EricofAZ Posted February 21, 2014 Share Posted February 21, 2014 The subject of candle fires in homes has come up from time to time. I read where about 18,000 homes annually in the US burn down because of candle fires. This seems like a lot on one hand and yet compared to the number of homes in the US, might not really be that many.Recently, a neighbor lit his kitchen on fire. The Fire Chief circulated a letter today to all the condo residents listing the 10 top reason why fires begin. I was surprised to see candles so high up on the list.1. Cooking equipment. Either splatters or unattended cooking, this is number one on the list.2. Children playing with matches3. Candles - left unattended, placed on uneven flammable surfaces, using unsteady holders or placed too close to combustible materials. Should be kept out of the reach of children and pets. Please extinguish the candles when leaving the room.4. Heating equipment5. Smoking6. Electrical equipment7. Inadequate wiring8. BBQ grill in the yard9. Flammable liquids10. Fireplacehttp://www.tucsonaz.gov/fire/announcement/prevent-accidentsIf the listed reasons for a candle fire are the top reasons they occur, then I might adjust my warning label to include this information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CandleKitty Posted February 21, 2014 Share Posted February 21, 2014 Unfortunately, anything with an open flame will be considered a fire hazard. Here in Southern Missouri most, if not all insurance companies now do not insure a home that has a fireplace as a heat source.You can adjust your warning labels if that's what you feel you should do, but the sad part of it all is that not everyone is going to read it and burn a candle correctly - if that was the case, candles wouldn't be in the top 5. I preach to so many people when the subject of candles come up that I'm blue in the face, but yet something always happens and I hear about a near-miss fire and all I can do is shake my head. It's sad, but it's true. It's not really about educating the masses, it's about how many of them actually have the common sense not to put a burning candle next to the bedroom curtains or put it low enough that a toddler can dump it over.I know I sound harsh, that's not my intention and you are right, this subject comes up quite frequently. Until we come up with a viable solution that injects common sense into people's brain, candles will always be the bane of firefighters' existence and will always be in the top 5 reasons for house fires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doglvr Posted February 21, 2014 Share Posted February 21, 2014 People do stupid stuff and always will. That's why the "mayhem" commercial for some insurance company is so realistic! My daughter and I did a really stupid thing once with a candle and it wasn't even lit. It was years ago when she lived with me. I had boughten one with groceries and when putting stuff away, set it on a stove burner for the moment. Awhile later she went to make something in a frying pan and turned on the wrong burner. She was 18 at the time, so no little kid, but just wasn't paying attention. Why she turned the burner on first, I don't know. Within about three minutes the bottom of that glass jar cracked and the wax that had melted on the bottom from the burner being on spread everywhere and it was instant fire. It was so bad so fast that I said, "Get the dogs!" It was so out of control I saw no way to stop it and was ready to jump ship. She grabbed a bag of flour (which I wouldn't have thought of!) and smothered it and the fire did go out. Most people would have thrown water on it which would have made it even worse. Holy S!! You talk about a mess to clean up. It was so stupid to do (didn't tell her that, but she knew it) and more of an act of going through the motions of life without really paying attention which we all do all of the time. You run on auto pilot. Like when you get to work in the morning and it suddenly hits you... how did I get here? So many things on the mind you just follow the road without even thinking or paying attention.Learned a lesson from that though. I put all important papers in an accordion folder in a cabinet by the back door (assuming I could get out that way) that can be quickly grabbed and I always have a ten pound bag of flour on hand whether I use it or not because a grease fire can happen as well. It was a good lesson in how quickly things can get out of control.Jackie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue Ellen Posted February 21, 2014 Share Posted February 21, 2014 The Church where I used to go burned down years ago. A group of college aged kids were in the building on a saturday evening and somebody left a candle burning unattended in one of the sunday school rooms. The candle caught the curtain and that's all it took. It was an old building with wood paneling on the interior walls, so the fire spread very quickly. Everybody got out of the building and noone was seriously hurt, so that was a good thing. I lived just a couple of miles away at the time and heard the firetrucks, but didn't realize they were going to my Church until the next morning. I love my candles, but any open fire can be a very dangerous thing if not treated with respect.Sue Ellen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricofAZ Posted February 28, 2014 Author Share Posted February 28, 2014 Bag of flour? Now that's quite interesting. Powder extinguishers work, but a bag of flower is brilliant! I'm going to have to remember that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen M Posted March 2, 2014 Share Posted March 2, 2014 I always ghard put baking soda on it, I keep baking soda in my candle making room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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