Fire safety tips and making your home a safer place.

I recently attended a fire safety workshop and was amazed at how little I knew about fires and smoke detectors. I have listed some of the basic facts I learned and some links to get more information; this is to help you research the best ways to protect your family in the event of a fire.

1. Have a escape plan and designated meeting place and practice the plan. Here is a link to a grid sheet you can use to draw your floor plan to help you plan your escape routes. Once you have the plan review it once every 3 months. Have practice runs to make sure everyone knows the plan and can follow it. If you have a two-story home you will need two sheets and you may want to invest in a escape ladder or two.
2. Did you know there are several type of fire detecting devices? I was unaware that there are different types of smoke detectors for different types of fires. Most likely you only have one type in your home and you may not have enough units. I have an older home and when I bought it it only had one smoke detector in the hall and it was the ionic type. I have since added several more smoke detectors. You need more than one smoke detector in your home. I have one in the hall, one it the kitchen and one in the garage. Recently built homes have one per bedroom and one per major common area.
3. Replace your smoke detector if it is older than 6 years old, as this is all the manufactor usually warranties them for. If it is less than 6 years in age, vaccum it out to make sure it is dust free. This is a good to do every 6 months when you change the smoke detector batteries. I do this when we set the clocks forward or backward for daylight savings time. Be sure to dispose of your used batteries properly as a used battery will still have some power in it and can be the cause of a fire. Check with your cities trash pickup and they will inform you of the best way to recycle or dispose of household batteries.

• The first and most common is the "Ionic" smoke detector, it detects small and invisible ionized smoke particles from fast burning fire or my wifes cooking. This one is the most common and all builders install them per local construction code.
• Second is the "Photo Sensitive" smoke detector, it detects large dark smoke particles. Like from burning plastic, carpet or furniture; anything made from an oil-based synthetic fiber/material. Slow burning or smoldering fires make this type of smoke and the ionic does a very poor job or sensing these types of fires if at all.
• Third is the "Heat Sensor" which detects heat at 135 degree farenhieght and then sounds an alarm. This detects the heat from a fire but not the smoke, however if used in conjunction with the above 2 types of smoke detectors, you should be covered in any type of fire and or heat generating event.
• Fourth is not really a fire safty device but I like the idea of covering all the bases. This is a combo carbon-monoxide and explosive gas detector. Even if you have an all electric house the carbon-monoxide detector is a good idea.
• Fifth is to be able to fight the fire if you see it in the small stages, but remember you can replace stuff but not people. Get out and call the fire department from a neighbors home. The added protection of a A-B-C type fire exstinguisher is a inexpensive and smart addition to your home. I have several, one in the master bedroom, one in the kitchen (where most fires start) and one in the garage. I keep a baseball bat by the bed as well, it works for burglars and smashing windows to escape the house if needed.
• Sixth is there are several options to power the above listed detecting devices. There is 110 volt, batteries or a combination of both. 110 volt is wired to the house electric supply or plugged into an outlet. The battery is great if you do not have the wiring, but you must remember to change it before it dies. The best is the combination, you can get the security of the electric grid and the backup power of the battery if the power fails.

Try this link to Kidde website for more information and products. They have detailed information on all the lastest fire safety products and even ladders for the second floor windows.

Keep in mind that the fire rarely is the killer, neither is the smoke. What kills most people is the lack of oxygen, the fire uses up all the oxygen and and you expire. You need oxygen to live and so does a fire, if you are asleep and the alarm does not go off. Because you have the wrong type of detector for the type of fire or you forgot to change the battery; you are going to be a statstic. Be sure to protect yourself and your family, in as many ways as possible. Let us hope and pray we never have to use any of the above suggested equipment.

Based on this new found knowledge, I have purchased and installed, dual ionic and photo-sensitive smoke detectors and heat detectors for the hallway and kitchen. I also purchased a dual carbon-monoxide, explosive gas wall plug in detector and placed it in the hall where the gas water heater and gas furnace are. I also purchased a new larger A-B-C fire exstinguisher for the kitchen. I did not get any escape ladders since I have a 1-story ranch style home. This was small investment less than $300, for peace of mind and a good nights sleep.

