Best Security Products blog

The Consumer Insurance Blog has released an article dealing with the little-known fire hazard of 9-volt batteries.

The article points out that these batteries, found in so many household items and toys, can be dangerous if they are not taken care of properly.

Dave (of Kids and Character), a victim featured in the article and accompanying video, had his home totally destroyed by a fire started by a 9-volt battery. He shares from his own personal experience in an effort to get the word out about safety.

On April 21, 2011, the 9-volt battery from inside Dave’s smoke detector caused a fire that would destroy Dave’s home.

After removing the old battery from his smoke detector, Dave wanted to recycle it. But he didn’t know there are certain things you must to do to make sure the battery is safe and does not present a fire hazard.

There is a common element (or flaw) to every 9-volt battery: the terminals are close together. And creating a short across those terminals is very easy to do. 

Dave stored the old 9-volt batteries in a sack in his garage. A couple of weeks later, however, the bag was bumped causing 2 of the old batteries to short out together. This started a fire which destroyed Dave’s home.

If you have batteries lying around together in drawers and other places, you have a potential fire emergency on your hands. When the terminals short out together, they first become very warm and then they burst into flames.

To make the batteries safe for storing, simply place a piece of electrical tape over the terminals. This will keep them from shorting out and causing a fire.

Click here to watch the whole video.

It is a good idea to take some time as soon as possible to look around in your home for incorrectly stored 9-volt batteries. Whether they are new or old does not matter. Just be sure they are stored properly.

At Best Security Products, we can help you with all commercial and home fire security and safety needs. Give us a call at 1-800–988–2378 sales@bestsecurityproducts.com

Source: http://www.insureinfoblog.com/2015/01/the-little-known-fire-hazard-of-9-volt-batteries/

Austin Community College has created a video guide that explains proper procedure for evacuating a building during a fire emergency.

Click the video to watch the whole thing. Here are some tips from the video. These tips are shared by Douglas Garret from Austin Community College:

The video shows a worker dropping her sweater near a space heater and then leaving the room. Someone sees the smoke from the burning sweater and then pulls the manual fire alarm. As the alarm sounds, two other workers discuss whether they should leave the building or not. But it is important to always leave the building when an alarm sounds.

• Do not hesitate to pull the fire alarm if you notice a fire.
• Leave the building at the closest, safe exit anytime you hear the fire alarm.
• Never take the elevator; instead, use the stairs to get to lower floors. Firefighters are the only ones who should use the elevators during a fire emergency.
• Be sure to stay calm and orderly when moving toward the exits and leaving the building. This helps the building evacuation to go more smoothly.
• Those who need help exiting the building should wait in a designated area reserved for those who need rescue assistance. If you need help getting out, be sure you alert someone to your location inside the building. Or you can ask others to report your location for you. When the fire department arrives, they will make rescue their first priority.
• It is important to make sure you are familiar with the locations of exits in your building as well as the areas for rescue assistance.
• After you get outside, walk to the rally point – that designated area to wait after evacuating the building. Do not leave, because it is important that everyone be accounted for. If you know of anyone missing or hurt, report it to the authorities.

Click here to watch the entire video from Austin Community College.

At Best Security Products, we can help you with all commercial and home fire security and safety needs. Give us a call at 1-800–988–2378 or send us an email at sales@bestsecurityproducts.com

Did you know that too much clutter could cost you your life in the event of fire? Most of us could probably benefit from a good spring clean, but when the clutter in our homes becomes excessive, it creates a fire danger not only to ourselves but also to the fire fighters who would have to respond.

The National Fire Protection Association’s Sharon Gamache gave a short interview here. As the Director of NFPA’s High Risk Outreach Programs, she is especially qualified to speak about the fire hazards of compulsive hoarding.

Here are some highlights from her interview; you can also click the video below to watch the whole talk.

People who live in a house where there is hoarding are in danger, for several reasons.

Sometimes the clutter is piled around a heating source. For example, there may be things stored on top of radiators, near candles, heaters and fire places. There may be basement storage near the furnace.

Another problem is during the response to a fire. Firefighters may have a hard time getting in a door that is blocked by clutter. Once they are inside house, they may have a hard time leaving the home, because the clutter might prevent easy-exit. 

Likewise, the resident of the home is in danger, because the clutter makes it harder to escape; the clutter might be blocking windows and other exits. In addition, clutter in the home presents a tripping hazard as they are trying to escape – which delays their getting out during a fire.

This National Fire Protection Association Journal article reports on a fire in a high-rise public housing complex. A fire started in a unit that was stuffed with clutter. As a result, the fire turned into a six-alarm fire that involved more than 300 firefighters! 

If you or someone you love tends to live in a cluttered environment, consider the dangers that clutter provides. Use this new knowledge for motivation to live more safely!

At Best Security Products, we can help you with all commercial and home fire security and safety needs. Give us a call at 1-800–988–2378 sales@bestsecurityproducts.com