As the holiday season approaches, many people will decorate and light up their homes for the occasion. Over the years, we’ve seen an evolution in the products available for lighting both the exterior and interior of our homes, from C-7 bulbs to mini incandescent bulbs and now to LED bulbs in various forms.
Although the heat emitted by these light sources has decreased significantly with this evolution… the fire risks associated with using these decorations remain.
Among other things, numerous recalls of decorative Christmas light sets are issued year after year, affecting hundreds of thousands of products sold by well-known big-box retailers. Many of these recalls are issued due to a risk of overheating that could lead to a fire.
In some cases, the risk of overheating was linked to the wire gauge, which was too small for the current flowing through it, causing the cord to overheat. However, even compliant string lights can pose a fire hazard when users “go overboard” by connecting multiple strands together, resulting in a current that is too high to safely power all of them.
In fact, many manufacturers specify a maximum number of strings that can be connected in series.
In other cases, it is sometimes observed that certain installers use techniques that are more or less safe to secure their string lights, such as inserting a pin into the insulation, which risks causing a short circuit.
In addition to the risks associated with string lights, moving objects to set up the Christmas tree can create new fire hazards that did not exist before.
For example, blocking a baseboard heater with flammable objects or placing flammable decorations near the hearth of a fireplace.
To top it all off, imagine how quickly a fire can spread when a natural Christmas tree has received little water over the past few weeks.
We certainly don’t mean to scare you with these risks; rather, our goal is to bring them to your attention as a preventive measure. We wish you warm and joyful moments with friends and family this holiday season!
For any additional information, please feel free to contact us.
Thank you for your trust in Origin!