A Christmas tree is a symbol of holiday spirit, and style, when the season comes around. People flock to tree farms in the mountains, Lowe’s garden section, and even just to your everyday grocery— and pick their perfect tree. We string up lights, hang ornaments, put presents below, and top it all off with a shiny star. While we take pride in our holiday cheer, and display it for all to see— our trees also have the potential of leading to Christmas tree fires. These are unfortunately quite common, there are also a few steps we can all take to prevent them. That’s where we come in… Below, you’ll find a guide to avoiding Christmas tree fires, and keeping your holiday safe, sound, and jolly…
Christmas Tree Fires: How to Avoid Emergency During the Holiday
Pick your tree methodically
When choosing a tree, assuming you get a real tree, keep an eye out for a few different things… For one, make sure the needles are fresh, bright green, and don’t fall off easily. Needles that aren’t well intact point to a tree that is drying out. You know your tree is going to stand for at least a week, if not a few. Therefore, finding the freshest tree possible will go a long way in preventing potential Christmas tree fires.
Water your tree
Many people don’t consider the upkeep that comes along with having a real tree. But, watering them is absolutely one of those steps. The biggest key to keeping a tree safe, and accident-free, is to keep it moisturized. While accidents inevitably happen, a very dry, brittle tree is much more likely to go up in flames— and fast. So, when putting up your tree, add a few inches of water into the stand. Furthermore, refresh that water around once a week.
Watch the placement
When deciding where to put your tree, consider the heat sources within your house. If you have a fireplace, radiator, wood burning stove, or something of the sort— make sure to place your tree at least three feet away from those hot spots. Preventing Christmas tree fires may come down to where you put your tree. Furthermore, make sure that tree isn’t blocking any essential exit point for your house. That way, if you find yourself plagued with a fire of any kind, your Christmas tree isn’t hindering your safety plan.