Of these, the vast majority – 23 – originated in the chimney.
While the advice applies to any homeowner with a chimney, it is particularly important that it be heeded by owners of thatched properties, says the FRS.
“Fire in a thatched roof is difficult to detect and once started is difficult to control,” says Marc House, community safety prevention manager. “Once a fire has taken hold within a roof it will spread rapidly, due to the very nature of how thatch burns; and often the results are devastating.
“To keep yourself and your family safe from fire you should take care to have your chimney swept regularly, depending upon what fuel you burn. If the worst should happen, a smoke alarm can give you the extra time you need to escape in a house fire – make sure you test yours regularly.”
Modern, enclosed, solid fuel appliances are designed to burn efficiently and cleanly. However, flues generally pass through old chimneys, with a mere four-inch thickness of brick, leaving the thatch highly vulnerable to the risk of heat build-up and, ultimately, combustion.
Thatched roofs are highly combustible. Devon & Somerset FRS says the danger zone for heat transfer and where a fire may start in a thatch is more associated with older and/or listed properties with any two or more of the conditions highlighted below:
According to English Heritage, there are 5,916 thatched properties in Devon and Somerset.
Devon & Somerset FRS has produced a booklet on thatch roof fire safety. You can also find fire-safety information at the The Thatch Advice Centre.
The Devon & Somerset FRS has also issued advice about Wood-burning stoves:
“The increased efficiency of such stoves, whilst very welcome to residents of otherwise draughty older properties, has its own implications with regard to fire risk,” it said in a press release.
“Such efficiency depends on a high flue gas temperature of around 500°C which is concentrated in a narrow air column. When installed in a properly regulated, modern chimney this type of system is a highly effective way of getting maximum heat out of burning wood; but where ancient chimney stacks are concerned, the inappropriate introduction of such installations, with metal liners can create serious problems.
“If the use of such stoves is to be contemplated in an old thatched house, it is essential that a concrete of pumice insulated liner be inserted to isolate the hot gases from the surrounding brickwork.
“If in doubt, ask and don’t use any chimney related appliance until you are sure it is safe!”
Finally, the FRS advises people to “fit working smoke alarms on each floor level in your home. Consider buying an alarm with a 10-year battery, otherwise change the battery every year alarm and regularly test your smoke alarm.”
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Excellent to highlight these issues. Historic England and NFU Mutual, in association with the Fire Protection Association, have undertaken the first ever full-scale laboratory testing of thatch / wood burning stove configurations intensely instrumented to understand every conceivable contributing parameter. The results were presented last summer at the RISCAuthority technical workshop in London. There is still some misunderstanding of potential primary cause but fortunately many of the mitigations required are common. At this time of year, the research identified bird nesting as an almost assured mechanism of fire raising with faulty brickwork being the next most potent route to fire… Read more »
Trogdor strikes again