Smoke in the house!!

[Mk42gunner]

Came home yesterday after about four hours away, tired wanting to go to sleep. I walked in and immediately noticed a fairly thick cloud of acrid smoke in the house.

Let me tell you that will get the heart rate elevated, right now.

Smelled like plastic/ electrical fire, so I started looking for fresh tendrils of smoke (didn't hear any active fire, nor see flames). Checked the electric cook stove, off and cold. Checked every electric appliance in the house, no excessive heat.

Third round through the house, I am checking every outlet and light switch by feel for heat, nothing. By now I am starting to consider calling for help.

Walked in the bathroom and found it (out and cold, thank the lord). Still checked under the house for hot spots.

The cat had knocked over a spray can of starch (maybe sizing, but lets not quibble) a day or so before. Evidently it took a while for the plastic valve to fail and leak what must have been propane propellant. It got to the water heater pilot light and flames commenced.

Source of the plastic smell was a 7/8 melted ice cream bucket and about half of a container of dog shampoo.

Windows were opened for the first time this year and the fan turned on to desmoke the house. My dog was fine, the stupid cat was even fine.

It could have been worse, I could have turned the corner and saw a firetruck watering the foundation.

Moral of the story, be careful of aerosol containers anywhere close to an ignition source.

Robert

[buckwheatpaul]

Great message Robert and a great warning that I had never thought about....glad your home and pets are ok brother! Did you get all the smell out yet?

[Capt Keith]

Wow, fire is real scary. I’m glad you ended up OK!

[slim1836]

Congrats for finding the source and resolving the issues, and thanks for sharing.

Slim

[Mk42gunner]

You know, its not the fact that the valve failed after getting knocked over, its the fact that it took a few days to fail. We've all seen a spray can of whatever get knocked over and start spraying, but to take days to do it?

Like I said, it could have been worse.

Even after forced airing, it still had a stench last night, so I cut a big bouquet of lilacs. Could smell anything but them this morning.

Robert

[jonp]

Another reason not to have a cat

[Scrounge]

Another reason not to have a cat

Nope. Best reason to keep cats. They'll keep you on your toes, and guessing!;)

Bill <---- cat & dog person, and even my dog is a cat person.

[lightman]

Wow Brother, that was a close call! Glad a little lingering smoke is the only thing that happened. I never would have thought about an aresol can doing that.

We have a home security system that has smoke and fire protection sensors that gives us a little piece of mind while we are away, or asleep.

[cwtebay]

I had a similar experience last night!!!
Started the oven, and POOF!! SMOKE!!
My wife had boiled over scalloped potatoes the night before!!!!
All joking aside.... I am happy you found your issue before it became one.

Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk

[Land Owner]

I'll stop complaining now about my little cast boolit problems. Glad you got peace of mind.

[NyFirefighter357]

You were lucky, bathrooms are pretty fire resistant.
You'd be surprised how many fires burn out while people are away. They come home from vacation to find rooms or even entire interiors scorched. I've seen two areas around fish tanks burn & the heat from the fire cracked the glass putting out the fire. One of those people were on vacation.
I also once saw where people came home from being away and found the whole inside of the house scorched. Fire smothered itself out from lack of oxygen.
When I go away I shut off everything I can at the switch or breaker. Boiler, well, water heater. I had an apartment in my house for my mother she split her time in NY & Fl while she was gone the TV, clock, radio exc. all were unplugged. All these cheaply made electronics especially bootleg chargers & lithium batteries all have the potential to cause a fire.
Another common fire is the use of a portable generator during an emergency where underrated cheap extension cords are strung through doors, windows and across floors/carpets ect. If you payed under $50 for that long extension cord it probably isn't rated to run your refrigerator, coffee pot & microwave. lol

[bluebird66]

Wow! Close call, glad nothing else was damaged.

[3006guns]

First, I'm glad you found the problem quickly and prevented a tragedy.

Now that I'm a mature adult (read: gettin' old) I'm amazed at the LACK of fire prevention training in our schools these days. When I was in elementary school, our fire department came around each year and demonstrated the perils of stored gasoline, the basics of the "fire triangle", etc. I still remember it all these years later. The demonstrations included a gasoline soaked rag ignited by a flame six feet away, a tennis ball fired from a steel pipe using one drop of gas and a spark plug (always a popular stunt).......stuff that stuck in a kid's mind.

Why bore you with my childhood memories? Because we had a bad fire in our local school district office recently. It started in a store room where a workman had thrown a pile of linseed oil soaked rags in the corner and they self ignited (spontaneous combustion.......see? I remember). After the fire was extinguished, the workman was questioned about it and exclaimed that "no one told him about it". Say what??

The OP took the right actions and located the source quickly........common sense in a man trying to protect his home. Hat's off to you sir!

[Mr_Sheesh]

Many years ago on Easter, we had a slow but increasing smell of smoke in the house.

We kept searching but couldn't find it for quite a while...

Finally found the walnut that someone had put atop a 250w 3-way light's shade holder, which got rather warm and smoked. Problem solved but dang, that had us nervous!

Very glad your situation went OK if non ideally.

I've heard of simmering some cinnamon sticks or cloves in water on the stove to block out smoke smell.

I had a tablet with horrid cigarette smoke smell on it, I put it in a paper sack and that sack inside another full of charcoal briquettes, removed the smell in a few weeks. There are ways to remove scents :)

[contender1]

Fire can be deadly, expensive & sometimes happen from some strange places.
My family lost a 2 story business in the 1970's to fire. (It was arson from the renters.)

