucial to adopt the following practices to prevent any risks of fire accidents in your home.

Unplug electrical items you are not using

Unplugging electrical devices when they are not running is one of the most critical home fire safety practices. Excess power flowing through plugged items when not in use is a serious potential fire hazard. They can experience a surge or overheat and cause a fire. The continuous electricity flowing into these appliances gives them a source of the fire. Ensure you unplug appliances, TVs, computers, game systems, and other electrical items when not in use.

Never leave a flame unattended.

Whether cooking on a stove, lighting candles, or lighting the fireplace, never leave any fire flame unattended. If you light a blaze in your fireplace to keep your house warm, keep an eye on it. If you are cooking, do not leave the cooker unattended to do other things lest you forget about it. If you light candles for that romantic dinner or shower bath, avoid sleeping and leaving the candles on. By keeping an eye on these flames, you can notice anything unusual and respond quickly.

Keep flammable items away from heat.

Perfumes that contain alcohol, paper, hair, sanitizers, gas cylinders, etc., are some of the items we use at home every day but are highly flammable. Ensure you keep such items away from heat. Before you light up your fireplace, ensure no papers are nearby or anything that can cause a fire. You ought to keep an eye on your heating sources and anything close to them.

Always put out the fire.

Whenever you light a fireplace and want to leave the area, always put out the fire first. Do not go to sleep and assume that leaving the fire on will keep you warm during the night. That is risking your life and the entire house. Also, when you put out the fire, ensure you check again to ensure the fire doesn’t pop back again. Logs with flames inside can continue to smolder and show much later. Ensure you completely smother the fire before leaving the house.

Always turn off heated appliances.

Your dryer, dishwasher, water kettle, iron box, and space heater consume a lot of heat when in use. These are some appliances you should never leave running when you are not at home or using them. They can overheat and cause a fire.

Check the electricals frequently.

A fire caused by electricals can be very hazardous. As a safety practice, always check your electricals from time to time to ensure your wiring system is on point. That is not to say that you should dig walls to check electrical wires. Monitor how the electrical cords run into your home and appliances so that you can notice if any of them is frayed or damaged. Ensure no naked wires are running through your house, and always call a qualified electrician whenever you have a problem.

Use surge protectors

A surge in power refers to when an electrical fire is most likely to happen. By plugging an appliance into a surge protector, excess electricity cannot flow through the item, so you don’t have to worry about excess electricity in it causing a fire. A surge protector keeps the excess electricity out and prevents the risks of an electrical fire in the first place.

Use a smart plug

A smart plug is a simple device you can use to automate the wired appliances in your home by plugging it into an outlet and connecting it to wifi using an app on your smartphone. But smart plugs also come in handy for protecting your home against fire hazards. For example, if you use heat-powered appliances daily like an iron box, plugging it into a smart plug during use allows you to turn it off from your phone remotely. Suppose you leave your house in a hurry and realize later that you forgot to turn the appliance off; a smart plug saves the day.

Take care of your heating system.

Your heating system needs regular maintenance. Remove lint and change the filter from time to time because if lint fills the filter, the heat from the furnace can ignite it causing a fire. This also applies to your dryer. Remove the lint every time you finish doing your laundry.

The bottom line

Maintaining the fire safety of your home means preventing any fire risks in the first place. Fires can pop out anywhere, so ensure you put more effort towards prevention. Schedule regular maintenance for your electrical appliances as well.