Electric space heaters pose safety hazards
Man it's cold!
A lot of us are using space heaters to stay warm. And that's fine. But you've got to be careful. Electric space heaters don't have a flame, but they can start a fire.
"You must keep all combustibles three feet from the heat. That means your bedding, your furniture, your draperies, all should be away from that space heater," says John Drengenberg, a safety expert at Underwriter's Labs.
"Very often people are tempted to put the space heater very close to their bed to warm if up before they get into the bed, but that really can be very dangerous because the bedding - they quilts, blankets and sheets - are all flammable and could burn."
Put the heater on a level surface so it doesn't tip over. And try to keep kids and pets away from them.
"Because as they jump around, they can accidentally tip over the heater, which is never a good thing to have happen," says Drengenberg.
Unless the heater is designed for use outdoors or in bathrooms, don't use it in damp, wet areas.
You also need to be careful with the power cords.
You don't want to put that cord in front of the unit, where it will get all the heat.
And never run the cord from a space heater under a rug.
"Nobody wants to trip over it, but the fact is that carpet will hold in any heat that's produced by the cord and could cause the carpet to smolder and create a fire," says Drengenberg
Drengenberg reminds us that we it's always best to plug that space heater into the wall socket. Do not use an extension cord unless absolutely necessary.
"Plugging a space heater into the wall is important. Extension cords do work, but the reality is that not all of them can handle the high current that a space heater draws. Space heaters, like any heating appliance is a product that takes a lot of electricity to run and therefore you want to be very careful with extension cords. It's best to plug a space heater directly into the outlet."
And of course, keep that space heater at least 3 feet away from anything that could catch fire.
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More Info:
Space Heater Safety Tips
A lot of us are using space heaters to stay warm. And that's fine. But you've got to be careful. Electric space heaters don't have a flame, but they can start a fire.
"You must keep all combustibles three feet from the heat. That means your bedding, your furniture, your draperies, all should be away from that space heater," says John Drengenberg, a safety expert at Underwriter's Labs.
"Very often people are tempted to put the space heater very close to their bed to warm if up before they get into the bed, but that really can be very dangerous because the bedding - they quilts, blankets and sheets - are all flammable and could burn."
Put the heater on a level surface so it doesn't tip over. And try to keep kids and pets away from them.
"Because as they jump around, they can accidentally tip over the heater, which is never a good thing to have happen," says Drengenberg.
Unless the heater is designed for use outdoors or in bathrooms, don't use it in damp, wet areas.
You also need to be careful with the power cords.
You don't want to put that cord in front of the unit, where it will get all the heat.
And never run the cord from a space heater under a rug.
"Nobody wants to trip over it, but the fact is that carpet will hold in any heat that's produced by the cord and could cause the carpet to smolder and create a fire," says Drengenberg
Drengenberg reminds us that we it's always best to plug that space heater into the wall socket. Do not use an extension cord unless absolutely necessary.
"Plugging a space heater into the wall is important. Extension cords do work, but the reality is that not all of them can handle the high current that a space heater draws. Space heaters, like any heating appliance is a product that takes a lot of electricity to run and therefore you want to be very careful with extension cords. It's best to plug a space heater directly into the outlet."
And of course, keep that space heater at least 3 feet away from anything that could catch fire.
-----
More Info:
Space Heater Safety Tips
Would love to have seen a bit more information on which ones are worth the money and which ones are junk. I can tell you that if you watch the infomercial on the 'worlds best little heater' with Montel Williams as the host, its not going to do what it says. I guess I should have known something was up when they advertise it as "just $39.95!" They don't tell you the full price ever on TV, it ends up being almost $400, and I have yet to see the space heater that is worth that price. We ordered it, tried it for about 8 hours and are returning it today. I think we are going back to our original idea of getting a pellet stove. We have a drafty old farm house, and the electric bill went up 25% in the last two years, even using less actual electricity, so, as so many people these days--we're looking to cut costs, and to keep warm.
 @chickysgirl I like those oil filled radiators. We have ours set on the 600 (low) watt setting. It does the job very well and costs very little at that rate.
 @Just a dude  @chickysgirl I have been using the oil filled radiators for years and just love them. No smell, auto shut of when tipped over. Very safe and affordable.Â
This is all "No DUH!!" This is another form of natural selection at work!!
excellent grammar
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"Very often people are tempted to put the space heater very close to their bed to warm if up before they get into the bed, but that really can be very dangerous because the bedding - they quilts, blankets and sheets - are all flammable and could burn."