Something most people don't even think about, glad to hear you caught it in time. I built a combustibles shed 100 feet from the house. Oily rags after being dried, gas, paint, and anything that would make the house disappear really quick is stored in there. Can be a pain at times, but at least I can sleep easier at night.
very close call w/house fire
- Thread starter big bubba
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CompactTractorFan
Super Member
For you guys who have a lot of oily rags around, $55 might buy you piece of mind:
[ame=http://www.amazon.com/Justrite-Galvanized-Safety-Gallons-Capacity/dp/B001DSKBXE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1333320135&sr=8-1]Amazon.com: Justrite 9100 Galvanized Steel Oily Waste Safety Can with Foot Lever, 6 Gallons Capacity, Red: Industrial & Scientific[/ame]
[ame=http://www.amazon.com/Justrite-Galvanized-Safety-Gallons-Capacity/dp/B001DSKBXE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1333320135&sr=8-1]Amazon.com: Justrite 9100 Galvanized Steel Oily Waste Safety Can with Foot Lever, 6 Gallons Capacity, Red: Industrial & Scientific[/ame]
Bird
Rest in Peace
Yep, I once had a similar experience as big bubba, so I'm very particular with oily rags, regardless of type of oil. They are either spread out to get fully aired, or they're in a nearly airtight container. When I was repairing/rebuilding mechanics' air tools, I had a pretty ordinary small galvanized garbage can with a pretty tight fitting lid that oily rags went into until such time as I could burn them in my burn barrel.
Taylortractornut
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We had a fire like that at the landfill. It was a Friday and before lunch I got the compactor operator to pull off the lift and let me apply the six inch cover to most of the lift. There was a 40 yard can load of cabinet shop scraps there and I covered around it saving that load to mix with a paper load. Well another one of our trucks came in and dumped a load of strips and blocks form the same cabinet shop. We had our lunch and I had the compactor operator helping with a truck. I walked around the building and saw what looked like saw dust blowing off the load. I got the compactor operaotr to go back with me and when we got there the wind stopped blowing. and what looked like fine dust was smoke going straight up.; I walked over and looked and lifted up a section of rags that arent supposed top be dumped in the landfill. When I lifted it up it ignited with a whoosh.
I ran to the truck and got the 15 pound extinguisher about 50 feet away when I got back it was like peeing on a bonfire 80 yards of kiln dried wood scrap and paper on fire. The bad part about it was the pile that lit set the one that I had just covered around before dinner. THere was a 5 foot lift of rubbish under neath it that caught fire. I had to doze around it and cut down to the next cover lyer while that layer was on fire. The cabinet sho had a real big meeting Monday morning.
I ran to the truck and got the 15 pound extinguisher about 50 feet away when I got back it was like peeing on a bonfire 80 yards of kiln dried wood scrap and paper on fire. The bad part about it was the pile that lit set the one that I had just covered around before dinner. THere was a 5 foot lift of rubbish under neath it that caught fire. I had to doze around it and cut down to the next cover lyer while that layer was on fire. The cabinet sho had a real big meeting Monday morning.
Deano
Veteran Member
Great news! Fire scares the crap out of me!!!
dodge man
Super Star Member
I adjusted the bands and change the fluid in the transmission in my truck this last weekend and had a lot of really oily rags. I originally just threw them in the trash, but realized this was a bad idea and burned them.
I redid the stock on a M1 Garand and read about it out the internet. There was a lot of warning about boiled linseed oil and the rags catching on fire.
While were talking about warnings, check your dryer vents. I once lived in a apartment building that the vent came off the back of the dryer. It was an electric dryer but it had a bunch of lint and socks behind the dryer. It started smoking really bad. The building had smoke detectors and fire extinguishers luckily. I came out with my fire extinguisher thinking I would look like an idiot, but flames were going up the back of the dryer and into the wall. That little extinguisher put it out. Total time from the smoke alarms going off to the thing catching on fire, less than one minute.
I redid the stock on a M1 Garand and read about it out the internet. There was a lot of warning about boiled linseed oil and the rags catching on fire.
While were talking about warnings, check your dryer vents. I once lived in a apartment building that the vent came off the back of the dryer. It was an electric dryer but it had a bunch of lint and socks behind the dryer. It started smoking really bad. The building had smoke detectors and fire extinguishers luckily. I came out with my fire extinguisher thinking I would look like an idiot, but flames were going up the back of the dryer and into the wall. That little extinguisher put it out. Total time from the smoke alarms going off to the thing catching on fire, less than one minute.
Mike476
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Scary stuff, I have an old fridge that I keep all my petroleum pruducts in and have been meaning to get a proper cabinet, think I'll move that higher on my list of things to do. As far as oily rags, I've always kept them in a separate bin and burned them as soon as possible, not the best thing to do environmentally but dumped in a waste facility isn't either.
txdon
Super Star Member
"Cooking fires are the #1 cause of home fires and home fire injuries. Two-thirds (66%) of home cooking fire started with the ignition of food or other cooking materials.
Facts & figures
Cooking equipment fires are the leading cause of home structure fires and associated civilian injuries. These fires accounted for 42% of all reported home structure fires and 37% of home civilian injuries.
Cooking equipment was involved in two of every five (42%) reported home fires.
Unattended cooking was by far the leading contributing factor in these fires.
Clothing was the item first ignited in less than 1% of these fires, but these incidents accounted 14% of the cooking fire deaths.
Ranges accounted for the largest share (58%) of home cooking fire incidents. Ovens accounted for 16%.
Three of every five (58%) reported non-fatal home cooking fire injuries occurred when the victims tried to fight the fire themselves.
Frying poses the greatest risk of fire.
Thanksgiving is the peak day for home cooking fires."
source:NFPA :: Research :: Fire statistics :: Major causes of fire
Spontaneous combustion accounts for about 3000 fires a year.
http://www.nfpa.org/assets/files//PDF/CombustionFactSheet.pdf