Insulating over windows?

[Joseph Meehan]

Think about not waking up due to that fire. It happens and some materials, the kind that we are talking about, can kill you before you even wake up.

[Paul M. Eldridge]

If you want to see how quickly a *large* room with high ceilings can fill with thick, black, toxic smoke, see:

Sadly, the odds of anyone surviving this fire if didn't get reach the exits within the first sixty seconds from the point of ignition would be slim. Simply put: saving energy and money is great, but never put your life and property at risk.

Cheers, Paul

[JoeSpareBedroom]

Now, that should be shown to every college student who hasn't thought about the beer+candles=danger equation.

[Paul M. Eldridge]

Hi Joe,

Twenty-five years ago, I survived a house fire when a friend placed an electric [plastic body] kettle on top of an electric range and, in a heavy mental fog, turned on the stove burner instead of the kettle; she then left for the corner store to get milk. I was shaving in the bathroom with the door closed and heard what I assumed to be a street cleaner -- it turned out to be the smoke alarm I had installed just a few months earlier. By the time I figured that one out (*), the house was completely filled with thick, acrid smoke and fire had already spread up the kitchen wall to the ceiling. Heading down the stairs, I was choking so hard I though I would pass out -- the speed at which this transpired still amazes me to this day.

Cheers, Paul

(*) I know it's hard to believe anyone could mistake a piercing smoke alarm for a street cleaner but with the door closed, the sound was muffled and the pitch was similar to a vacuum street sweeper (a pulsating or beeping alarm wouldn't have been so easily dismissed, and bear in mind, when you're half asleep your house on fire may not be the first explanation that leaps to mind). This should be obvious to anyone, but if you have kids, make sure they recognize the sound of the smoke alarm and know what to do if it should go off.