Safety should come first every season. Your home depends on electricity, which provides you with power to cook, heat water, for lighting and more. Did you know every year about 51,000 electric fires occur in homes resulting in nearly 500 deaths? Here are some helpful safety tips for your home.
1| Carbon monoxide safety: Keep your family safe from this odorless, colorless gas.
a. Install a battery-operated carbon monoxide detector.
b. Never use your oven to heat your home.
c. Always operate portable generators outdoors.
2 | Appliance safety tips: Give your appliances the attention they need this winter.
a. Remember to clean or replace your furnace filter every month.
b. Have a fireplace? Start winter with a clean chimney flue.
c. Clean out dryer lint to lower the chance of a fire.
3 | Power off: Power down when you’re not around.
a.Turn off lights, computers, TVs and other electronic devices when not in use to reduce risk of fire.
b.Use a smart power strip to make powering off easy.
4 | Keep electrical cords away from heat sources and foot traffic and don’t place them under rugs where damage can go unnoticed.
5| If you only need to heat a small area, try using a space heater. Electric space heaters are an energy efficient way to stay warm because there is no heat loss through ducts. Space heaters are excellent for heating closed-off areas that you occupy for shorter periods.
For more tips on using energy safely, visit sdge.com/safety.