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Prevent Barn Fires
Sit down, and write yourself a
fire plan. List any possible hazards that exist now in your barn
so you can work on removing them. If you have a large facility, it
might be a good idea to ask your local fire expert (from the fire
department) to walk through your property with you to identify
your risk and recommend how you can make your farm more fire
proof.
Get to know your local fire
department and make sure they know about you. Don’t assume that
they just KNOW where you are. If your farm is way out in the
sticks, or the turn off to your property is in a blind curve, make
sure they are aware of this so they don’t waste time driving
back and forth looking for you.
Sources
of Burnables:
It would be very hard to
eliminate EVERY burnable item in your barn. However, a few
precautions can be taken.
- Keep your barn clean.
Excessive cobwebs and trapped debris are good sources for fire.
- Do NOT store your hay in the
same building as your horses. Keep the bulk of your hay in a
separate, well ventilated building. Heat trapped inside the hay
bails can cause them to ignite. If possible, do not store bedding
in the same building as your horses either. Bring only what hay
and bedding is needed inside the barn.
-
DO NOT smoke or discard your cigarette inside or around
your barn. They can ignite dried vegetation around your barn, not
to mention set the bedding on fire.
- Keep your stalls clean. Even
bedding with piles of manure can be a fire hazard. (For instance,
the discarded cigarette or hot ash)
- Avoid keeping gasoline-
powered machinery and/or gas cans inside your barn.
- Keep all flammable pesticides
and cleaning solutions in a fire proof container and away from
heat.
- Keep your property well mowed
and trimmed. The ides is to try and keep the vegetation from
floating over to the barn when caught on fire.
Keep your property around your barn as clear as possible. A
formula to help you determine the amount of cleared space has been
listed in an article by Jane L. Seegal following a guideline from
the U. S. Forest Service:
“Clear a distance around your
buildings that is three times the height of the burnable material
plus 10 feet for every 15 degrees of slope on the land. Thus, if
the vegetation is eight feet tall (3 X 8 = 24) on a 30-degree
slope (30 + 15 = .2 X 10 = 20), you would clear a radius of 44
feet (24 + 20 = 44) around the barn.”
- Use extreme caution when
making repairs around barn which need tools that create heat.
(welding tools, exhaust pipes
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Check all electrical wires, switches, and outlets often and make
any repairs immediately. If repairs can not be made immediately,
turn power to barn off. Make sure all work is done by a licensed
electrician. Try to replace all chewed through or old wiring as
soon as possible. Avoid excessive use of extension cords, not only
a fire hazard, but also to keep you or your horse from getting
tripped up or tangled in the cord.
- Do not over load electrical
systems.
- Avoid space heaters. Unplug
when not present.
- Cage light bulbs and cover
switches.
- Make sure all laundry
appliances are lint free and kept as far away from horses and
combustibles.
- Piles of manure, bedding, and
any other organic heaps trap large quantities of heat inside and
can spontaneously combust. Try to keep these piles outside and
away from your barn
Prepare
for Emergencies |