That aside, I'm glad to hear all is fine except for the smell & minor clean-up.

While some may want to blame the cat, the cats or dogs we own do NOT know about such dangers. Not right.

Here are a few tips to assist in removing the smell.

As noted above, charcoal briquettes (plain, not instant light) can be an excellent odor absorber. In the case of a room, I suggest to some of my customers a simple method.
Go outside, using a cardboard box, break up the bricks into chunks. Place the chunks in a nylon stocking, tie the end shut. Cut off the excess nylon. Basically, making a breathable bag of freshly exposed charcoal.
Next, hang 3-4 bags of them inside the room, AND block off any HVAC vents, & close the room off. Stop any "new" air flow to the room.
Another good odor absorber, Baking soda. Open a few boxes, put 1/2 a box in a plain dish, & leave the other 1/2 in the box. Place 4-6 of these inside a room, and again block off any airflow.
Allow 12-24 hours to notice a difference.

[memtb]

Glad that it wasn’t worse for you.....as it could have been very bad! Fire is one of my greatest fears! memtb

[Gator 45/70]

I recently cleaned the dryer lint from inside the dryer all the way up inside the attic,A real good 3/4 bag of fire started I removed

[jonp]

Nope. Best reason to keep cats. They'll keep you on your toes, and guessing!;)

Bill <---- cat & dog person, and even my dog is a cat person.

:drinks:

[Froogal]

Another reason not to have a cat

BINGO! Or a dog in the house. I will not have either.

[jim147]

I recently cleaned the dryer lint from inside the dryer all the way up inside the attic,A real good 3/4 bag of fire started I removed

Dryer fires start in the vent not the dryer. Good on you and stay on it. Dryer vents should go straight out an outside wall.

[Martin Luber]

A long time ago, my wife had the flu and I noticed cool smoke laying on the kitchen floor. I could smell it but couldn't find the source. The woodstove was on. Smoke poured out of the cabinet the oven was in. After searching the house, l had to call the FD. They said yep, fire, and pulled the oven, no fire. It was woodsmoke, not plastic or electric. They searched the house without luck then one of em yelled "Got it". It was in the garage, full of smoke but no flames; the only place I didn't look. After all, why would it be there? Got the car out and they hosed the source.

I had a woodpile in there. I had tried to fit a log in the stove last night when the stove was cold ( so I thought). It didn't fit so l put it back in the garage. An ember caught the log end like a cigar and it slowly burned a circular hole in the wall. The woodstove vacuum is what sucked the smoke in, up the studs, across the ceiling joists and down into the oven cabinet.

[Randy Bohannon]

I have pictures of aerosol cans imbedded in Sheetrock from kitchen fires, something left out on the counter,unattended cooking and rock and roll. I did most of my career investigating fires, as medic firefighter, I stayed did investigations or assisted/directed Fire Prevention Investigators, fun times.

[Mk42gunner]

Thanks for all the kind words.

This wasn't the cats fault, it was my fault for not picking up and disposing of the can he knocked over, (I'm not the best housekeeper in the world).

As to why I had a spray can of starch sitting out where he could knock it off the counter? Laziness, pure and simple. It would have only taken a few seconds to open the cabinet door two feet away and store it safely.

I've known since boot camp firefighting training that I want no part of fighting a compartment (read inside a house for you land lubbers) fire. Hats off to all the people that intentionally go into a burning building, you have my respect.

Robert

[Mr_Sheesh]

Fire is one of anyone sane's greatest fears. Kudos to firefighters for facing it, also maybe they should have their head examined :p

I cannot IMAGINE a home without pets, a cat or dog provide comedic relief, attention, sometimes vexation, love, shed fur, and snuggles, that is something important especially in the eon of covid, if I had no pets I'd be the poorer by their lack.

[Mr_Sheesh]

Oh. And do be careful with furkids & fire, I had a very fluffy 18# male who kept trying to INSIST that he had to walk over an olive oil lamp's flame, that would have gone very badly!

[MT Gianni]

Propane is a very common aerosol propellant. For what ever reason, it is easier to get clean gas than clean air.

[gunther]

And then you are in the basement, and notice a flicker out of the corner of your eye. lint in the 30 year old dehumidifier switch, Very interesting!

[robg]

had a dimmer switch overheat smell of burning plastic took days to clear.

[Mr_Sheesh]

Had a breaker panel in my tech room, one night I heard a noise and looked up to see sparks coming out of the panel, when the dryer cycled on, turns out someone had not tightened the wire well in installation? Had to replace that breaker and trim the wire back a few inches. Sparks from loose connections in your walls, that's not good...

[Petrol & Powder]

.....
When I go away I shut off everything I can at the switch or breaker. Boiler, well, water heater. I had an apartment in my house for my mother she split her time in NY & Fl while she was gone the TV, clock, radio exc. all were unplugged. All these cheaply made electronics especially bootleg chargers & lithium batteries all have the potential to cause a fire.
....

/\ I'm with You /\

Having seen my share of disasters that occurred in unoccupied homes (some my own and many from others) I shut down the house as much as possible if it will be unoccupied for an extended period of time.
Water leaks may not be as bad as fire but they seem to occur more often.
Pumps and water heaters get shut off. Pipes get drained if it's winter.
If it doesn't need electricity when I'm gone, it gets shut down. And that means unplugged, not just turned off.
Pilot lights are extinguished and gas is shut off.

The few minutes it takes to shut down the house and the few minutes it takes to bring it back online is trivial compared to the time & money needed to correct damage from fire & water.