House fire!

[tjbier]

Well my mom called me this morning and said that my aunt and uncle's house burned last night. They are ok though.
I just got back from there and it's really sad, they had a wood furnace and that is where it started. They were not home and are empty nesters, they came home at 8:30 last night and flames were coming out of the basement windows. Fire department left at 7:30 this morning, they had the fire out once but had too come back because it flamed up again.
They said the insurace company will set up a trailer on site for them to live in I think until completion of their home. They farm and don't want to be away from it.
Don't know how exactly it started and probably never will, but I hope everyone checks out their stoves/furnaces/chimneys often.


didn't take any pics because I thought that would be classless and rude. I'll get some eventually. Thanks for listening.

 

[husky455rancher]

man thats sucks to come home to. glad everyone is ok atleast.

 

[Dalmatian90]

That does suck!

Connecticut's code for a while now has called for a sprinkler head above the furnace -- I have one above my oil furnace installed 11 years ago.

That's real simple and easy to install while you're running pipes anyway for hot water and heat (mostly hot water baseboards in this area).

The latest revision of the national model building code used by all states requires full sprinklers in all new residential construction...the builders are now fighting it state-by-state for exemptions.

 

[sly13]

That's to bad gives us all something to think about.

 

[Walt41]

Houses can be replaced, people can not. Glad everyone is ok.

BTW, there is an inexpensive hanging dry chemical unit available for around $150 I have seen them hanging above car collections. Guess they pop around 128 degrees and extinguish a large area.

 

[gwiley]

SOrry to hear that - glad they weren't hurt. Good thing the insurance company is working with them.

One advantage to the OWB is that all the fire is outside - can't start a fire at all. Although it wouldn't have helped in this case, I keep fire extinguishers in the garage, kitchen, crawl space and within 30' of the OWB. Costco has good size fire extinguishers for $30.

 

[deer slayer]

Sorry to here about their lose..Thank god nobody was hurt.

 

[wood4heat]

Sorry for their loss, we should all take this as a reminder to CLEAN YOUR CHIMNEYS!!! Seems about every week or two we get called out on chimney fires. I was on one a week ago that kind of got to me. About 10:00 Saturday night flames coming through the roof. Knocked the fire down pretty quickly and kept it confined to the attic. Saved the house but what really got me were the two little girls in their PJ's outside in the middle of the night watching their house burn.

 

[mimilkman1]

My friends parents house burnt a few weeks before christmas, same kind of story they had a wood stove, but don't know for sure how it started. It's a complete loss except for a few knick knacks.

Kyle

 

[Hoover]

Sorry for their loss - glad everyone is OK.

 

[dingeryote]

Good to hear everyone is OK!!!

Stay safe!
Dingeryote

 

[ba-1]

I'm sorry to hear this.Was on fire runs that things got out of hand.
That is what makes me paranoid of the wood stoves. Just a case of
seeing to much that can go wrong.

 

[xrayman]

Saved the house but what really got me were the two little girls in their PJ's outside in the middle of the night watching their house burn. [/QUOTE]


Those calls do suck, it's better seeing them outside then having to pull one out i had to do that last winter hopefully never again. I run my brush up the chimney on the 1st of every month while burning. thank god my boiler is being delivered tomorrow and the house is ready for it to be hooked up

 

[Maplekid]

Sorry

I am sorry to hear your loss. At least everyone is ok.
My dads cousins cousins house burned to the ground a few weeks before Christmas. It was from an indoor wood furnace too. Eveyone is fine but the house is a total loss.

 

[wkpoor]

2 years ago I had a neighbor's house get burnt, not clear to the ground but whole roof, from his wood burner. Come to find out when the house was built they laid up the chimney and encased a truss in the bricks as it went through the roof. Took 20+ years of heating with wood to finally become a problem. I guessed a liner cracked and mortor gave way and found its way to wood.