Space heater safety tips that will keep you and your family safe this winter

GREENVILLE, Pitt County (WCTI) — If you plan on using a space heater to keep your home warm this season, you might want to read over these safety tips.

Space heaters account for two of very five home heating fires and four of five home heating deaths according to Greenville Fire-Rescue, but Fire Marshal Bryant Beddard said there are ways to use them safely.

“What you’ll want to do is maintain at least three feet of combustible material,” Fire Marshal Beddard said. “(This includes) draperies,furniture, bedding.”

It also includes yourself. You might be tempted to warm your hands or feet directly in front of the heater or sleep next to it, but Fire Marshal Beddard said that isn’t safe.

You might also be tempted to leave a space heater running to keep your pets warm during the day while you’re out of the home, but that’s another dangerous habit.

“You can have an increased risk for any type of fire, or anything could happen while you’re gone,” Fire Marshal Beddard said. “You want to make sure you unplug it before you leave.”

As temperatures drop and you try to warm up inside, Fire Marshal Beddard said he hopes you’ll remember to continue to practice fire safety around the home.

“It’s also a good time to remind everyone to make sure they have a working smoke alarm in their home and that they test it regularly,” Fire Marshal Beddard said.

It’s also important to have a working carbon monoxide detector in your home.

Space heaters that burn any type of fuel, like kerosene, can emit the dangerous gas if they’re not running or ventilated properly.

Some final tips from the fire marshal? Always plug your space heater into the wall, not an extension cord, and try to buy a heater that has an automatic shut off function that will turn the heater off if it tips over.

Officials with Greenville Fire-Rescue said more home fires happen during the cold winter months than at any other time of the year, but you can prevent one if you keep fire safety in mind.