Home security is indeed a significant concern for many families. While it’s always best to practice vigilance, it’s essential to be proactive as well. Bush fire season is a difficult time for homes. With the utter destruction of the Australian Bush fire, we should be more concerned than ever about preventing such incidents and what fortifications we would need to do to save our homes from utter destruction.
With six ways to safeguard your home from bush fires, you’ll be more confident about your ability to protect yourself and your family.
Permanently close off loose gas lines
If you don’t want to have a gas leak in your home, make sure there aren’t any open gas lines in your yard. Check them before dark to ensure no one is using them. Have a professional look at your gas line periodically to make sure it’s not broken or damaged. In case it is, have them fix it right away.
Keep your home clear of clutter
Things around your home make it less secure. If you have too much stuff, you’re more likely to leave items behind. Store only the most critical items inside the house and keep things like cleaning materials and expensive jewelry out of sight. If you must store something out of sight, have it hidden. You can also secure your home with alarms and security cameras.
Any old and useless things must be discarded, including a mattress, but they must not be dumped outside like any other waste. Mattress must be checked if they can be recycled. Around 16 million mattresses are discarded every year in the US. Most of these mattresses fill up the landfill area and pollute the environment when they decay. Therefore, they must be checked if they can be recycled and put to use again.
Protect your home with a carbon monoxide alarm
This is a highly monitored type of alarm. It works by detecting carbon monoxide inside the home. The alarm sounds when this substance reaches a certain level. It’s a false alarm if there’s another source of heat in the house. This is especially useful for older adults at risk of stroke if they don’t get their oxygen supply before a bad storm hits.
Apart from all these that will tire you while keeping them organized, you might want to rest in a comfortable bed with a comfortable mattress. Therefore you must choose your mattress carefully. If you are really considering buying a new mattress, you must purchase your mattress around May to September as a new batch of beds arrives around May/June; make it the time around that the perfect time to buy your mattress.
Do not Keep Electronic appliances out in the open
Don’t leave appliances and electronics out in the open. Many people leave radios, televisions, and other electrical devices outside their homes. There’s a chance these items could catch on fire when they catch on fire. A fire in an electrical appliance could cause a fire in your home. Put your electrical items in a garage or shed to ensure adequate home security.
Flammable Liquids should be kept safely
Don’t put flammable liquids or chemicals anywhere in your home. Many homes contain oil, antifreeze, gasoline, pesticides, or other flammables. These liquids can be easily obtained through breakage, and the consequences may be devastating.
Harden Your Home to Save it from Bush fire
Homes are built to be solid and durable. They should be protected from threats of destruction. Keeping your home safe should always be a priority. With a few precautions, you can ensure your family’s protection and security.
When it comes to preventing fire damage to your home, there are several things that you can do. For one thing, you can use fire-resistant lumber. This is something that you can buy at your local hardware store. It would really help if you always tried to buy lumber that has some fire resistance on it. If you are looking for the best type of wood that you can get, it would be best to get a Saw Palmetto tree in red color.
Overall, you should try your best to prevent any structural damage that can occur in your house. One way that you can do this is to use barriers on your doors and windows. It is essential to prevent large amounts of heat from getting into the interior of your house. Besides, it is also vital to make sure that you avoid mold formation in the areas around your home. Bush fire is inevitable during certain seasons, but you can easily keep your house safe from such weather conditions if you have these prevention techniques at hand.
Replace windows
If you live in an area where bushfires are a way of life, it is essential to learn how to replace your windows to save them from bushfires. A bushfire can start anywhere, even on the hottest summer day when temperatures may still be rising. As a homeowner, you know that even when temperatures have peaked outside, Single pane window gaps are created, allowing floating cathing the area around the window on fire. To help prevent the same, you must replace your single pane window with a double-pane window. Although excessive fire might rupture the outside pane, but the inside pane might still protect the interior.
Apart from all these fortifications, here are few things that you must be handy in case of fire.
- Protect yourself. It would really help if you always had a fire extinguisher in your home. It would help if you also kept it in your car. If a fire sprinkler is necessary, see if you can place it just outside your home, preferably in the garage. It would also help if you also actually kept a fire watch on the house and surrounding area at all times.
- Keep doors and windows closed tight. Use caulk to seal up holes around windows and doors. If you can’t seal holes, use sturdy plastic sheets or blocks to prevent the entry of wind and moisture. You should also should install weather stripping around doors and windows to prevent drafts from damaging your home.
- Insulate your home. This is also a very effective way to prevent fires. Insulation helps in many ways. It keeps warmth within the house, which decreases the possibility of combustion by fuel-burning appliances, electrical wiring, and electrical fixtures, which increases security in your home.
- Designate areas around your house zone-wise and prick up vegetation from that area so that they do not catch up in the fire. The ground around your home must be cemented or graveled to resist incoming fire.
- Keep some fire-fighting materials ready as Shovel, Broom and rack, Brush, Power nozzle, and ladders.
Conclusion
Everyone’s home is precious. We can all take measures and pray that our efforts work and are protected from the bush fires, but nothing comes in between nature’s wrath. The best way to make sure your home is protected against fires is by having it insured. This will cover many costs, including legal fees and replacement costs if something happens to your home. You should also make sure you’re up to date on your homeowner’s policy to make sure you’re covered if the unthinkable should happen. Remember, if you don’t have insurance, the cost of replacing everything will be very high.
