Protect yourself and your loved ones during a winter storm. Take extra steps to make sure you heat your home safely, and follow the tips below.
Heat your home safely.
If you plan to use a wood stove, fireplace, or space heater, be extremely careful. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions and remember these safety tips:
- Turning on the stove for heat is not safe; have at least one of the following heat sources in case the power goes out:
- Extra blankets, sleeping bags, and warm winter coats
- Fireplace that is up to code with plenty of dry firewood or a gas log fireplace
- Portable space heaters or kerosene heaters. Check with your local fire department to make sure that kerosene heaters are legal in your area.
- Use electric space heaters with automatic shut-off switches and non-glowing elements. Make sure to keep them away from any flammable materials, like curtains or blankets.
- Use fireplaces, wood stoves, or other combustion heaters only if they are properly vented to the outside and do not leak gas from the flue or exhaust into the indoor air space.
- Have your heating system serviced by a qualified technician every year.
- Do not burn paper in a fireplace.
- Make sure you have proper ventilation if you must use a kerosene heater.
- Use only the type of fuel your heater is designed to use—don’t substitute.
- Keep heat sources, like space heaters, at least 3 feet away from drapes, furniture, or bedding. Never cover your space heater.
- Never place a space heater on top of furniture or near water.
- Never leave children unattended near a space heater.
- Make sure that the cord of an electric space heater is not a tripping hazard, but do not run the cord under carpets or rugs.
- Avoid using extension cords to plug in your space heater.
- If your space heater has a damaged electrical cord or produces sparks, do not use it.
Light your home safely.
If there is a power failure:
- Use battery-powered flashlights or lanterns rather than candles, if possible. Candles can lead to house fires.
- If you do use candles, never leave lit candles unattended.
- Visit What You Need to Know When the Power Goes Out Unexpectedly for more information on power outage safety.
Use generators and other appliances safely.
- Generators should be located at least 20 feet from any window, door, or vent and in a space where rain and snow will not reach them.
- Protect yourself from carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning by installing a battery-operated CO detector.
- Never using generators, gas or charcoal grills, camp stoves, or similar devices inside your home, in basements, in garages, or near windows. The fumes are deadly.
- Plug in appliances to the generator using individual heavy-duty, outdoor-rated extension cords.
- Do not use the generator or appliances if they are wet.
- Do not store gasoline indoors where the fumes could ignite.
Conserve heat.
- Some gas-fueled heaters, such as vent-less gas fireplaces, require some ventilation. Otherwise, if you don’t need extra ventilation, keep as much heat as possible inside your home.
- Avoid unnecessarily opening doors or windows.
- Close off unneeded rooms.
- Stuff towels or rags in cracks under doors.
- Close draperies or cover windows with blankets at night.
Keep a water supply.
Extreme cold can cause water pipes in your home to freeze and sometimes rupture or break. When you are expecting very cold or freezing temperatures:
- Leave all water taps slightly open so they drip continuously.
- Keep the temperature inside your home warm.
- Allow heated air to reach pipes. For example, open cabinet doors beneath the kitchen and bathroom sinks.
- If your pipes do freeze, do not thaw them with a torch. Thaw the pipes slowly with warm air from an electric hair dryer.
- If you cannot thaw your pipes, or the pipes have broken open, use bottled water or get water from a neighbor’s home.
- As an emergency measure, if no other water is available, snow can be melted for water. Bringing water to a rolling boil for one minute will kill most germs but won’t get rid of chemicals sometimes found in snow.
- Visit Keep Food and Water Safe After a Disaster or Emergency to learn more.
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