Home Upgrades for Fire Safety

October is Fire Safety Month, and now is a great time to talk about making sure your home is upgraded to protect you as best as it can against fire. If you're planning on tackling any home improvement or renovation projects this fall, you may want to consider adding some upgrades for fire safety.

Being proactive about fire safety:

• Renovations change your home's risk: Moving a wall changes which detector covers that room. Adding a kitchen island, converting a garage, or opening up a floor plan can leave areas with no alarm coverage at all. New appliances and circuits can introduce ignition risks that the original system was never designed for.

• Renovation dust can also accelerate sensor degradation in your existing detectors, so if your sensors are close to the 10-year mark, now may be the time to replace them.

• If your walls are already open, running wires, adding detectors, or fitting a fire-rated door costs far less that it would if you waited. Plus, if your project requires a building permit, the building department will review fire safety compliance during the final inspection, so why not try to catch any gaps before then?

• Insurance companies sometimes offer discounts for homes that have interconnected and monitored fire safety systems (such as State Farm and Ting), so it's worth checking during the planning stage to see if you can save some cash.

Home Fire Safety Upgrades:

Electrical problems are among the leading cause of residential fires, so let's start there.

• Check for AFCI breakers: Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter Breakers detect dangerous electrical arcing--the kind that happens inside a wall and ignites insulation before there's visible sign of a flame. Many places require AFCI protection for bedrooms and living areas, so a home renovation is a good time to make sure your home is safe.

• Wiring and Panels: Homes built in the 1960s and early 1970s may have aluminum branch-circuit wiring. Aluminum oxidizes over time, which creates resistance at connections and generates heat. If you think your home many have aluminum wiring, get it inspected during your home's renovation. If your panel trips frequently under current loads, adding high-draw appliances like an induction range or an EV charger will make the problem worse. Upgrading your panel during a remodel avoids problems later.

• GFCI and Tamper-Resistant Outlets: GFCI protection is standard in kitchens, bathrooms, garages, and outdoor locations, and required during renovations in most places. Tamper-resistant outlets should be standard in remodeled spaces, particularly in homes with young children.

Upgrades you can add to help stop the spread of a fire:

• Fire-rated drywall and wall assemblies: Type X gypsum board can provide up to 60 minutes of fire resistance, compared to roughly 30 minutes for standard half-inch drywall. It's especially useful in garage walls, utility rooms, and stairwells, where fire is most likely to originate and spread to the rest of the house. Fire-resistant insulation and fire-stop sealants close the gaps around pipes and wiring runs. Without them, smoke and heat travel between floors through wall cavities, faster than residents can evacuate.

• Garage-to-home fire door: Garages contain all types of flammable items, including power tools, gasoline, and lithium-ion batteries from EVs and power equipment. Adding a fire-rated door with a self-closing mechanism between the garage and home limits how quickly the fire can reach occupied rooms. This is an easy and smart upgrade to add during a remodel.

• Egress window and escape route design: Bedrooms and basements require windows large enough to serve as emergency exits, so confirm that your windows match the correct measurements or add an egress window during your remodel. Bedrooms on upper floors should have a collapsible ladder stored near the window for easy escape. Plan your layout well during renovation so that your hallways don't bottleneck during a potential evacuation.

• Upgrade your detectors: First, if it's been over ten years since you've replaced your detectors, it's time for new ones. Detector placement (smoke and CO) is especially important to consider during a renovation if you've changed your floor plan, as it may mean that the detectors no longer cover that room. You should place one detector on every floor of the home, including them basement. Detectors should also be placed in every bedroom and outside each sleeping area in the hallway. Mount the units on the ceiling or high up on a wall.

Kitchen upgrades:

Kitchens generate more residential fires than any other area of a home. Consider these upgrades during a remodel to help keep your home safe.

• Change your cooktop: Induction cooktops don't have an open flame and cool down quickly. Switching from gas to induction during a remodel removes the ignition source most closely associated with stovetop fires. If you keep your gas range, check to make sure your model has an automatic flame-failure shutoff.

• Fire extinguisher placement: Mount a Class K fire extinguisher on the wall beside the kitchen exit, not in a cabinet where it gets forgotten. Location matters--you should be able to get to your fire extinguisher without reaching over or near the stove.

• Range hood selection and grease fire: A ducted range hood exhausts grease-laden air outside the home, and is the lower-risk choice during a remodel. A recirculating hood returns filtered air back to the kitchen, depositing grease residue on filters and nearby surfaces, which increases ignition risk over time if the filters are not cleaned regularly.

Outdoor upgrades:

• Roofing: Replacing your roof is a major investment, so if your roof is at the end of its life span, consider upgrading to Class A fire-rated materials. Metal roofing is highly fire-resistant, long-lasting, and low maintenance. Clay or concrete tile is noncombustible but may require additional reinforcements for weight. Asphalt fiberglass shingles offer Class A fire-ratings. You can also install metal flashing at roof edges and valleys to prevent ember entry and upgrade attic vent screens to 1/8" metal mesh.

• Gutters: Gutters collect debris and are a common ember ignition site. Be sure to clean your gutters regularly (or Hunter Handyman Services can do that for you!), or install gutter guards or covers made from metal mesh. Opt for metal gutters rather than vinyl, which will melt and ignite.

• Vents and openings: Swap out plastic or large-mesh vent covers for 1/8" corrosion-resistant metal mesh. Focus on attic vents, crawl space vents, and soffit vents. Ember-resistant vents are designed to block embers while allowing airflow.

• Windows and doors: Single-pane glass can shatter from radiant heat. Consider replacing older windows. If you can't, apply fire-resistant window films for temporary protection. Apply weatherstripping around doors to prevent ember intrusion. Add metal shutters or pre-cut plywood covers around your windows to protect during fire alerts.

• Decks, porches, and fencing: Use fire-retardant coatings on your wooden surfaces (and make sure to reapply according to the manufacturer's instructions). Replace your deck boards with composite or fire-rated lumber, and maintain a noncombustible zone beneath and around decks with gravel, pavers, or bare soil. Disconnect your wooden fence from the side of your home with a metal gate or short area of metal fencing.

• Landscaping: Continue watering your plants, as well irrigated plants are less flammable. Swap wood mulch for gravel or rock mulch near structures, as wood mulch smolders. Install hardscape features that act as firebreaks like patios, walkways, and retaining walls. Keep the lower branches of trees trimmed and clear brush away that can carry fire from the ground to treetops.

If you're thinking about renovating your home this fall, Hunter Handyman Services can help. We can also talk to you about upgrading your home for fire safety to give you and your loved ones peace of mind. Hunter Handyman Services is located in Peru, IL and serves most of Illinois through small jobs, home repair and remodeling projects, and commercial work. We offer financing through Enhancify so you can break your big project up into an affordable monthly payment. Find out what you qualify for here, and get your project funded in 3-5 business days.