Fire Safety guidelines
Plan. Test. Replace and Upgrade your Smoke Alarms every 10 years.
85% of all deaths from fire occur in the home. In 2004, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) documented 3,420 home deaths due to fires and the smoke they generate - and that does not count the casualties due to carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.
FireX is dedicated to help protect your family from these dangers. Ensuring the safety and well-being of your household requires three simple steps.
Step 1: Plan
To help protect your home and loved ones, you need to consider carefully what type of smoke alarms to use and where to place both the smoke and CO alarms properly. We recommend that you contact a qualified electrician who knows your State and Local codes.
Step 2: Test
Be sure your alarms are operating properly. The National Consumer Safety Council (NCSC) recommends testing them at least once a month. And develop a family escape plans, discuss them with ALL household members, and practice them regularly. The plans should include TWO exits from each room, an escape route to the outside from each exit,and a safe meeting place for everyone outside the building.
Step 3: Replace and Upgrade your smoke alarms every 10 years.
Even in direct wired alarms, back-up batteries need to be replaced every year. Many families have developed the good habit of replacing their batteries on the day we turn the clocks forward and back. It's also important to replace the alarms themselves at least once every ten years. According to the NFPA, aging smoke alarms do not operate as efficiently or may not work at all. This means that when you move into a new home, if you don't know when the alarms were installed, you should replace them with new ones immediately.
Carbon Monoxide (CO) Home Safety Guidelines
Invisible, odorless and lethal by-product from burning fuel, carbon monoxide is the Number 1 cause of accidental poisoning deaths in the United States claiming approximately 480 lives a year and sending another 15,200 to doctors for treatment. For that reason CO alarms are mandatory in many states and are becoming required in many more.
Protect your family from CO poisoning, the silent killer. CO is often caused by equipment failures due to poor maintenance, product defects, and damaged parts. The following tips can help prevent CO within your home:
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Have all fuel-burning appliances inspected and cleaned yearly by a qualified service technician. The faulty furnaces and boilers, water heater & gas heater vent pipes, and improperly installed kitchen oven or vent, gas dryer, gas or wood burning fireplace, car running in attached garage are some of the leading sources of CO.
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Clean fireplace vents and chimney regularly. A blocked or clogged chimney could cause a back draft of CO into the home. Do not seal chimney. This will cause a back draft of CO into the home.
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More life-threatening sources include: indoor power generator, portable kerosene and gas heaters and operating a grill in your garage.
The Consumer Product Safety Council (CPSC) recommends that every home have at least one carbon monoxide alarm with an audible warning signal installed near the sleeping area.
