Structure Fire-Safety Tips

A recent fire that we responded to brings to mind more safety tips!

This particular fire started in the dryer vent hose. Fortunately, the homeowners had WORKING smoke detectors that woke them up in time to put out most of the fire, and evacuate the home. We received the call at 1:08 AM. (We don’t recommend that you attempt to put out a fire yourself, but in this case all went well. Your best action is to call us and get to safety! Homes can be replaced – lives cannot!)

When we arrived, there was still some fire under the home, which we were able to extinguish, and only minimal damage resulted to the structure.

It appears that this fire started in the dyer vent due to a build-up of lint. The homeowners had removed the dryer prior to our arrival, so we were not able to see the entire installation, but it appeared that the dryer was vented through the floor to the area under the home, not to the outside. It also appeared that the vent hose may not have been vented completely through the floor insulation, which caused the air flow to back up, and added to the problem. The other thing that contributed to this situation was that the dryer vent was a flexible PLASTIC vent, which was completely burned.

Here are the tips:

1. Make sure your smoke detectors are working.
2. Check and clean you dryer vent lines FREQUENTLY! If you are unable to clean the vent line, contact a professional to have it done.
3. DO NOT use PLASTIC dryer vent line. There is flexible METAL vent line available to make the connection between the dryer and the outside vent.
4. Vent the dryer outside, not under the home. Aside from the fact that you are putting moisture under the structure, lint that may catch on fire is more likely to be ejected outside instead of under the home where it could catch other material on fire and burn undetected.

We are always available to answer questions, or to inspect an installation that you are concerned about.

Release Date: 2008-06-01

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