Promoting Fireplace Safety in the Home

Posted by Tyler on Jan 30, 2012 in Preparation, Safety | 0 comments

With winter here many families are turning to their fireplaces to bring heat and comfort to their homes.  According to the U.S. Fire Administration over 1/3 of American homes utilize a fireplace, a wood stove, and/or fuel-fired appliances in order to work as a primary source of heat. It is also estimated that residential home fires resulting from a home heating source are in the range of 36%. The chances of such home fires can be greatly reduced once home owners become acquainted with the risks and the safety measures that can be taken against such damage.

One of the most important elements of owning and operating any type of fire-based heating source is that regular maintenance is not just a recommendation to keep their fireplace or wood stove long-lasting; it is a necessity to keep their fire-based heating source safe. The USFA instructs that chimneys and wood stoves must be cleaned and inspected annually by the accredited professionals, such as a certified chimney specialist, and it is recommended that this inspection take place before the need for use arises.

Other measures to be taken to avoid increased risk of fire with fireplace use are as follows; make sure the hearth and surrounding area is cleared of all debris, flammable materials and decorations (fireplace screens are a recommended way to add even more protection and hearth area), leave glass doors cracked or open when a fire is burning in order to allow for enough air flow to keep the fire from complete combustion and to keep the creosote build up in the chimney at lower levels, once the fire is out make sure to close the glass doors to keep the air from the opening of the chimney from entering the room, if a fireplace does not have a glass door than always utilize a metal mesh screen, have stovepipe thermometers installed in order to monitor the flue temperatures, and never restrict the air flow supply to a fireplace as it may lead to creosote build up and chimney fires.

There are also very important fire safety tips that must be learned and followed by anyone that may start or tend a fireplace in the home. Never under any circumstances should a flammable liquid be utilized to start a fire. It is too dangerous and too inexact a science for such measures to be risked. Only seasoned hardwoods should be used to build a fire as soft, moist wood will undoubtedly lead to the increased build up of creosote in the chimney. Building small fire and letting them burn completely leads to less smoke production. Cardboard boxes, debris and/or trash should never be used when building a fireplace fire. Fire logs should be placed at the back of the fireplace on top of an adequate grate when building a fire.

A fire should never be left unattended. If a fire has not burned out completely but no one can stay with it the fire must be extinguished. Hot ashes should be soaked in water and then placed into a metal container and placed outside of the home for optimum safety. All residences must be equipped with fire alarms on each level of the home, especially in the rooms where fireplaces and cooking occur, and outside of all sleeping areas. Fire alarms need to be checked monthly with batteries replaced as soon as is necessary. All fireplace ventilation precautions need to be checked often as well.

The Nightmare of Losing Your Wedding Ring

Posted by Jacob on Jan 27, 2012 in Preparation | 0 comments

It’s every married couple’s worst nightmare. An expensive piece of jewelry that is small and you take just about everywhere you go.  It is estimated that 13% of men lose their wedding ring within the first 3 months of getting married. That means that millions of black tungsten wedding bands are probably sitting on the side of the road or deep in the couch cushion somewhere. It’s tough to think about a beautiful princess cut diamond that cost thousands of dollars just gone, but unfortunately it happens. Hopefully it never happens to you, but chances are pretty good that either you or your spouse will lose their wedding ring at some point in your marriage.

So what can you do to help? Well first, if you haven’t lost your ring yet, consider getting insurance. They will replace or fix your ring if you lose it, it’s stolen, or it’s damaged. For a reasonable price you can insure your rings (mens rings can be as low as $5 per year depending on the value of the ring–it usually comes to about $10 of insurance cost per $1000 value of the ring, so if you have a ring worth about $3,000 you will pay about $30 per year of insurance.

It is important to get in the habit of putting your ring in the same place every time you take it off.  If you take it off at night then have a

designated place to put your items when you get home such as your phone or keys, put your ring there also.  This will help you get into a good habit and not put your ring somewhere that you’ll forget later.

If you’ve already lost your ring there are a couple of tips. First, don’t delay looking for it. If you realize that you aren’t sure where it is immediately think about the last place you had it and start looking. Think about things that were different from your normal routine and where you might have put your ring if you took it off during the out of the ordinary event. If you can’t remember the last time you had it you can review recent pictures and see if you can tell whether or not you had your ring on. That can help you pinpoint a time that you may have lost it, then think about things that you were doing at the time and see if that helps you narrow down where it might be.

If you haven’t been able to find it right after you lost it, wait a few weeks before you look at replacing your ring. Often it will turn up in a pocket in a piece of clothing you don’t wear too often or in the laundry or a random place in your house or car.

If all else fails and you still can’t find it consider a cheaper alternative to buy you more time. You can buy inexpensive rings online—especially men’s rings that are good quality if you know where to look. For women, a cubic zirconium ring can look like an authentic wedding ring for cheap giving yourself more time to find the ring. Hopefully you can take precautions before something happens, but remember that while your ring symbolizes your love for your spouse, it can’t be taken away just by losing your ring. Get a cheap alternative until you can replace the real deal and then make sure to get insurance!