Wires that carry power around the home cause an overwhelmingly high number of electrical fires. If we dig deeper into these figures, 67% of the fires in this first category are related directly to issues with electrical wiring (that means that wiring issues cause about 33% of all home electrical).
The takeaway? Make sure you use a professional certified electrician to do your home wiring!
Other electrical items in this category include lamps, bulbs, plugs, cords, and transformers.
Overloaded power boards, for example, are a severe problem—over 5,300 house fires are caused by full power boards yearly! So make sure you only use the allocated number of outlets on a power board and never stack power boards.
Some good electrical safety tips include:
Kitchen fires account for over 50% of all household fires, but not all are electrical fires. Instead, many kitchen fires are caused by burning food or oil spills.
Electrical fires involving kitchen appliances account for just 15% of all electrical-type fires. However, faulty toasters, electric stoves, and other devices can cause these fires.
When electrical wires in kitchen equipment wear thin, they can start causing sparks that can lead to deadly outcomes when exposed to cooking supplies like vegetable oil.
Heating equipment fire safety, including space heaters, boilers, and ducted heating, causes 9% of all electrical house fires in the US.
Space heaters are hazardous. People often leave their clothes on the heaters to dry, and these clothes can catch fire very quickly. Drying your clothes on a space heater is a terrible idea!
Heat is one of the three factors required for a fire to start (the other two being fuel and oxygen – we call this the fire triangle).
Fans are a surprisingly significant safety hazard in electrical fires. A stalled motor, frayed power cord insulation, and poor switch endurance can lead to fan fires.
One possible reason fans are a fire hazard is that they are regularly left unattended on hot nights. As a result, people do not have enough time to respond to issues until after the fire.
Another reason fans cause fires may be that many fans and exhaust systems accumulate lint over time. Lint can act as kindling and be the catalyst for turning an electrical spark into a self-sustaining fire.
Air conditioners similarly have the issue of building dust and lint inside their ducts. Again, this kindling is a considerable fire hazard, so it would be best to clear it out regularly.
However, other things that may lead to an air conditioner fire include the build-up of flammable materials near an air conditioner, such as leaves or trash. Furthermore, faulty parts may lead to an electrical fire within the unit. Therefore, keeping teams well-maintained and up-to-date is imperative.
According to the US Fire Administration, firefighters attend an average of 2,900 fires involving clothes dryers annually. These fires cause five deaths and 100 injuries per year.
Dust, fiber, and lint (28%) are the first to catch alight during a clothes dryer fire, followed closely by loose clothing (27%).
The US Fire Administration notes that failure to clean the dryer corresponds to 34% of dry clothes. Here are their key recommendations:
The peak month for clothes dryer fires is January – perhaps because this is a cold month when people are less likely to use an outdoor clothesline. So it’s a good idea to clean your clothes dryer regularly – particularly in January!
The NFPA report also reveals some other interesting details. These include:
11% of all home electrical fires occur between 12 am and 4 am. However, these fires account for nearly 34% of all civilian deaths attributable to electrical fires. This day is deadly because fire can spread unnoticed by sleeping residents. Smoke detectors are one way to help mitigate this risk.
24% of electrical fires in the home occur between 4 pm and 8 pm. Many electrical pieces of equipment are in use now, including electrical equipment in the kitchen.
Dinnertime fires are less deadly than nighttime fires. While the above figure shows that fires between 12 am and 4 pm cause 34% of deaths, fires between 4 pm and 8 pm cause 11%.
January is the middle of winter, and we use a lot of heating equipment. Correspondingly, it’s a month when many deaths occur. According to the NFPA, 16% of all civilian deaths attributable to electrical fires occur in January. December is the second most deadly month, with 12% of all electrical fire deaths.
Night time is the deadliest for electric fires, typically between 12 am and 4 am., due to people sleeping and not noticing the fire.
Dinner is a typical time for electric fires, usually between 4 pm and 8 pm. This is because people cook and generally use far more electrical devices during this time.
January is the month where most deaths occur in the United States, followed closely by December.
Wiring issues cause about 33% of all home electrical fires.
– Household Wiring, Lighting, and Power Cords
– Cooking Equipment
– Heating Equipment
– Fans
– Air Conditioners
– Clothes Dryers
Electrical fires are incredibly deadly types of fires. To be prepared for an electrical fire, you should follow the instructions of your local fire department. In addition, all fire extinguishers in the home should be Class C fire compatible. A Class C fire is an electrical fire.
Remember that water is an electrical conduit, so it is not an excellent fire tool. Class C fire extinguishers do not contain water, making them best for electrical fires. Using a fire blanket is another way of smothering a fire.
Prestige Electric 8 Corporation Inc.
410 Dooms Crossing Road, Waynesboro, Virginia 22980, United States
434-531-1287 Mobile/Text - Office: 540-836-7845