Staying safe and keeping warm this winter

MOSES LAKE — It’s autumn, and the cold has arrived. At some point soon, there will even be snow on the ground.

Which means you are likely going to turn on the furnace, light a fire, and maybe even plug in a space heater to stay warm.

According to Grant County Fire Marshal Derek Beach, all of those could cause trouble if they aren’t properly used, maintained or cleaned.

For those with a fireplace or a wood-burning stove, Beach said it’s important to be sure the chimney or flue is clean and free of debris. It’s best to clean these things every year whether they need it or not, he said.

“Ideally you would do that early fall, or late summer, so the weather isn’t too bad,” he said.

Also, things can come to live in your chimney — birds, and even squirrels,

“It’s not common, but it’s nothing too odd,” said Grant County Fire Marshal Derek Beach. “You have people that end up with a squirrel in there.”

If you find a squirrel living in your chimney, you should call a pest control professional to handle it. However, critters and vermin aside, Beach said the greatest and most common problem is the buildup of creosote, complex chemicals created by the burning of wood.

Creosote can build up on the inside of chimney or flue, creating a fire hazard, Beach said. Preventing it requires burning dry wood in your fireplace or wood stove, as opposed to green wood, he added.

“The creosote can potentially light itself, and that’s how you end up with a chimney fire, or a fire inside the pipe,” he said.

Beach recommends using a flashlight to look up and examine a chimney or flue at least once a year, and buying a specialized cleaning brush to scrub the chimney out.

“It’s basically like a bottle brush,” he said.

Space heaters should be certified by Underwriters Laboratories (UL), should be plugged directly into an outlet rather than an extension chord, and have three feet of clear space around them on all sides, Beach said.

After being stored for the summer, space heaters may have gathered dust, so Beach said they should be dusted off before they are used.

“Its also best to have the ones that have a shut-off if they tip over,” he said.

Finally, going in to the winter, Beach advises homeowners and renters to check the batteries on their smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors and replace them if needed. Most detectors will chirp if the batteries need to be replaced, Beach said.

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached at [email protected].