Is your space heater a fire risk? Space heater and home heating fire safety

When cold weather settles in, a lot of homes bring out a space heater to warm one room or back up the furnace. Winter is also when heating fires pick up. Here is what the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) say about where heating fires come from, and how to keep a space heater, fireplace or furnace from starting one.

How common are home heating fires?

According to the NFPA, fire departments responded to an estimated average of 37,365 home fires involving heating equipment each year from 2020 to 2024. That was 11% of all reported home fires in that period, and those fires caused an estimated 417 civilian deaths and 1,260 civilian injuries a year.

The NFPA calls heating equipment one of the leading causes of home fire deaths. The USFA notes that heating fires have trended down since the early 1980s, but heating was still the second leading cause of home fires in 2021.

When do heating fires happen?

Mostly in the depths of winter. Based on 2020 to 2024 annual averages, the NFPA found that nearly half of home heating equipment fires (46%) happened in the three months from December through February.

Time of day matters too. The NFPA's Home Heating Fires report, which covers 2016 to 2020, found that only 13% of heating equipment fires started between midnight and 6 a.m., but those overnight fires accounted for 43% of the deaths. The report explains that people have less time to react when they are asleep and farther from the exits, which is why early warning from smoke alarms matters so much.

Why space heaters need extra care

Space heaters cause a smaller share of heating fires than you might expect, but a much larger share of the deaths. Based on 2020 to 2024 annual averages, the NFPA says space heaters and heating stoves were involved in nearly a third (30%) of home heating equipment fires, yet more than seven in ten of the deaths (73%) and seven in ten of the injuries (70%).

The USFA reports a similar pattern for portable heaters. From 2017 to 2019, portable heater fires were only 3% of home heating fires each year, but they accounted for 41% of fatal heating fires in homes. The NFPA's portable heater tip sheet adds that two in five deaths in space heater fires involve portable electric space heaters.

How to use a space heater safely

The NFPA's checklist for electric space heaters recommends:

• Buy a heater that carries the seal of a qualified testing laboratory.
• Choose one with a thermostat and overheat protection, and an automatic shut-off that turns it off if it tips over.
• Keep it at least 3 feet from anything that can burn, including people.
• Set it on a solid, flat surface, out of the way of foot traffic. Never let it block an exit.
• Plug it directly into a wall outlet. Never use an extension cord.
• Keep children away from it.
• Turn it off and unplug it when you leave the room or go to bed.

The USFA gives the same 3-foot rule for every heat source in the house: keep anything that can burn at least 3 feet from fireplaces, wood stoves, radiators, space heaters and candles. It also says to turn space heaters off when you leave the room or go to bed.

Fireplaces, wood stoves and furnaces

Space heaters aren't the only risk. The NFPA's heating safety tips cover the rest of the system:

• Have heating equipment and chimneys cleaned and inspected every year by a qualified professional.
• Have a qualified professional install stationary space heating equipment, water heaters and central heating equipment according to local codes and the manufacturer's instructions.
• Install wood-burning stoves following the manufacturer's instructions, or have a professional do the installation.
• Put a sturdy screen in front of the fireplace to stop sparks from flying into the room.
• Let ashes cool before putting them in a metal container, and keep that container a safe distance from your home.
• For fuel-burning space heaters, always use the kind of fuel the manufacturer specifies.

Chimney fires are less common but costly. In the 2020 to 2024 figures, the NFPA notes that larger fires involving fireplaces or chimneys were fewer than one in ten heating fires (6%), but they caused nearly one-fifth of the direct property damage (19%).

Never heat your home with the oven

Both the NFPA and the USFA say never to use your oven to heat your home. It's worth knowing, too, that the NFPA found the kitchen or cooking area was the most common room for home heating fires to start, at 19% of them based on 2020 to 2024 averages.

Gas heaters and carbon monoxide

Fuel-burning equipment brings a second danger besides fire. The NFPA says all fuel-burning equipment should be vented to the outside to avoid carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning, and recommends installing and maintaining CO alarms. If you smell gas in your gas heater, don't light it. Leave the home right away and call your local fire department or gas company.

Smoke alarms and a kid-free zone

The NFPA recommends testing smoke alarms at least once a month and keeping a three-foot kid-free zone around open fires and space heaters. Given how many fatal heating fires start overnight, a working smoke alarm is one of the simplest protections you have.

What a heating fire leaves behind

Even after the flames are out, the damage can keep going. Ash, smoke residue and the water used to fight the fire can make the destruction worse than the fire itself. Acting quickly limits further deterioration of your property and belongings.

When to call a professional

If a heating fire has left smoke residue, odor or water from firefighting in your home or business, it's time to call a restoration company.

We provide fire and smoke damage assessment and fire damage restoration: ash and smoke residue cleanup, the water left from firefighting, board-up for windows, and reconstruction as licensed general contractors. For lingering smoke odor, we use advanced deodorization methods that eliminate the smell instead of masking it. We're IICRC certified and we coordinate with your insurance company. Our emergency line, 704-372-1200, is open 24 hours a day, every day of the year, across Charlotte and 16 counties in North and South Carolina, including Gastonia, Concord and Salisbury.