Heating equipment is a leading cause of home fire deaths, according to the National Fire Protection Association. About half of home-heating equipment fires are reported during the months of December, January and February.
"We have had some small fires recently. This time of year, there are more people using small space heaters to heat their houses. They are also cooking more, and cooking fires are one of the biggest causes of house fires," Texarkana, Ark., Fire Marshal Steve Johnson said.
Some simple steps can prevent most heating-related fires from happening, according to NFPA.
- Keep anything that can burn at least 3 feet away from heating equipment such as the furnace, fireplace, wood stove or portable space heater.
- Have a three-foot "kid-free zone" around open fires and space heaters.
- Never use your oven to heat your home.
- Have a qualified professional install stationary space-heating equipment, water heaters or central heating equipment according to the local codes and manufacturer's instructions.
- Have heating equipment and chimneys cleaned and inspected every year by a qualified professional.
- Remember to turn portable heaters off when leaving the room or going to bed.
- Always use the right kind of fuel, specified by the manufacturer, for fuel-burning space heaters.
- Make sure the fireplace has a sturdy screen to stop sparks from flying into the room. Ashes should be cool before putting them in a metal container. Keep the container a safe distance away from your home.
- Test smoke alarms at least once a month.
Space heaters, whether portable or stationary, accounted for 43 percent of home-heating fires and 85 percent of home-heating fire deaths, according to NFPA.
The leading factor contributing to home-heating fires (28 percent) was failure to clean, principally creosote from solid-fueled heating equipment, primarily chimneys. Placing things that can burn too close to heating equipment or placing heating equipment too close to things that can burn, such as upholstered furniture, clothing, mattress or bedding, was the third-leading factor contributing to ignition in fatal home-heating fires at 53 percent.