Heat Your Home Safely, Protect Pipes: Advice from Red Cross CT Chapter

Tips from the American Red Cross Connecticut Chapter:

Heat Your Home Safely

As families turn to alternative heating sources to supplement their home heating systems, they should take the following precautions:

• Use caution with portable space heaters - Heating equipment is the leading cause of home fires during the winter months, according to the National Fire Prevention Association. About two-thirds of home heating fire deaths are caused by portable or fixed space heaters.
  • To prevent fire, place space heaters at least three feet away from anything combustible, including wallpaper, bedding, clothing, pets and people.
  • Never leave space heaters operating when you are not in the room or when you go to bed. Don’t leave children or pets unattended near space heaters.
  • Drying wet mittens or other clothing over space heaters is a fire hazard.
• Make sure smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms are working properly and replace batteries as necessary. REMEMBER: smoke alarms have a finite lifetime and should be replaced after 10 years. Many newer models have long-life batteries that do not need replacing during their 10 year lifespan. More information about preventing home fires is available by clicking here.
• Don’t overload your electrical outlets when plugging in space heaters. Be careful of extension cords that present hazardous walkways.
• Have your chimney connections and flues inspected by a professional and cleaned if necessary prior to the start of every heating season.
• Use a sturdy fireplace screen when burning fires. Burn only wood - never burn paper or pine boughs.
• Create a disaster supplies kit — Get together lifesaving items in both your home and vehicle. Visit www.redcross.org/prepare for more information on disaster preparedness.

Prevent Frozen Pipes

Many homeowners may not be ready for frigid weather either. Now is the time to protect your house pipes from freezing and bursting. With the cold weather upon us, preventive action may make all the difference.

• Keep garage doors closed if there are water supply lines in the garage or in walls adjacent to the garage.
• Open kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors to allow warmer air to circulate around the plumbing. Be sure to move any harmful cleaners and household chemicals up out of the reach of children.
• When the temperature is very low outside, let the cold water drip from faucets served by exposed pipes or pipes in exterior walls. Running water through the pipe - even at a trickle - helps prevent pipes from freezing because the temperature of the water running through it is above freezing.
• Keep the thermostat set to the same temperature both during the day and at night. By temporarily suspending the use of lower nighttime temperatures, you may incur a higher heating bill, but you can prevent a much more costly repair job if pipes freeze and burst.
• If you will be going away during cold weather, leave the heat on in your home, set to a temperature no lower than 55ºF.
• More information on preventing and thawing frozen pipes is available here.

Image: Darien Patch file photo