Five Ways to Prevent Kitchen Fires
Did you know that kitchen fires are one of the major causes of home fires?
As much as 44% of all home fires started as cooking fires, according to the National Fire Protection Association, US (NFPA, September 2023 Report). This means that for every five home fires, two originate in the kitchen. That’s a significant number.
Some of the major causes of kitchen fires include:
- Unattended cooking.
- Frying with oil
- Electrical fires
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Unattended Cooking
This is the most common cause of kitchen fires, especially because so many of us are guilty of leaving the kitchen for extended amounts of time while cooking.
A recent client experience shared with us also confirms this, here is what happened:
Our client had been cooking one evening and forgot…
She told us that she had been cooking her dinner and thought to wait in the living room while her food was on the fire.
But she forgot.
She got caught up in what she was doing and didn’t realise until she heard a shrill noise.
At first, she wasn’t sure where the noise was coming from, she went to investigate and that’s when she remembered that she had been cooking, and the smoke alarm in her kitchen hallway had been set off.
Now imagine if her smoke alarm had not caught it in time. That smoke would have quickly turned to flames.
Thankfully, the smoke alarms we installed for her came in handy and saved her home from what could have been a devastating cooking fire.
Here are her notes to us:
Stories like these remind us of why we do what we do and highlight the impact of fire safety in our homes and the lives of our loved ones.
2. Frying with oilFrying at excessively high temperatures and with oil can increase the risk of a kitchen fire. This is because all the elements of fire are present in such instances (oxygen, fuel, and heat), and you only need a little trigger to ignite a fire. Furthermore, leaving oil spills on the cooker and countertop poses a hazard as the entire surface should be clean and clear.
3. Improper use of electrical appliancesElectrical fires can also occur in kitchens in situations where: · The electrical sockets are overloaded. · Appliances are placed near flammable items. · Use of faulty appliances and also the improper use of such appliances.
How to Avoid Kitchen FiresIt is important to know how to prevent a kitchen fire and what to do where one occurs to ensure it does not escalate. Here are a few ideas you can implement in your home: 1. Do not leave cooking unattended.We understand that it is difficult to be fully present while cooking, this is why we recommend the use of kitchen or phone timers.
2. Service oven hoods, and other electrical appliancesAvoid using faulty electrical appliances or overloading sockets. Furthermore, it is best to switch off appliances that are not in use and for those that require constant electricity, you can use a voltage regulator. Ensuring that your appliances are properly maintained and serviced periodically will save you the cost of replacement and also limit the possibility of a fire hazard.
3. Install smoke alarms as close to the kitchen as possible.Smoke alarms help to detect a fire before it escalates, making it crucial in every home. However, we do not recommend installing smoke alarms inside kitchens to avoid false triggers, but they can be installed by the kitchen hallways or as close as possible to the kitchen.
4. Keep a fire blanket on hand.Fire blankets provide immediate fire suppression action where there is a cooking fire. It can be used to smother the flames and quell the fires.
5. Check for gas leaks.Gas cylinders remain the most common source of cooking in most urban homes in Nigeria. But did you know that these cylinders have an expiry date and old gas cylinders are prone to leaks? Conduct periodic checks of your cylinders and change them every 7-10 years.
Why you should protect the heart of your home.The kitchen is often the most used section of our homes. It is seen as the heart of the home, a place of refreshment and joy, yet it can also be a place of injury and destruction if we do not take the necessary steps to safeguard it. We hope these tips and the client story we shared will encourage you to continue to invest in your home’s safety. If so, then you can grab a Free copy of our Kitchen Safety Checklist to guard against kitchen fires.
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