How to prevent kitchen fires
Over the years I have had to extinguish several small kitchen fires, yet I am sure all of them could have been prevented. On Thanksgiving, we had a small fire in the oven which was caused by food bubbling over. When you have a kitchen fire, the first thing you might say is ‘Get the fire extinguisher!’. In our case, we were at my mother in laws home for the holiday so we did not know where the extinguisher was kept. When it was eventually retrieved, long after the fire was out, we could only stare in amazement at this dust covered red container that was close to 20 years old – and was found in the locked shed outside!
There are several things you should do to prevent this emergency in the first place.
*Make a kid free zone (and pet free too) of at least 3 feet in front of the stove.
*Remember to “Stand By Your Pan”. Never leave the kitchen unattended while something is cooking on the stovetop.
*Clean the stove area, including the drip pans, to be rid of food crumbs and grease.
*Keep flammable items away from the stove area. This includes pot holders, paper towels, dish towels and food packaging. Never wear loose, long sleeves (like a robe) while cooking.
*Always turn the pot handles in toward the stove – not hanging over the edge.
*Do not overfill dishes in the oven . This is what happened to me on Thanksgiving. The sweet potatoes with all that gooey brown sugar bubbled over because they were too full!
In case a small fire starts, here are a few tips.
*A box of baking soda can be a lifesaver. Baking soda will put out any SMALL fire caused by grease and food.
*If a fire starts in a pot or on a stovetop, putting a pan lid on the fire should smother it quickly.
*A fire in the oven, will usually extinguish itself if you close the door.
*NEVER pour water on a grease fire. The water disperses the grease and the fire and makes a small problem a 911 problem.
Having a fire extinguisher on hand is always a great idea. However, there are several types of fire extinguishers and not all of them are for kitchen fires. Check carefully to make sure you purchase an extinguisher suited for kitchens only and understand which types of fires they are used on. Always learn how to use the extinguisher BEFORE you need it.
If the fire is larger than a small stovetop fire or spreads, leave the house and call 911. If a fire should start, be calm and be prepared!
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During this little fire, (being unable to get the fire extinguisher and not having any baking soda) my brother in law grabbed the flour and put out that fire. I didn’t put that in my post, because I could not find any evidence that the flour was an alternative way to extinguish the flames. However, I did find a recent news article that said someone had done this also. The local fire department was quoted in the article saying that this was definitely ok.
I will say this, the cleanup was not fun! It involved a vacuum cleaner!
Hi Stacy! What a great blog you have! I love the style of your blog. I liked your kitchen fires blog entry particularly well because I recall one time nearly starting a fire in a small apartment. I had a very tiny studio apartment, and it was so cramped I used the oven to store a few things. I had placed a crockpot in the oven simply because I needed the space. One day I turned on the oven to pre-heat it for a recipe, having forgotten what was inside of it. Oh the bad smells!! I didn’t start a fire, but the wire plug for the crock pot had melted quite a bit and I’m sure it would’ve been a bad situation had I not been right there by the oven the moment I smelled something odd! Keep up the great blogging! Melody
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