Wired for Safety



Transcript


Narrator: "Faulty or improper wiring causes tens of thousands of fires each year. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has produced this video to help you protect your home, your family, and your life."

(View of flames on burning house, through which an approaching fire truck can be seen. Various views of fire fighters working to contain the flames in burning homes)

TEXT: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission: Wired For Safety

(View of a couple standing in front of the wreckage from their burned home)

TEXT: Cynthia and Alexander French: Fire Victims

Alexander French (fire victim): "We drove away, in forty-five minutes we came back and it was up in smoke, flames shooting up alongside the chimney, probably due to an electrical failure in the basement. And our whole life of living here since 1964, 31 years, was sort of gone. It seemed like it was just gone."

(View of man standing in front of his burned home, then view of the interior of a severely burned home)

TEXT: Howard Smith: Fire Victim

Howard Smith (fire victim): "The fire was electrical and it started in the kitchen, and he showed, just walking in the house there was debris everywhere: smoke, dirt, everything just kind of fallen in and burned. And the feelings were of, where am I going from here? How am I going to fix this? What do I do? Why did it happen to me?"

(View of man Standing indoors and speaking about fire safety, then various views of household electrical fires destroying homes)

TEXT: Cliff Meidle: Former U.S. Olympian, ESFI Spokesperson

(Footage of burning homes)

Cliff Meidl (ESFI spokesperson): "Nationally, more than 40,000 fires are caused by faulty electrical systems every year, resulting in hundreds of deaths and injuries. The financial cost of these fires is high as well. More than 2 billion dollars each year. They drive up insurance rates, increase the cost for community fire protection, and risk the lives of fire fighters. Older houses are particularly at risk for electrical fires. A fire caused by faulty electrical systems can destroy your home and everyone in it within minutes."

TEXT: NFPA International, NIST, CPSC

Cliff Meidle: "The National Fire Protection Association, National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Consumer Product Safety Commission, have sponsored a study of wiring in older homes. That study has led to a set of guidelines known as NFPA 73."

(View of Cliff Meidl holding the guidelines)

Cliff Meidl: "Following these guidelines can dramatically reduce your risk of fire and electrical shock."

(View of Art Patterson standing on an outside deck, then walking through the inside of the house and showing fire hazards as he explains them.)

TEXT: Art Patterson: Electrical Inspector, Fairfax County, VA

Art Patterson (electrical inspector): "When your pipes or your roof leak, you get them fixed. Same thing with the heating or air conditioning, but when it comes to your electrical system, you don't think about it. This could be a fatal mistake. Look around your house, and you'll see that today we all own a lot more things that use electricity than we did forty years ago. Appliances like microwaves and toaster ovens and blenders mean a much heavier demand on electrical systems."

(View of boarded up house and examples of fire hazards such as light switches and electrical outlets)

Narrator: "There are many things in our electrical systems which are potential fire hazards. Some hazards are more obvious than others, but we need to pay attention to each and every one of them to make our homes safe."

(View of narrator standing in front of an older home)

Narrator: "Let's take a tour together through the electrical system in this older home in Redlands, California to see if we can find some things that need attention."

(View of narrator standing in large living room with only one outlet, holding an extension cord in his hand)

Narrator: "There's only one outlet in this room. If the family moving in is anything like my family, I know what's going to happen. People are going to use this: an extension cord, for an entertainment system or a T.V. set, but extension cords should never be used in place of fixed wiring. Damaged plugs or insulation can result in sparking."

(Various views of extension cords being used in the wrong way)

Narrator: "If you run extension cords under rugs or through doors or windows, they can be damaged or cut. So if you're going to use more than one heavy-duty appliance, one outlet isn't enough. Several outlets are needed here to make this room safe."

(View of people running electrical wiring through walls in a home)

Narrator: "The same goes for other rooms in the home, like kitchens, bathrooms and other areas where you draw a lot of power."

(View of narrator standing on a ladder looking at the lighting wiring for the kitchen in the home)

Narrator: "The lighting in this kitchen needs some work. There is no sturdy protective box and the insulation is starting to crumble. They probably put in a 150 watt bulb in a fixture that was only rated for 60 or 75 watts. That's not safe. If they needed more light they should have installed the proper fixtures."

(View of man installing the proper lighting fixture for the kitchen)

(View of narrator standing in a closet near a lighting fixture)

Narrator: "This closet lighting fixture is way too close to the shelf. Fill the shelf with sheets, blankets and towels, and you have flammable materials against a hot bulb: an invitation for disaster. The solution: install a cooler new fixture further away from the shelf."

(View of man installing a cooler new fixture further away from the shelf in the closet)

(View of loose light switch and of Art Patterson)

Art Patterson: "Sometimes switches can come loose from the wall, and the movement of the wiring back and forth can break connections, damage insulation, or make bare wires touch metal. Any one of these can cause a fire."

(View of narrator and images of different types of electrical fixtures)

Narrator: "In a safely wired home, all the fixtures: lighting fixtures, switches, wall sockets, junction boxes, are insulated and firmly secured."

(View of man working at a junction box, then view of a damaged junction area)

Narrator: "Current wiring standards require a sturdy box at all junctions to contain any sparking. Here is some wiring where the connections have corroded, the insulation has cracked, and separated from the wires. And there are scorch marks, indicating overheating."

(View of ceiling fan turning slowly, view from above)

Narrator: "Here is an older kind of wiring, which is only rated for use out in the open. When covered with insulation, it can overheat and create a real fire hazard."

