Even here in Florida, the winter months can bring with them chilly mornings and nights, especially if you are accustomed to our usual toasty weather. Owning and using a space heater might seem overkill here in the Sunshine State. Still, space heaters can be tremendously valuable for heating a drafty room or minimizing your energy bill. We know that many of our customers might not have much experience regarding space heater safety, so we would like to take this opportunity to teach you everything you need to know to maximize their usage and keep you and your family safe.
Space Heater Basics
Space heaters are designed to focus heat into a single room or area. Space heaters can help to keep you warm in the room you spend most of your time in without forcing your central heating and cooling system to warm up the entire house. Space heaters are very simple to use but still have safety concerns. The United States Department of Energy, quoting the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, states that more than 1,700 residential fires are caused yearly by space heaters.
Are you interested in purchasing a space heater this winter or possibly dragging a long unused model out from the attic? Make use of these space heater safety tips.
Inspect The Unit
Especially if utilizing a space heater that has been left in storage, always do a visual check to ensure that the model looks to be in working condition. Check for damage to the wiring or any obvious physical degradation to the body of the machine. Because of their danger, a broken space heater should be replaced entirely or repaired by a professional electrician or similarly skilled tradesmen.
Pick A Safe Area For Use
There are a few things to consider when deciding where to place a space heater. You might need the space heater to heat a certain room, but you should only proceed if that room provides a suitable area for your space heater to work in a safe manner. To begin with, always use space heaters in rooms with smoke alarms. A smoke alarm will help notify you of dangers before they become deadly accidents.
Space heaters should only be placed on a level surface away from common household foot traffic. Putting a space heater next to a door or hallway can lead to painful burns if someone accidentally comes in contact with a warm part of the machine. Furthermore, knocking over a space heater runs the risk of igniting a fire. The corner of a room, away from flammable materials, is the perfect spot for a space heater.
However, your space heater should also be placed in an area where it can plug directly into an outlet without its power cable being stuck underneath or behind furniture or rugs, increasing the chance of a warm cable leading to a fire.
Use Common Sense
Buying a space heater isn’t overly complicated, so the only real decision you have to make is the power of the unit. Most models will explicitly state the size of the room that is best rated for the unit, ensuring the space heater will not draw too little or too much power for your needs. Once you have a space heater rated for use in your chosen room, only use it when you can be physically present in the room to address any issues. Unattended space heaters pose a significant fire hazard.
Space heaters can be helpful in the winter, but you should always keep these safety tips in mind when using them. Other aspects of your electrical system, like older wirings or faulty outlets, can exacerbate some of the issues we discussed today. If you have old wiring or an antiquated panel and live in the Sarasota area, call Promise Electric today. We can assess your current electrical system and recommend how to keep your family safe and protected.
