Fire Safety in the Garage

The U.S. Fire Administration reports that there were 403,000 residential fires in 2008, resulting in 2,780 deaths and 13,560 injuries. The direct cost of those fires was $8.55 million.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 40 percent of fire deaths occur in homes without smoke alarms, and most of them occur during the winter. Smoking is the main cause of fire deaths, while cooking is the leading cause of fires and fire injuries.

I can't find statistics on how many fires begin in garages, but I know that a lot of them do. Garages typically contain a lot of combustible materials, and they are frequently used for tasks that require some type of incendiary device. Often, when a fire starts in the garage, it can develop into a major fire before anyone even knows about it.

That's why it's so important to stick a smoke alarm in the garage, preferably an interconnected alarm. That way, if a fire starts in the garage at night, alarms near sleeping areas will be triggered.

There's a good chance that you don't have a smoke alarm in your garage, because it is often not required. And some sources discourage them because false alarms from the garage can be a nuisance. You can reduce that problem by avoiding carbon monoxide detectors in the garage. For more information, see Shopping for a Smoke Alarm and Carbon Monoxide Detector.