(View of the inside of a home which is unfinished and has lots of visible wiring)

Narrator: "If you add insulation to your house, be sure not to cover wiring and fixtures unless an electrician has certified that they are rated for such conditions."

(View of electrical system being inspected)

Narrator: "There are some aspects of home electrical systems that require professional inspection. For example, your inspector should inspect the grounding of your whole electrical system. Grounding makes the system work safely and it can help prevent electrocution in homes that have grounding-type outlets."

(View of person putting plug into electrical outlet)

Narrator: "Grounding outlets have three holes. The round one accepts the grounding prong on appliance plugs"

(View of man handling wiring and applying a GFCI, then using it)

Narrator: "Older homes may not have grounding-type outlets. If that's the case, the old two-hole outlets can be replaced with an electrocution protection outlet. This device is known as a Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter or GFCI."

TEXT: Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI)

Narrator: "It provides the best electrocution protection, and it doesn't need grounding to do a superior job of stopping electrocution."

(View of Art Patterson holding and turning on a hairdryer)

Art Patterson: "Electrocution protection is especially important in the case of appliances with metal parts or rooms such as laundry, kitchen or bathrooms where there is water and the danger of shock is great."

(View of Cliff Meidl walking to a circuit breaker, then a view of an overloaded circuit breaker)

Cliff Meidl: "In older homes with original electrical systems all fixtures and wiring lead back to a fuse box or circuit breaker pannel. In some fuse boxes, too many circuits have been connected to one fuse. Older fuse boxes may have corroded connections, unplugged holes or missing pannel doors. Your electrician can install a new electrical pannel with more circuits. Some new breaker boxes also have the added advantage of a built-in surge suppressor which helps protect appliances against lightning or power surges. A newly developed electrical safety feature is the arc fault circuit interrupter, or AFCI."

(View of AFCIs)

TEXT: Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter (AFCI)

Cliff Meidl: "Whereas GFCIs can protect you from electrocution, an AFCI can protect you from a deadly electrical fire."

(View of electrical fire starting)

Cliff Meidl: "Arc faults occur when electricity jumps from wire to wire, and can happen when wires or fixtures are damaged or have deteriorated over time."

(View of cotton being placed in machine to demonstrate fire power of an arc fault)

Cliff Meidl: "These arcs generate high temperatures which can ignite nearby combustable materials such as wood, paper or home furnishings."

(View of AFCI being installed, then simulation of the occurance of an arc fault)

TEXT: Laboratory Simulation

Cliff Meidl: "The AFCI, which can be installed in place of a conventional circuit breaker, minimizes this risk by detecting these faults as the occur, cutting the power to the circuit, and removing the heat source that can lead to a fire."

(View of Cliff Meidl, then view of extension cord under door. Man installing new outlets to old room. View of man turning on kitchen light fixture, View of old circuit box. View of professional inspecting wiring system. View of AFCI. View of inspector removing cover to electrical box to inspect it. View of manual)

Cliff Meidl: "The following steps can make your home electrical system safer: First, check the system yourself and take preventative measures. Remove extension cords from dangerous positions. Take the pressure off the overflowing circuits by decreasing the electricity that is flowing through them. And make sure your lightbulbs and fuses are the right size. Then, get a professional to make an inspection of your electrical system. And consider having conventional breakers replaced with AFCI's. Ask if your inspector is aware of and follows the National Fire Protection Association maintenance code for inspection known as NFPA 73. If you can't afford to improve your electrical system all at once, do it in stages."

(View of old light fixture in closet, as well as other dangerous fixtures throughout the house)

Cliff Meidl: "Fix the most dangerous problems first. Look into a home improvement loan to spread out the cost over time. And ask your insurance agent if your safety improvements qualify you for a reduction in premiums."

(View of Cliff Meidl)

Cliff Meidl: "Taking care of your electrical system will make your home a safer place to live."

(View or Art Patterson working on an electrical appliance)

Art Patterson: "Remember, electrical systems in your house won't last forever. They need to be maintianed just like your car, your furnace, your roof or your chimney."

(View of Howard Smith standing near remnants of his home)

Howard Smith: "It's well worth the effort to have somebody come in and take a check, for that feeling of safety for yourself, in knowing that you won't have to go through what I did."

(View of more fire damage in various homes)

TEXT: National Fire Protection Association
1 Batterymarch Park
PO Box 9101
Quincy, MA 02269
1-800-344-3555

Narrator: "To obtain a copy of the NFPA 73: Residential Electrical Maintenance Code, professionals should contact the National Fire Protection Association:
1 Batterymarch Park
PO Box 9101
Quincy, MA 02269
or call: 1-800-344-3555

TEXT: "Home Wiring"
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Washington, DC 20207

Narrator: "You may also obtain a copy of CPSC's home electrical wiring guide by sending your name and address to:
"Home Wiring"
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Washington, DC 20207

TEXT: Electrical Safety Foundation International
www.electrical-safety.org
(703)841-3229

Narrator: "Other helpful electrical safety information is available through the Electrical Safety Foundation International. Visit them online at www.electrical-safety.org or call (703)841-3229."

TEXT: Special Thanks To:
United States Fire Administration
Michael Clendenin, Electrical Safety Foundation International
National Fire Protection Association
Cliff Meidl
Rick Foucheux
Art Patterson
Howard Smith
Alexander French
Cynthia French

TEXT: Video Courtesy of:
United States Fire Administration
Electrical Safety Foundation International
WUSTA-TV, Washington, DC


End.