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Most houses these days are practicing fire preventive measures to ensure fire protection.  This is very commendable since more people are realizing that fire can indeed be avoided by following fire safety tips.  However, some people tend to forget to include the guesthouse as they focus much on the main house.  While it is amazing that people are trying to set up a fireproof home, it would be better if the scope would be the entire property.

Fire can easily spread around the property and can start from different reasons.  One of the most recognized fire safety issues that have been found out from fire investigations is faulty electrical wiring.  It would be wise to seek out professional help to conduct a maintenance check up on your electric circuit board, junction box, on your electrical panel and everything connected to it.  They will be able to identify fire hazards that can start a fire, which you might have overlooked like disconnected water heater flue pipe.

On your part, simple things like not overloading of electric use on one socket must be avoided.  Do not also put extension wires under any rug or carpet, as you would not be able to see if they have been worn out.  Loose wires are potential fire starters.  If you are using a fireplace, make sure that you place a fireplace screen as to prevent sparks from flying around and never to put flammable materials near it.  It is also important that your chimneys be properly cleaned and has any accumulated creosote removed before the heating season starts.

After identifying fire hazards in and around the entire property, it is time to install fire-fighting devices such as smoke detectors and water fire extinguishers.  They would surely help in fire detection and eventually putting out the fire if needed.  Many can attest that installing smoke detectors around the house can minimize the possibility of a full-blown fire from occurring. Many houses and lives have been spared from injury and damage because of these fire devices.

This firefighting equipment should not only be limited to the main house as fire can easily jump from one area to another.  The guesthouse should be properly installed with these devices as well.  It does not mean that an area that is not used regularly cannot be a source of any accident.  The presence of water fire extinguishers in any home is a way to ensure that it is ready for any fire accidents.  However, this type of fire extinguisher can only be used on fires involving wood, paper, and fabric.  It is not advisable to use them directly on to fires involving electrical equipment or flammable liquids.  In this case, you need to acquire foam fire extinguishers to put out the fire out efficiently and sealing it from rekindling again.

Just remember to maintain these fire-fighting devices properly.  Check on the batteries of the smoke detectors and fire alarms if they are still functioning well.  See if those fire extinguishers are corroding or if there is something, you need to replace.  Fires are considered accidents or emergencies that can happen unexpectedly.  It is not enough that you have all of them installed in your house but make sure will work when the time comes that you needed them.

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Most people will walk past a fire safety extinguisher and ignore it. For them it is merely a red cylinder with no real purpose. The majority of people have never used a fire safety extinguisher and many of them never will. That cylinder will forever be a mystery to them. However, a fire extinguisher is a life-saving device and learning how to use one should be the goal of every single person. There are about a dozen different types, so this article will concentrate on three of the main ones: water, foam and dry powder analysing what type of fires they should be used for, what their dangers are and how they should be utilised.

The water and water spray fire safety extinguishers are the cheapest available. This also makes them the most limited. When dealing with people’s lives, it is best to spare no expense, though water has its uses. Water spray is far more effective than water jets and is useful for fires involving wood, plastics and paper etc. The dry powder type is far superior to water and can be used on the same kind of materials as water. In addition, it can take care of oil based fires and is safe to use on live electrical equipment. Foam extinguishers are also ideal for fires involving solids.

The dangers with water extinguishers are manifold. They should not be used on oil fires because they simply won’t work and use on electrical fires could prove to be fatal. Although dry powder fire extinguishers are versatile, they don’t do a good job of cooling fires and great care must be taken to ensure that the fire does not flare up again. Foam should not be used in the home nor should it be used on liquid fires.

When using a water fire safety extinguisher, point and spray at the base of the fire. Water cools the fuel surfaces and a spray is effective because the water covers a greater surface area than a jet release. These extinguishers usually contain surfactants which help the water penetrate deep into the burning material. Use the dry powder to attack the fire and force it to the far edge until it is out. It works by acting as a thermal ballast which makes the flames too cool for chemical reactions to continue. They quickly knockdown the fire but they may not keep it out. For solid fires, point the foam extinguisher at the base and move it across the area of the fire. For liquid fires in a container, point the spray at the inside edge of the container. Foam is usually water based, with the foaming agent designed to float on top of the burning material, breaking the contact between the flames and its fuel.

