Heating Your Home Safely

Published on December 30, 2025

Heating is the second leading cause of home fires. Consider the following safety tips to keep your home both warm and safe:

• Never use an oven to heat your home.
• Keep anything that can burn at least 3 feet from any heat source like fireplaces, wood stoves, radiators or space heaters.
• Have a 3-foot “kid-free zone” around open fires and space heaters.
• Plug only one heat-producing appliance (such as a space heater) into an electrical outlet at a time. 
• Turn space heaters off when leaving the room or going to bed.
• Always use the right kind of fuel, specified by the manufacturer, for fuel burning space heaters.
• Have a qualified professional install stationary space heating equipment, water heaters or central heating equipment according to the local codes and manufacturer’s instructions.
• Have a qualified professional clean and inspect your chimney and vents every year.
• Make sure the fireplace has a sturdy screen to stop sparks from flying into the room. Store cooled ashes in a tightly covered metal container, and keep it outside at least 10 feet from your home and any nearby buildings.
• Install and test smoke and carbon monoxide alarms at least once a month.
• If you have a fuel-fired heating appliance (such as wood, LPG, Propane or Natural Gas), please take special precautions to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning and install carbon monoxide detectors near bedrooms and near the appliance. For more information, see the National Fire Protection Association’s Carbon Monoxide webpage. 

If you have any questions about fire safety, please contact the Melbourne Fire Prevention Office: 321-608-7915.