Blog: Home Safety > Stay Warm Safely this Winter

Posted by: Angela Mickalide at Dec 01, 2011 12:00 AM CST

Keywords: Safety Tips

| Send This | Article Link | Comments(1)

Whether you curl up in front of the fireplace or turn on a space heater to stay warm this winter, be sure to follow the safety and maintenance instructions for all home heating appliances. This will help to prevent fires, burns and carbon monoxide poisoning.

Remember to keep space heaters at least three feet away from anything that can burn and always closely supervise children and pets when the heater is turned on. If you are using a fireplace or wood stove, make sure you only burn seasoned hardwood like oak, ash or maple. Make sure your fireplace is protected by a sturdy screen. If small children live in or visit your home, consider using a safety gate around your fireplace or wood stove to prevent a serious burn.

If not properly maintained, fuel-burning heating equipment such as furnaces, wood stoves, fireplaces and kerosene heaters, can produce a deadly gas called carbon monoxide (CO). Commonly known as “the silent killer,” CO is colorless, odorless and tasteless. To protect your family from CO poisoning, install CO alarms on every level of your home and especially near sleeping areas.

Follow Safe Kids winter safety tips to keep your home heated safely all winter.

Winter Safety Tips

Tour My Safe Home

We have created a first-of-its-kind online tool to help people find and fix the leading causes of accidents in the home. Visit MySafeHome to tour a virtual home, room-by-room. You will learn about the leading causes of serious home injuries. And you'll see what you can do to keep your loved ones safe.

Comment on this Blog Post:

Posted by Shannon Hutton at: January 30, 2012

It's also important to remember to be safe with generators. The American Red Cross asserts that residential standby generators are safer than portable generators. Here are the reasons why.