With the days getting shorter and the temperature dropping, we’re heading into the season when the majority of house fires occur. Why are there more fires in the winter?  The crisp dry air, coupled with various heating appliances, is to blame for a good number of blazes.  Proper garage organization can prepare you for worst case scenario.  You might be storing flammable liquids in the garage, it’s set apart from the main living areas of the home, and a fire can get quite large before you even realize that anything is burning.  Keep your home and family safe this (and every!) season with these 4 tips for fire safety in the garage:

• Keep the garage cleanThis means that you should not have papers, cardboard boxes and other flammable materials laying around.  Keep these materials away from electrical outlets and flammable liquids, such as gasoline and automotive fluids.  When you are done using a saw or sander, sweep up the sawdust right away.  Keeping the garage decluttered has a lot of benefits, and better fire safety is one of them!
• Store flammable liquids properlyKeep your combustible liquids away from your hot water heater, furnace, space heaters or any other sources of heat that you have in your garage.  It’s best to keep these fluids in a cabinet with a door that closes snugly.  Also, be cautious in using them, and clean up spills immediately. Read more safety tips here!
• Avoid spontaneous combustionThis is the scary name for what might occur if you were to keep oily rags piled up where the oil can create heat.  Heat + air + fuel can create what seems like a spontaneously occurring fire.  If you have an oily rag, hang it up to dry, preferably outdoors.  If you need to do it indoors, just make sure that it’s hanging away from any source of heat.  Don’t bunch up rags or pile them together unless they are dry (remember that oily rags must never be washed or dried in your washing machine or dryer; they continue to present a fire hazard even after they seem clean.)  More importantly, just don’t be dumb, like these people
• Don’t forget to install and maintain fire safety equipment in the garageOne reason why fires can get out of hand in the garage is because you’re not living in this space, so you might not notice a small fire until it is out of control.  Be sure to have a smoke detector in the garage, and make sure it’s wired to the smoke detectors indoors.  That way, if it were to go off, the detectors inside would sound as well, alerting you as soon as the problem is detected.  Change the batteries, as well as the batteries in all of the other smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in the home, at least every six months.  You should also have a fire extinguisher in your garage to put out any small fires that start while you are out there.

Fire safety is an important consideration in all parts of the home.  Don’t neglect this essential component of home safety.  Go over the fire safety rules with your household members periodically, and make sure that you include discussions on how to be aware of the risks of fire in the garage.

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how to make your garage fire safe

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