Home Fire Safety Assessment – Did you know that the kitchen, sleeping areas, and living room are the areas of the house where the majority of fires occur?
Are you safe from fire in your home?
To help you keep your home safe from fire, the fire services suggest using this straightforward safety checklist.
- The first step in your home fire safety plan is to install enough suitable smoke alarms and regularly test them. In the event of a fire, smoke alarms provide you with an early warning and an opportunity to escape the house to a safe location. Only a working smoke alarm can save lives.
To maintain working smoke alarms, follow these steps:
- Change the batteries in your alarm once a year at the same time.
- At the beginning of each month, test your alarm by pressing the test button and listening for the beep.
- Clean your alarm at least once a year to keep it free of dust.
- Every ten years, change smoke alarms.
Understand that smoke alarms are not always heard by children younger than five. Install smoke alarms just outside your home’s sleeping areas to sound the alarm before smoke reaches anyone asleep. You can also put in a smoke alarm in the bedroom of your child and in the bedrooms of people who sleep with their doors closed for extra security.
READ: 11 Things You Should Check During Fire Extinguisher Testing
Smoke alarms should be installed on all levels of multistory homes and apartments, including those just outside the bedrooms and near the exit route. The use of photoelectric smoke alarms is advised. These alarms are required for homes in some states by law. Visit the website of your local fire department for information on the kind and location of smoke alarms that are required in your state or territory.
Other Home Safety Tips
- Having a written escape plan and regularly practicing it in case of fire.
- If you need to get out, make sure the keys to all locked doors are easily accessible.
- Never leave cooking, candles, or oil burners unattended, or any other open flame.
- Clean your clothes dryer’s lint filter each and every time you use it.
- Never smoke in bed, and if you’re smoking while drinking, be extra careful.
- When using heaters, electric blankets, or open fires during the winter, exercise extra caution.
- Switch off appliances when not in use and avoid overloading power points.
- Keep lighters and matches away from children at all times and teach them that they are tools, not toys that only responsible adults should use.
- Remember to always refuel mowers, edger’s, and other equipment when they are cold and out in the open if you have a shed, garage, or other storage area.
- Before lighting a gas, electric, or wood barbecue, ensure that it is in safe working order and that it is always in the hands of a responsible adult.
- Remember to clean your gutters on a regular basis if you live in a bushfire-prone area. Clear the ground around your home of leaves and other debris.
- Make sure that everyone in the house knows what to do in the event of a fire and your emergency fire action plan. Practice the plan with other people in the house to make sure it works and everyone knows it.
Home Fire Safety Assessment
An organized and methodical look at your property, the activities that are carried out there, and the likelihood that a fire could start and harm those inside or nearby are all part of a fire risk assessment.
The most important findings of a fire risk assessment, the actions that need to be taken, and the details of anyone who is especially at risk must be recorded. Even if you are not required by law to do so, keeping a record of your assessment, is helpful.
The risk assessment’s objectives are:
- To determine the fire dangers;
- To lower as much as possible the likelihood that those dangers will cause harm;
- To figure out what physical fire safety measures and management strategies are needed to keep people safe in the event of a fire.
How would you complete a fire risk evaluation?
Your fire risk assessment must be carried out in a practical and methodical manner, and you must allocate sufficient time for its proper completion. It must take into consideration the entirety of your property, including any outdoor areas and rooms or areas that are rarely used. You might be able to evaluate your premises as a whole if they are small. You might find it helpful to divide larger spaces into rooms or using natural boundaries.
In order to comply with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order, you are required to appoint one or more competent individuals to carry out any necessary preventative and protective measures. This person could be you, a worker with the right training, or, if necessary, a third party.
Your risk assessment needs to show that you have taken into account the requirements of all relevant individuals, including disabled people.
Refer to the NFCC Fire Safety Risk Assessment Guidance if you want to hire a professional risk assessor.
Tips for staying safe in the event of a fire hazard
Keep in mind that the smoke from a fire will confuse you and you won’t be able to smell smoke while you sleep, and it will actually help you sleep better. Take note of these;
- Remember to stay outside and dial the emergency code of your country once you get out of a home fire.
- Heating systems that use oil, gas, or wood may require an annual maintenance check. Use only fuses with a rating that is recommended, and install an electrical safety switch.
- It is a good idea to have a fire extinguisher and fire blanket that meet home fire safety. These are available from hardware stores. Keep them near the kitchen’s entrance and exit, as well as anywhere else a fire could start.
- Water should never be used to extinguish a fat, electrical, or oil fire. The majority of small house fires can be put out with a 1 kg dry chemical extinguisher. Before using the extinguisher, read the instructions carefully. Additionally shake it sometimes to keep the powder from settling.
In the event that:
You are able to put out the fire quickly; you are not putting your life in danger by remaining close to it; everyone else has left the area; and you are aware that your extinguisher is appropriate for putting out the kind of fire you are dealing with.
READ: How Often Should You Test Fire Alarms In The Workplace?
Call the emergency line and ask for the fire department so that firefighters can investigate after you have used your extinguisher. For instance, you might not have been aware that the fire had entered the ceiling. Know that household fire extinguishers are made to be used once, so after using once, you should get a new one as soon as possible.
Note: Check thoroughly, the guidelines for utilizing the fire cover before using it.
When and how to use a fire blanket are as follows:
- Utilize a fire cover to cover fires or to fold over individuals on the off chance that their garments catches fire.
- Place the blanket carefully over the fire and a burning pot instead of throwing it over it.
- Put the blanket over the pot and turn off the heat source. The firefighters will remove the blanket, so do not.
- Contact the fire department.
Online Home Fire Safety Check
The National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) and Fire Kills & Safelincs collaborated to create this user-friendly online home fire safety check. It is interactive and includes helpful illustrations as well as advice that is specific to each home and focuses on real-world situations. In Great Britain, there are approximately 35,000 house fires each year, resulting in over 300 deaths. You can lessen the likelihood of a fire by carrying out this quick and simple assessment of your house and adhering to the recommendations.
The online home fire safety check tool was officially launched at the NFCC’s Prevention and Protection Conference, which was attended by fire and rescue services from across the country. It is easy to use, interactive, and takes less than 15 minutes to complete. You receive a personalized fire safety action plan to help keep you and your household safe from fire and localized support and advice. T
he questions and advice have been written in consultation with the fire service and are based on real fire risks that are commonly found in homes. By entering your postcode at the start of your assessment, you can get specific information from your local fire department about fire safety. Your information will never be used for anything else.
