Tag Archives: fire doors

General Safety Issues

HOW TO PROTECT YOU AND YOUR HOME FROM FIRE (GUEST POST)

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Fire is  extremely dangerous;  unfortunately, the destruction and devastation it can cause is often underestimated.  Always take the correct precautions  to help ensure that you and others are not injured should a fire occur.

Below are five tips to keep you and your home fire free:

 1.Equip your home against small house fires

It is crucial that your home is equipped to put out small fires that may occur in your home. The best way to ensure that you are equipped against small house fires is to fit fire extinguishers and fire blankets in the kitchen and any other rooms in the house that a fire would most likely start. For instance, place fire extinguishers near any fireplaces you may have in your home. To help equip your home further, fit fire doors throughout. By doing so it will help contain any fires and stop them from spreading throughout your home. 

2.Become educated in how to extinguish fires

After having fire extinguishers and blankets fitted,  it is advised that you read all instructions carefully and seek advice where needed about how to extinguish different types of fires. Many people are unaware that different types of fires should be extinguished using different types of fire extinguishers. If the wrong type of fire extinguisher is used it can have disastrous effects and as a direct result the fire could spread further and quicker. 

3.Pay attention in the kitchen and do not leave hob (stove) unattended

A large majority of house fires start in the kitchen. Many of these fires are due to negligence and leaving pans unattended on the hob. The best way to combat this is by never leaving the hob (stove) unattended and being vigilant of oven cooking times. When finished cooking it is vital to check that all hobs and the oven are switched off before leaving the kitchen.

  4.Fit and check regularly, the fire alarms throughout your home

In the unlikely event of a fire, the fire alarm will be able to alert you. If you are sleeping and a fire starts in your home you will need to be alerted by a fire alarm or there is a good chance that you will not wake and may become overwhelmed by the fires smoke. If you or anyone else in your family is deaf or hard of hearing they may not be woken by the sound of a fire alarm. With advance in technology now fire alarms are being produced that are able to wake the deaf and hard hearing in the unfortunate event of a fire. These types of fire alarms such as the Deafgard are able to wake the deaf and hard hearing through vibrations and high density flashing lights. 

5.Fully extinguish all cigarettes

Although the smoking ban has meant that many people can no longer smoke inside in public places, many people still do smoke inside in the privacy of their own home. Cigarettes can easily ignite a fire if left unattended. If you do smoke inside your own home always check that your cigarette is fully out when finished and never leave a lit cigarette unattended in the home.

Finally in the event of any fire in the home that is out of control always remember to dial 999 immediately.  (In the U.S., call 9-1-1.)

Our thanks to George Tester of  Deafgard for sending this fire safety information.  It is comforting to know that there are fire alerts that can warn those who are hard of hearing or deaf when there may be fire in their homes.  The same fire safety info would apply to offices and other industries that should have the correct amount of fire extinguishers on hand, and employees trained in their use. pb

 
General Safety Issues

Shut That Fire Door! Get Your Office Complying with Fire Regulations without Raising Your Voice

No one wants to be the office mother but enforcing health and safety rules, particularly ones that seem a little harder to understand the reasons behind, can take some epic nagging.

GUEST POST

Offices are prone to poor air flow and when summer approaches it’s all the more tempting to prop open the fire door to get a cool breeze flowing through but I’m sure anyone that cheekily wedge it open will have gotten an ear full of it by their HR manager, without really understanding the reason. This is because leaving a fire door wedged open is a direct violation of the health and safety regulations in the UK. Many other countries also have similar fire safety regulations.
Fire doors are installed to prevent a fire from rapidly spreading. By containing the fire gives a better chance for employees to escape unharmed and limit the damage to the commercial building
Not all doors are fire doors, as the must be certified, but they are required when:
·A door leads to a stairwell exit
·A door leads to a hazardous area, such as cleaning supply room holding flammable cleaning products.
·A door opens onto a hallway or from one fully enclosed room to another
Whilst it’s clear that fire doors help to save lives and minimise damage they can be a nuisance. Fire doors can be a particular nuisance when you have lots of employees moving around the building. Or try pulling open three fire doors with a tray of tea and coffees!  This is why many companies turn a blind eye to the practice of wedging a door open on a hot day believing that there is little chance of a fire actually occurring but in the UK figures show that in 2007 31,000 fires were reported in buildings other than dwellings. This also includes private gardens and sheds but they only account for 22% of the reported fires.
If you hate enforcing the rules, particularly when you too like having the door open, there are options available that allow you to keep your cool image and have the fire door legally open. A <a href=”http://www.firecoltd.com/Fire/dorgard.aspx”>fire door guard</a> or fire door retainer allows you to prop open the door safely, without having anything wedging that may be an obstruction. The fire door guard actively listens for the fire alarm and will automatically shut in the event of a fire.
By installing a door guard you can save the nagging for other health and safety risk such as the ones reported in <a href=”http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/editors-choice/2008/11/20/the-crazy-world-of-health-and-safety-rules-86908-20909703/”>this article</a>.
The author of this post writes for Fireco, manufactures of intelligent products and systems that listen for the sound of the <a href=”http://www.firecoltd.com/”>Fire Alarms</a> and help service providers comply with their responsibilities and legal obligations under legislation.

No one wants to be the office mother but enforcing health and safety rules, particularly ones that seem a little harder to understand the reasons behind, can take some epic nagging.

Offices are prone to poor air flow and when summer approaches it’s all the more tempting to prop open the fire door to get a cool breeze flowing through but I’m sure anyone that cheekily wedge it open will have gotten an ear full of it by their HR manager, without really understanding the reason. This is because leaving a fire door wedged open is a direct violation of the health and safety regulations in the UK.  Many other countries also have similar fire safety regulations.

Fire doors are installed to prevent a fire from rapidly spreading. By containing the fire gives a better chance for employees to escape unharmed and limit the damage to the commercial building.

Not all doors are fire doors, as the must be certified, but they are required when:

·A door leads to a stairwell exit

·A door leads to a hazardous area, such as cleaning supply room holding flammable cleaning products.

·A door opens onto a hallway or from one fully enclosed room to another.

Whilst it’s clear that fire doors help to save lives and minimise damage they can be a nuisance. Fire doors can be a particular nuisance when you have lots of employees moving around the building. Or try pulling open three fire doors with a tray of tea and coffees!  This is why many companies turn a blind eye to the practice of wedging a door open on a hot day believing that there is little chance of a fire actually occurring but in the UK figures show that in 2007 31,000 fires were reported in buildings other than dwellings. This also includes private gardens and sheds but they only account for 22% of the reported fires.

If you hate enforcing the rules, particularly when you too like having the door open, there are options available that allow you to keep your cool image and have the fire door legally open. A fire door guard or fire door retainer allows you to prop open the door safely, without having anything wedging that may be an obstruction. The fire door guard actively listens for the fire alarm and will automatically shut in the event of a fire.

By installing a door guard you can save the nagging for other health and safety risks such as the ones reported in this article.

The author of this post writes for Fireco,  manufacturers of intelligent products and systems that listen for the sound of the Fire Alarms and help service providers to comply with their responsibilities and legal obligations under legislation.  Blog4Safety and Texas America Safety Company appreciate Kate sending this important information.