The next time you see a fire safety extinguisher, you should know how important it is and how you should use it. Remember, although a water fire extinguisher is better than nothing, it is not nearly as effective as its foam or dry powder equivalent. Know what fires to use them on, find out how to use them and try and learn how they work for a greater understanding of how to deal with fires.

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New pieces of fire prevention equipment and methods for fire prevention seem to become available every day. Basic approaches to safety design recognize that fire prevention is a significant aspect of general safety. Every employer now has to do a fire risk assessment, which should include a complete evaluation of the causes of, impact from, and consequences of fire in a particular location.

Fire prevention and management deals with the avoidance, detection and putting out of fires, in addition to such secondary activities as studies on the causes of fire, instruction of employees about fire hazards, and the maintenance and improvement of fire-fighting equipment. Little official attention was given to fire prevention prior to World War II.
The solution to fire safety is essentially to prevent fire from starting in the first place, but an understanding of what causes fire is necessary to recognize how to avoid it.

The basic things required for fire include: some type of fuel, oxygen and heat. The seat of a fire can easily reach hundreds, if not thousands of degrees Celsius. However, the chief hazard with fire is not the high temperature or the flames, but the smoke. A potential fire source is anything that gets hot, gives off sparks or has naked flames, whether in the usual working situation or if a defect should develop. There is a greater risk of fire when these things are placed close to flammable materials than if they were separated.

The key to preventing fires in the workplace comes down to preparation and practice. Here’s where to start:

• Make a plan – get together with your staff and talk about how you might get out if the fire is in different places.
• Psychological preparation – you have to live and envisage the fire from every area of your workplace.
• Practice often – in a real fire, deadly smoke will obscure your path to safety, so you must know your way out by heart.

Fire Safety in the Workplace

The first “rule” of fire prevention – avoiding placing things that could catch fire close to the things that could ignite the fire or removing the ignition source completely – is at times difficult or impossible to put into practice, in which case we need to use a second method: fire proofing.

Preventing fire from starting mainly calls for you to be mindful of the things that could catch fire and those things that could start a fire and then taking action to reduce the possibilities as low as possible. Immediately follow these procedures if you notice a fire or see/smell smoke:

1. Notify the local fire brigade.
2. Trigger the building alarm.
3. If you can leave the building safely, do so, but first isolate the area by closing windows and doors.
4. If possible, shut down equipment in the immediate area.
5. Use a portable fire extinguisher if possible and if you have received the proper training, to:
(i) Assist yourself to evacuate
(ii) Assist others to evacuate
(iii) Control a small fire
6. Leave the area of the fire immediately and walk, do not run to the exit and designated gathering spot; do not collect personal or official items.
7. You should give the fire/police crews details of the problem upon their arrival.

Put your policies in writing and include the fire prevention and safety practices into your staff manual and training schedules. One way to recruit staff in the process of overseeing risk, to allocate tasks for fire prevention and safety, and at the same time to satisfy the requirements of the fire safety order is to set up a safety committee. Keep in mind, however, that these procedures will work best when they are practised and reviewed regularly with the staff.

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Fire extinguishers have a key function at the start of a fire. The different types of fire and the fire extinguishers used to fight them are broken down into four categories:

• Paper, wood, textiles and other easily ignited materials.
• Gases and fluids such as oil, solvents and lubricants.
• Electrical fires.
• Metals such as magnesium and sodium.

Fire as a general rule is caused by a chemical reaction between oxygen in the atmosphere and some sort of fuel. The sequence of events in a typical wood fire is as follows:

1. Wood is heated to a very high temperature.
2. The heat decomposes some of the cellulose material that makes up the wood when it reaches about 150 degrees Celsius.
3. Some of the decomposed material is released as volatile gases.

Fuel, oxygen and heat comprise the fire triangle. All three must be present to start a fire and removal of any single one can extinguish the fire. You should read and understand the instructions on your fire extinguishers. If a fire starts you should be prepared and not be indecisive. Activate the fire extinguisher, and direct it at the base of the flames using short bursts and sweeping it from side to side.

Fire extinguishers and hoses can be used to put out a small blaze, but their chief function is to help people make their way out of a burning building. Fire extinguishers in the workplace should be modern pieces of equipment that meet the terms of the BS EN 3 Standard. According to current recommended practice, extinguishers should be placed a maximum of 30m apart, and you need one extinguisher for every 200m² of floor area.

