January’s tragic fire in the Bronx has reawakened space heater safety measures. These small but mighty producers of heat could be the most dangerous object in your home, especially if you’re not paying attention.
It’s important to take care of everyone in your home and do whatever you can to prevent a fire. Here’s everything you should know about space heater safety tips for every family.
Types of Space Heaters
Purchasing a space heater may seem simple, but paying attention to the details is very important. Make sure you analyze the space heater’s features and determine if it’s prone to overheating.
Being knowledgeable about your space heater could determine whether you’re bringing a fire hazard into your home. Plus, certain space heaters work better with specific families.
Ceramic Fan-Forced
These space heaters let out warm air over a ceramic plate. This makes them perfect for small, compact rooms like bathrooms or bedrooms. They’re generally pretty safe as long as you touch the outside of the space heater.
However, they get very hot quickly, so it’s important not to touch the grill until it has been unplugged and turned off.
Infrared
Sometimes known as quartz heaters, infrared heaters get their name from the warmth that travels in a particular direction. This happens due to infrared beam heat that doesn’t dry out your living area.
They’re not usually designed to warm up an entire room, just a specific area of the space. You shouldn’t get burnt if you touch the sides of this heater, even if it’s plugged in and working.
Mica
Mica space heaters are designed to save energy while warming up a small, compact area. This type of heater is part radiant and convection, meaning it’s energy-efficient and capable of being stored in tight spaces. These space heaters are extremely quiet for people who get annoyed by too much noise.
Water or Oil-Filled
This space heater produces warmth by hot water or oil traveling through the device. These heaters tend to be very effective and warm while being very quiet at the same time. Unfortunately, they can be boiling to the touch, making them dangerous around children and pets.
Built-In Safety Features
Safety features are essential to consider when you have children or pets. Certain space heaters are very effective, but they can get extremely hot, even to the touch.
You’ll want to prevent your children and pets from accidentally touching or bumping into the space heater, especially when they’re running around. Plus, bonus features such as automatic shut-off can keep your home safe from a fire hazard.
Tip-Over Switch
Many fires are caused by space heaters because they fall down or get knocked over. The tip-over switch automatically turns the space heater off if it’s not in the correct position.
This prevents any unexpected fire hazards due to the space heater being misaligned.
Thermostat
Sometimes, space heaters will include an internal thermostat. This tracks the temperature inside to decide whether to stay on or off. The space heater will automatically shut off at an optimal temperature.
Plus, it gives you a chance to look at the indoor temperature and determine if you’d like to turn it up or down.
Automatic Shut-off/Overheat Protection
It’s important to remember that we’re all human. Even if we tell ourselves to turn something off, it’s easy to forget. Many household fires have been caused by people forgetting to turn the space heater off.
Thankfully, modern technology has taken this to heart and included automatic shut-off options for space heaters. These usually have internal timers that turn it off automatically after a certain amount of time. It will also turn off automatically when it notices itself overheating.
Plastic Face
Instead of leaving the grill open for accidental collision, a plastic cover will protect it from outside objects. This can also prevent potential fire hazards from accidentally interacting with the space heater. This can be helpful if you have children and/or pets.
Safety Tips
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Never Leave your Space Heater Unsupervised
Always turn your space heater off when you’re not supervising it, even if you’re sleeping. Think of your space heater like a candle. When there’s a candle burning inside your home, you would never sleep without blowing out the flame.
Thus, why would you ever sleep without turning off your space heater? You shouldn’t even keep it on while going into another room in your house. Turn it off completely and unplug it when you’re done with the space heater.
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Give it Some Space
As a general rule of thumb, always keep your space heater at least 3 feet away from objects, especially if they’re flammable. Even if the object isn’t flammable, it’s a good idea to give your space heater room to distribute warm air around your home properly.
This includes couches, rugs, and curtains. Place your space heater on a firm, flat surface to prevent it from falling over.
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Always Plug your Space Heater Directly Into an Outlet, Never a Power Strip
Sadly, one of the leading causes of fires is overheated space heaters. Many people innocently plug their space heaters into a power strip, leading to devastating house fires.
In reality, power strips are a ticking time bomb for space heaters, especially when they can generate up to 1,500 watts of power. Thus, always plug your space heater directly into an outlet if it overheats, and unplug the device when you’re done with it.
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Look Out for Signs of Damage
Many modern space heaters include safety features that automatically turn off the device if it notices malfunctioning. Unfortunately, older models won’t have these capabilities.
Keep an eye on your space heater to make sure it’s working properly. In general, if something seems off, it’s probably best to get a new space heater. For older, oil-based space heaters, watch out for red flames. Blue flames are a sign of a healthy, working space heater.
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Check your Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms Often
Always make sure you have working carbon monoxide and smoke detectors. The NFPA recommends changing your detector batteries every ten years, no matter how well they appear to be working.
Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors will always be your first line of defense when it comes to home hazards, so it’s essential to make sure they’re working. This is especially important when it comes to carbon monoxide detectors. This lethal gas is colorless, odorless, and completely invisible.
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Don’t Place your Space Heater in High Traffic Areas
Space heaters do their job, and they do it well. Once they’ve warmed up a certain area of your home, they get very hot. Children and pets run around, get curious, and place their hands on things they shouldn’t.
Place it in an area with low foot traffic to prevent your children and/or pets from getting burnt or hurt from the space heater. This will prevent anyone from accidentally bumping into it or getting a little too curious for comfort. Here’s how to adjust the temperature of your water heater.
