Stay safe while staying warm this winter

When it's oh so cold outside, there's nothing better than staying inside and getting toasty in front of a fire.

But if those chimneys haven't been inspected or properly cleaned, it could be a disaster waiting to happen.

"We get a lot of chimney fires," said Mark Yaden, Kennewick's fire marshal. "We're called to several a month, easily. More so when we get our cold temperatures."

Sometimes chimneys are damaged and the homeowners don't even know it, he said. Damaged chimneys can still work for a year or longer, but it's a hazard just waiting to spark. Getting them checked and cleaned regularly is the easiest way to prevent problems, Yaden said.

Chimneys should be inspected once a year before the season starts, officials said. If fireplaces or woodstoves are used as a primary source of heat, they should be cleaned more often.

"If you're going to heat your whole home with wood, you have to know how to clean it or have it cleaned almost monthly," said Chief Mike Spring, of Benton Fire District 4 in West Richland. "You actually need to know what you're doing. The biggest cause (of problems) is just not proper operation of woodstoves."

Proper installation of the flue pipe also is critical.

A West Richland family lost their home last month from a fire started by the woodstove. Investigators determined the cause of the blaze that destroyed the double-wide mobile home was an improperly installed flue pipe, Spring said.

A chimney fire also burned a Finley family out of their home the day before Thanksgiving, after the heat reportedly got up into the walls of their three-bedroom mobile home.

"You may be saving on heating bills (by installing a solid-wood fuel appliance), but if something happens ... We're more worried about people's lives," Spring said. "Anytime you have a wood stove, pellet stove or gas furnace, you're adding an open flame into your home."

Not properly maintaining or updating the exhaust pipes in chimneys can also lead to fires. Many of the fireplaces installed in Tri-City homes in the 1970s and '80s, came with 10- or 20-year warranties, said Greg McLain, owner of Fire & Water in Richland.

Those have since expired, McLain said, which means they can be prone to problems. His business inspects and cleans chimneys, and has many customers switching from standard masonry fireplaces to woodstoves or inserts that are more efficient, safer and better for the environment, he said.

In 2007, fire crews reported 29 fires attributed to chimney or flue fires in the southeast area of the state, said an annual statewide fire report. Chimney or flue fires accounted for nearly 16 percent of the 185 "confined fires" in Region 8, which covers Benton, Franklin, Walla Walla, Adams, Asotin, Columbia, Garfield and Whitman counties.

The arctic blast hitting the region already has proved to be dangerous in Burbank. A mobile home was destroyed Tuesday when residents tried to use a space heater to thaw their frozen pipes, said Chief Bryan Bauer of Walla Walla Fire District 5.

"From what we can gather, something caught on fire and fell down into the vent system," Bauer said.

Fire crews battling the blaze also had to deal with the icy ground, which got even slicker as the water poured onto the fire froze almost instantly, Bauer said. Crews had to keep their trucks and pumps running so water wouldn't freeze in the hoses, he said.

Residents are reminded to keep the cabinet's doors open to allow heat from the house to keep pipes warm, Bauer said. Turning faucets on so the water drips also helps keeping them from icing up.

If pipes end up freezing, the best thing to do is call a plumber, the fire chief said.

Benton County Emergency Services officials say an electric hairdryer can be used to try to thaw pipes. Never use anything with an open flame, said spokesman Steve Sautter.

Other cold weather fire safety tips include:

- Checking heating systems and furnace filters to make sure they're not clogged with dust or other objects.

- Keeping combustibles -- curtains, furniture, clothes -- away from heaters.

- Never leave candles burning unattended and make sure proper holders are used so the candles won't tip over.

- Don't burn wrapping paper or boxes in fireplaces.

- Space heaters should only be used as a supplemental heat source and not run 24-hours a day. They also should be plugged directly into a wall and not run off an extension cord.

- Pets should be brought inside to stay warm instead of trying to heat dog houses or carriers with lights or heaters, which easily can ignite and spread to the house.

- Don't use charcoal or propane grills or any camping-type equipment meant for the outdoors inside. Also don't use any gas-powered equipment indoors, which has the potential to cause carbon monoxide poisoning.

- Don't idle a car in a garage, even when the garage door is open.

- Make sure smoke detectors are working properly. Officials also recommend installing carbon monoxide detectors in homes.