Taken from the Altoona Mirror
By Rich Coleman (rcoleman@altoonamirror.com)
The sight of snow in October may have been the final straw for those fiscally minded residents who’ve been holding out on turning on the heat.
But if that heating source is an alternate one – like a space heater, pellet stove or wood stove – use caution. Heating is the second leading cause of residential house fires with 25 percent of fatal house fires being caused by portable heaters, officials say.
“The primary cause is combustible things like clothing, furniture, things like that that are too close to heating sources,” Altoona Fire Inspector Mike Tofano said. “You want to keep your combustibles at least 2 feet away from your open heating sources like space heaters, ventless fireplaces, those kinds of things. And don’t pile up clothing on top of your forced-air vents or radiators.”
According to a 2010 study from the U.S. Fire Administration, 31 percent of the non-confined residential-building heating fires occur because the heat source is too close to combustibles.
> Read the full story at AltoonaMirror.com
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