Does Home Automation Matter in Fire Prevention?

Does home security and home automation matter in fire prevention and protection? Absolutely.

We know that home automation, and home and fire security technologies are convenient and make our lives safer. Sometimes it helps to consider facets of how and why that is so. In honor of National Fire Prevention Month, today we are going to delve in to some of the intricacies of fire and how home automation can play a valuable role in limiting its damaging effects.

How Fire Works

Unlike in what people see in movies, fires can start small and smolder undetected; they can also evolve quickly, and fires do not allow time to gather up belonging and escape safely. Fires do not happen at convenient times, and it is possible that not everyone becomes aware of the emergency at the same time.

One of the facts not commonly understood is that heat, toxic fumes, and smoke are deadly long before the actual flames in a residential fire. A fire creates toxic fumes which can cause the residents to become disoriented or sleepy and incapacitate them before they even realize there is an emergency. Super-heated air can sear the lungs and cause asphyxiation, which is the leading cause of death in fire, exceeding burns by a three to one ratio.

Residential Fire Statistics Are Shocking

Fire statistics tell a very serious tale.

• Someone dies in a house fire every 3 hours 25 minutes.
• Fires take the lives of more than 4,000 Americans each year and cause injury to 20,000 more, according to the U.S Fire administration.
• Approximately 2/3 of all home fire deaths are in homes with no working smoke alarms.
•  Direct property loss due to home fires is estimated at $7.3 billion annually.
• The fire death rate is 51% less in homes with fire alarms than those without this simple measure.

Home Security and Automation Technologies Help Turn the Tide

One of the single most important tools for combating the devastating effects of residential fire is a working smoke detector. However, a smoke detector alone cannot do everything possible to protect lives and property.  For example, while a smoke detector can alert residents to the presence is smoke, the residents may already be incapacitated and unable to get out or call for help.

When used in conjunction with an integrated, monitored home security and home automation system, residents have a new tool in both fire prevention and fire response. Using home automation, residents can schedule automatic shut off for appliances that are most likely to cause fire, or turn off an enabled appliance remotely if they forgot. When the system is monitored, if a fire occurs and a smoke detector is tripped, a signal goes to the monitoring station who can initiate emergency response whether you are home or away, or if you are unable to call for help yourself. Since the time from alert to help is much shorter, there is less time for the fire to cause damage.

Alone, fire alarms save lives, and these powerful tools become even more valuable when used as part of a complete home security profile. JM Resources is dedicated to bringing the technologies that matter to our clients, and ensuring that those technologies are used to their fullest capacities. If you have questions about fire protection, please give us a call.