Some fires can be made even worse with water or foam extinguishers, and it is common practice to put additional extinguishers of different types next to specific hazards like cookers and boilers. A fire blanket should be fitted in kitchens, since not all fires can be put out with an extinguisher. Extinguishers should be fixed to the wall with the supplied clips; where this is not possible, small plastic or metal stands are readily available to take the extinguisher with a sign.

Workplace Safety Tips

If you are truly concerned about keeping your workers protected and productive in your workplace, here are some safety tips for you:

1. Maintain a clean work area.
2. Rather than depending on PPE (personal protective equipment), use guards and engineering solutions whenever possible.
3. Give clear work instructions.
4. Don’t go on about worst-case scenarios but concentrate on what is most likely to occur.
5. Spend time to get to know the work your employees do.
6. Maintain the machinery in good working order.
7. Avoid unnecessary risks.

Fire extinguishers are a very important safety item. You can use the red water extinguisher on Class A fires, i.e. fires that involve wood, paper and textiles. Foam extinguishers can be used as an alternative to the water type extinguisher. Blue powder type extinguishers can be used for Class A and Class B fires, and also for Class C (gas) and Class E (electric hazards).

The classic steps for operating fire extinguishers (described by the acronym PASS) are the following:

P – Pull the safety pin. Hold the extinguisher with the nozzle pointing away from you, and free the locking mechanism.
A – Aim the nozzle at the base of the fire, from a safe distance.
S – Squeeze the handle slowly and evenly.
S – Sweep the extinguisher from side to side while aiming at the base of the fire.

Your fire extinguisher service company should offer the following services:

• Annual inspection of fire extinguishers
• Recharging
• Hydrostatic testing
• Training.

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Fire exits need to lead as directly to a place of safety as possible and must be marked with exit signs. Buildings that have recently been refurbished or built will comply with the current building regulations and the number and size of the fire exits should be adequate in these situations. A typical single-width exit door will enable about 40 people per minute to evacuate, but this is only a guideline and more thorough calculations are needed that take into account any exit routes that might be blocked by smoke or flames.

It is always recommended that more than one exit is available so there is always another way out if the main entrance is blocked by fire. Ideally the two exit routes would go in opposite directions, but at the least they should be positioned so that they are far enough apart so that a fire blocking one of the doors will not block the other. For the final exit door from the building, it would be usual to use panic locks (of the “push bar to open” kind).

There are rules about what you cannot have in fire exit areas because they might hamper evacuation. The list includes:

• Portable heating equipment (including electric heaters) or heating equipment that uses naked flames.
• Cooking equipment (including tea urns and kettles)
• Bins and rubbish bags.
• Notice boards (unless small and the notices are kept firmly pinned onto the board).
• It might be acceptable to have a coat rack in the escape route as long as it does not reduce the width of the exit significantly. Fire retardant furniture might be acceptable, again providing that there is no reduction in the escape route (note that furniture might be moved around and could block an exit route).

Frequently check to make sure that the outside of fire exits is free from obstacles and that there is a clear route away from the building to an assembly point. In many situations, emergency lighting might be necessary both inside the building and directly outside the final exit doors. Fire doors should be designed to withstand the effects of fire for a period of time – usually 30 minutes.

Fire Safety Checklist

• Are fuel-burning space heaters and appliances properly installed and used?
• Are all space heaters placed away from traffic?
• Do you dispose of smoking materials carefully and keep large, safe ashtrays wherever people smoke?
• Are gasoline and other flammable liquids stored in safety cans and away from heat and sparks?
• Is paint kept in tightly closed metal containers?
• Are there enough electrical outlets in every room and special circuits for heavy-duty appliances such as space heaters and air conditioners?
• Is your heating equipment checked every year by a serviceman?
• Do you know the location of the nearest fire alarm?
• Do you know the location of the two nearest exits from your work area? Can you find them in the dark?

In a fire, never assume that anyone else has called the fire brigade. Stay calm and give the dispatcher as much information as you know. Leave the building quickly, closing doors as you go to contain fire and smoke.

Protect Your Valuables

A fire in your business could be the most distressing calamity you will ever experience, if you don’t implement adequate safety and protection measures. People nowadays have come to understand that it is best to furnish their offices with protective devices such as fire exits and alarms. Adding a fireproof safe to protect your most valuable possessions, documents, and properties from fire is also very important.