Heating Your Home Safely

No matter how you choose to heat your home during the winter, a heating source can become a fire hazard if it's not properly maintained.

Here are a few reminders to help keep your home warm and safe. 

Heating with Your Fireplace

• Clean out your chimney regularly, especially if you use your fireplace often or burn green wood — this can lead to an increased buildup of creosote. 
• Have your chimney checked for cracks, loose bricks, or unused flue openings that are improperly sealed. 
• Avoid large fires of paper or trash, which send dangerous flames and sparks up your chimney. Use a fireplace screen to prevent sparks from escaping. 
• Have a professional inspect your gas fireplace, including cleaning the logs and checking the fan and vents. 

Using a Space Heater

• Stand the heater on a level surface, and keep it at least three feet away from any combustible materials. 
• Plug the heater into an outlet, not an extension cord. 
• Turn off the space heater when you leave the room and while you sleep. 
• Don't use a space heater to dry wet clothing or to warm bedding. 
• Replace, don't patch, damaged or frayed electrical cords. 

Tips for Wood-burning Stoves or Pellet Stoves

• Leave the proper clearance around the stove. Brick, stone, and metal can get hot enough to ignite nearby combustible materials. 
• Keep curtains, clothing, furniture, paper, and kindling away from the stove. 
• Check the walls near the stove — they shouldn't feel uncomfortably warm. 
• Clean the stove regularly. Creosote is a flammable coating that can build up on stovepipes and chimneys and must be removed. 
• Never start a stove fire with gasoline, kerosene, or starter fluid. These substances could cause an explosion.

For more heating safety tips, visit the US Fire Administration site.

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