House fires start small, usually with cooking, electrics, heating or a smouldering cigarette, and they turn deadly fast because people have minutes, not hours. The checklist below is built around the four things that actually change the outcome: early warning from working alarms, heating used the way it was designed, stopping a small fire from growing, and a rehearsed way out.
The checklist
Sixteen checks, grouped by room
Alarms
Kitchen
Heating
Electrics and escape
A closing routine helps too: turn portable heaters off before bed, unplug what can be unplugged, shut internal doors, and keep the hall clear of shoes and bags. A closed door slows smoke and flame more than most people expect, and it buys the minutes an escape plan needs.
Placement
Where to place smoke alarms
Fit alarms on the ceiling, in the middle of the room or hallway, at least 300mm from walls and light fittings. Every floor needs one as a minimum: the hallway and the landing are the two spots that matter most, because that is the route smoke takes as it travels through a house at night. If you can afford more, put one inside or just outside each bedroom.
The kitchen is the exception. A standard smoke alarm near cooking will sound every time toast does, and an alarm people silence with a broom handle is worse than no alarm. Use a heat alarm in the kitchen: it reacts to temperature, not particles, so burnt toast stays quiet while a real pan fire still sets it off.
When an alarm reaches ten years old from the manufacture date printed on the back, replace the whole unit, working or not. Sensors drift with age. Sealed ten-year battery models cost a little more up front and remove the annual battery ritual, which is why they are now the default choice. Interlinked alarms, where one sounding sets off the rest of the house, are the standard in new builds: the Building Regulations' Technical Guidance Document B asks for mains-powered, interconnected alarms in every new dwelling, and they are worth choosing when you upgrade.
Heating
Heaters, open fires and infrared panels
Portable heaters
Stand them on a level surface, a metre clear of curtains, beds and sofas, and plug them directly into a wall socket rather than an extension lead. Never use one to dry clothes: fabric laid over a heater traps heat exactly where it should not. If the plug or cable feels warm, that heater has had its turn.
Open fires and stoves
Use a proper spark guard, get the chimney swept at least once a year, more with heavy use, and keep fuel and kindling a metre from the hearth. Let ash cool for a day before shovelling it into a metal bucket, and never into a plastic bin or a shed while it is still warm.
Fixed panels and infrared heating
Certified fixed heating, wall panels, ceiling panels, underfloor film, is one of the quieter corners of home fire safety: no flame, no exposed element, no fumes. The risks are all in the installation and the misuse. Have panels fitted and wired by a qualified electrician, respect the clearances in the manual, use each product for what it was designed for, a heated towel rail is built for damp towels, a wall panel is not a drying rack, and never run DIY wiring to save a callout fee.
Kitchen kit
Which extinguisher and blanket for the kitchen
If a pan catches fire
Turn off the heat if it is safe, hold the blanket by the tabs, shield your hands behind it, and lay it over the pan. Leave it to cool. Never move the pan and never put water on burning oil, because the water flashes to steam and throws burning fat across the kitchen.
For most homes the honest answer to "which extinguisher" is: a fire blanket, mounted between the hob and the exit, and nothing that needs training to use. If you want an extinguisher as well, a small foam or dry powder unit covers general purpose fires in the home. Wet chemical extinguishers exist specifically for cooking oil fires and are the right choice if you do a lot of deep frying. Whatever you buy, read the instructions before you need it, because a fire is a bad time to learn the pin arrangement.
The invisible one
Carbon monoxide, the fire you cannot see
Any room with a fuel burning appliance needs a CO alarm: boilers, stoves, open fires, and rooms a flue passes through. CO has no smell and builds up while people sleep. An audible CO alarm at knee to chest height in the same room as the appliance costs less than a takeaway and covers the whole household. Test it with the button the same day you test the smoke alarms.
Renting
Who fixes what in a rented home
The Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2019 require landlords to provide mains-wired smoke alarms and a fire blanket, with a carbon monoxide alarm where the home has a fuel burning appliance. As a tenant, test the alarms after moving in, keep the batteries fresh where they are replaceable, and report any fault in writing, by text or email, so there is a record. Landlords cannot deduct deposit money for raising a fire safety fault in good faith.
This page is general guidance, not a substitute for official advice. In an emergency call 112 or 999 and ask for the fire brigade.
FAQ
Quick answers
How many smoke alarms does a home need?
At least one on every floor, covering the hallway and landing. One inside or just outside each bedroom is better, and interlinked alarms are the modern standard.
How often should I test my smoke alarms?
Weekly, using the test button. Replace the whole unit ten years after its manufacture date.
Do I need a different alarm in the kitchen?
Use a heat alarm in the kitchen. Smoke alarms near cooking get disabled within a month, usually permanently.
Do I need a carbon monoxide alarm?
If a room has a fuel burning appliance or a flue passing through it, yes. Fit it in the same room, at knee to chest height.
Are infrared heating panels a fire risk?
Certified fixed panels, installed by a qualified electrician and used as intended, are among the safer ways to heat: no flame, no exposed element, no fumes. Risk comes from DIY wiring, covering panels or ignoring the manual's clearances.