I visited with an person from the insurance industry and she was unaware of the above information, but did have 4 more tips for help you stay safe in your home.

1. Never leave home with the clothes dryer running.
2. Unplug your coffee maker, never leave it plugged in.
3. Unplug your toaster, never leave it plugged in.
4. Last but not least, is not a fire safety tip but insurance claim tip. Purchase a simple water detector ($12-$25) at Home Depot and place it in the pan at the base of your water heater(s) and the lower pan of your HVAC system(s). This will alert you if your water tank is leaking or your primary drain pain line is plugged.

The items above are the most common claims the insurance industry gets in relation to fire and water leaks, with the exception of roof leaks.

What projects or improvements get me the most return?

What remodel projects or home improvements get me the most return on my investment?

The big three are:

1. Kitchen
2. Bath(s)
3. Painting (Exterior and Interior)

I would like to suggest, in this day and age of high energy costs, also from a buyers point of view, some additional items be added to the list. These are things I like to see or know about having been replaced in a used home with some age (over 5 to 7 years old). I can find no studies to show stat's on these, but I would feel more comfortable purchasing a home that had these items new, than one that had these items old/older.

1. Water Heater
2. HVAC System
3. Carpet
4. Roof & Gutters

When they get a used car ready for the lot, they replace the tires if needed, always clean the oil off of the engine, detail the interior and wax the exterior. But are the motor and transmission sound (strong), are the miles on the odometer the real miles, and does the air blow cold in the summer and hot in the winter?

When people get a used house ready for the market, they often paint the exterior and interior, clean or replace the carpets and spruce up the flower beds. You get an inspection that says everything seems to be working. But how old and inefficient is the water heater, the HVAC system or the roof? Is the new carpet of good quality and are the shingles on the roof in good shape? Does this house need gutters and are they properly installed?

Keep all your receipts and manuals to prove the recent replacement of a water heater, HVAC, roof or gutter system. These items will help the buyer to know you cared for your home and rest assured that the systems are new/ or "newish" and what brand and quality were installed.

My Grandma always shopped at Sears. She said, "I never mind paying more for quality, it saves me money in the long run." She was a wise lady and taught me that sometimes to save/make money you have to spend money. Going with the cheapest estimate is not always the best way to choose a contractor for these improvements. Check how long they have been in business and make sure they are going to still be around if you have issues. Are they licensed and insured? See if they have a BBB rating, check with the local chamber of commerce. For a list of other things to check before choosing your next contactor click here. I talk to hundreds of people each year and most have a horror story to tell, either first hand or second hand of some underhanded contractor.

Tell us your story, good, bad, or ugly. Change the names to protect the innocent and if we like you tale we may use it in our newsletter.

Cost of electricity getting you down?

Cost of electricity getting you down?

Then tame the beast, put your home on an electricity diet. You can reduce your homes electricity consumption if you download this PDF file from Rainy Day Services. There are several inexpensive ways shown to cut your electricity consumption. The main ones are switching from incandescent to fluorescent bulbs. Lowes has them on sale 7 bulbs for $9.00+tax. They save on electricity and pay for themselves, after that you are in the $aving$ Zone. Unplug or power off all unnecessary or less often used items, such as cell phone chargers, laser printers, monitor's, PC's, VCR's, DVD's and video games. All these items are either electricity hogs or vampires, using a small amount of electricity but added togther can really add up. Replace your thermostat with an electronic one that is programmable so when you are not home you are not heating and cooling the house as much, thus using less electricity. Check out the TXU website for a host of ideas. Saving electricity can be as simple as lowering the temperature in the house in the winter and raising it in the summer. I use every idea I can find and have found that average billing helps to keep those "surprise large electric bills" to a more modest sum I can handle each month. If you have other suggestions or web sites that can really save the green by going green, let us know.