Well, many people worry about the current state of the housing market the reality is that other things threaten your home in a much more physical way. Nobody likes to deal with water damage from flooding or the results of natural catastrophes like tornadoes and hurricanes. There’s of course not much you can do against these types of accidents, but the reality is that there is one thing you can prevent and that is a house fire. You won’t be surprised to learn that one of the rooms that is most at risk of causing fires in your home is your kitchen. So, let’s take a look at six common fire hazards in your kitchen.
1. Oven
This goes without saying that the oven is one of the biggest and most obvious causes for fires in your kitchen but one many think of a gas leak causing a fire or leaving the stove on the reality is that there are other reasons why the oven might cause fires in your kitchen. Nowadays most appliances are electric and gas stoves are quite rare and electrical fires can happen very quickly especially if your oven is an older model. Making sure that your oven is well maintained and that no worries are exposed will help you prevent fire risks in the future.
2. Fridge
This might surprise many people to learn that while this appliance is meant to keep things cold and cool, they do cause many fires in the kitchen. As you can imagine the combination of electrical motors and water especially in the form of ice might cause short circuits that can cause your appliance to not only take fire but also overload which can make the motor inside the fridge burn. This is especially common with newer models which have a lot of electrical components to allow for screens and water dispensers to work properly. If your fridge makes a noise that you don’t recognize you might want to call a maintenance person to avoid any potential danger.
3. Crumbs
This might seem like an odd one, but the reality is that the buildup of crumbs inside your toaster especially close to the eating element might cause your toaster to eventually catch fire. This is why a lot of people recommend cleaning out your crumbs as often as possible and not forgetting to unplug them as you do it. This can be especially dangerous as many toasters in their later years can often have issues where the element doesn’t cool properly or aware the element might stick and stay out for a long time.
4. Grease
It’s important to understand that you could even if you’re careful grease will eventually accumulate on your stovetop as well as your fan. While these things by themselves are not dangerous you can imagine that if there are eventually any sparks or any risk of fires you might see that grease served as an accelerant which might make a bad situation much worse. Cleaning grease requires proper cleaning supplies which will truly scrub it out of your appliances and remove any buildup that could cause danger.
5. Dust
While this is always a fire hazard it is especially true in the kitchen since there are so many appliances that cause heat. It becomes even more dangerous once we realize that more often than not kitchens are filled with extremely heavy appliances which can often cause massive dust to build up under and behind them which you rarely will be able to clean. If you’re able to clean behind your stove in your fridge you might want to try and do it not only for safety but for cleanliness.
6. Yourself!
This one goes without saying but one of the biggest fire hazards in the kitchen is the cook itself. This is why when you are working over the stove you should wear short-sleeved clothes or roll your sleeves as well as tie your hair to prevent any risk of your person Catching Fire. While this may seem like a given the reality is that these types of accidents happen way more often than you may expect. While the leading cause of house fires is kitchen fires, you can still prevent them by being careful and making sure that you cover your bases by avoiding any potential fire hazard while you cook.
