When the weather gets cold, you may want to cozy up indoors by lighting a candle or two. However, it’s important to keep candle safety considerations in mind when doing so.
All it takes is a single candle mishap to quickly escalate into a devastating fire within your home. In fact, the National Fire Protection Association claims that there is an average of 21 home fires caused by candles every day—with 85% of them being avoidable.
Candle incidents can be avoided by practicing safe candle usage within your home. Learn to use candles safely in your home by following these simple tips:
- Trim the wick—Trim the wick to a quarter of an inch to keep the flame from becoming too large.
- Use a long match or lighter—To keep your hand from getting too close to the flame, always use a long match or long lighter.
- Don’t walk away—Make sure the wick ember is completely out and no longer glowing before leaving the room.
- Secure the area—Never burn a candle near anything that could catch fire. This includes furniture, drapes, bedding, carpets, books, paper and flammable decorations.
- Keep candles away from kids and pets—Make sure children and pets cannot reach burning candles.
- Avoid drafts, vents and air currents—This will help prevent rapid burning or dripping of your candle.
- Burn for no longer than four hours—Burning your candle for more than four consecutive hours can cause the wick to become unstable and the flame to grow too large.
- Extinguish candles appropriately—Suffocate the flame by using a snuffer or putting the lid on the candle to prevent hot wax splatters.
- Don’t touch or move it—Make sure the candle is completely cooled before touching or moving it.
For more home safety guidance and homeowners insurance solutions, contact MountainOne Insurance today.
By Zywave, Inc.