Thursday, March 26, 2015

Tips For Fire Prevention

The other day I got a group email saying that plastic air freshener plug ins could cause fires.  Since that's a pretty commonplace device for most of us, I decided to find out if this was fact or fiction. So, I contacted an online  bud, whose husband just happens to be a firefighter and got the skinny. 
Yes, plastic fragrance plug ins can cause fires.
She also mentioned that dryer vents should be cleaned after every use. I knew this but I wasn't aware they are one of the top causes of house fires. And to add to that, my appliance repairman suggests getting the dryer ventilation blown out every two years.
And last but not least, sleep with the bedroom door closed. If a fire breaks out in another part of the house, it can give you precious minutes to escape.

16 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

We just cleaned out our dryer vent this weekend. Yeah, it's wonder we hadn't set the dryer on fire...

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

The dryer tubing. Not the vent. Just wanted to clarify.

Pat Hatt said...

Never knew that about the air fresheners. Got sprinklers in my apartment, so if it goes up in smoke, I'll just get wet haha

CJ Kennedy said...

Never knew that about the air fresheners. I stopped buying them sometime ago, because they were getting too expensive.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Oh bummer. We have those Bath and Body fragrance plug ins all over the house.

Birgit said...

I knew about this:) The dryer vent is a big problem many people have. Our next door neighbour had a major fire because of this. My hubby cleans the hose for the dryer yearly. I empty the vent every time I use the dryer

Sandra Cox said...

Good for you, Alex.

Sandra Cox said...

That's great, Pat!

Sandra Cox said...

Sounds like its just as well you stopped buying them:)

Sandra Cox said...

I just got rid of mine, Diane.

Sandra Cox said...

Good for both of you.

Stephanie Faris said...

I have the Bath & Body Works diffusers. They do have a heat element in them, though. I guess I need to throw them out.

Stephanie Faris said...

I was so worried, I Googled...I still may remove them, but the below Snopes on it makes sense--wiring seems to be the top culprit. Funny, as much as we always worry about leaving the iron/curling iron on, few fires seem to be caused by that!

http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/household/glade.asp

DMS said...

Always great to have safety reminders. I always slept with my bedroom door open- but in the past few years I have been sleeping with it closed. Glad it is safer and I will definitely not go back to leaving it open. :)
~Jess

The Happy Whisk said...

I don't use these but I know someone who does and I'll pass along the info. Thanks bunches and boogie boogie.

Unknown said...

:( well, aren't I lucky that I read your post. I'll stick to my non-plug in air fresheners then. And I definitely need to clean out my hair dryer vent, because it's never been cleaned…in he three years I've had it. Yikes!