Zanesville Fire Department Provides Alternative Heating Safety Tips

With the winter weather and freezing temperatures settling in for the season, many homes are bringing out their alternative heat sources.

While alternative heating can be helpful, it’s important to use them correctly and safely. Some common sources of heat are kerosene heaters and space heaters. When using a kerosene heater, it’s possible for carbon monoxide to be released, so it’s important to have CO detectors in the house and to have proper ventilation to avoid excessive and dangerous levels of CO buildup.

When it comes to space heaters, you want to make sure it’s plugged in directly to a wall outlet, avoiding extension cords.

“Your space heater should be sitting on a hard, flat surface, with a 3 foot cleared distance around it at all times. Make sure that your space heater is not blowing directly on anything combustible such as fabric or furniture.” Zanesville Probationary Firefighter, Brock Williams stated.

Around this time of the year there can be a lot of power outages, so if there is a need to use a generator, be sure the generator is being ran outside or in an extremely well ventilated area.

“You also want to make sure your generator has a good working transfer switch to prevent any sort of back feeding into the home that would create a mass power surge.” Williams said.

Whether you’re using alternative heat options to stay warm or to create that cozy holiday feeling in your home, it’s worth keeping these tips in mind to stay safe.