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I think avdave2 has provided some useful perspective here.
Everything has a risk, you have to make a judgement.
A mate of mine is a H&S bod, and is usually very pragmatic about risk assessment for building demolitions etc. But he goes a strange puce colour if you talk about leaving a slow cooker on overnight in the same house as your kids.
Seriously? Get a grip on yourselves. A completely pointless PSA about fire risk
FIFY
One house fire is hardly a PSA.
You're far more likely to need the fire brigade to cut you out of your car or lift a tipper truck off your bike than rescue you from a fire!
🙂
Seriously? Get a grip on yourselves. A PSA about fire risk and people are bitching about whether to wash by hand or not.FFS.
Easy there cowboy. 🙂
This is STW,it's Friday,so a dishwasher V hand wash [s]argument[/s] debate is perfect .
I always knew the day when myself and Hora would join battle together against the forces of illogic and idleness.
How can we lose? 🙂
Obviously, this is STW, and there is no room on work surfaces to put dirty crockery because of all the coffee machines, burr grinders, breadmakers....
I always knew the day when myself and Hora would join battle together against the forces of illogic and idleness.
I think it's the modern day equivalent of the battle of Mordor, the forces of good verses evil with the very survival of middle Earth at stake.
It's the Marigolds,isn't it?
You and Hora love your Marigolds 😛
My hands and lower arms have become hardened and strengthen through years of kung-fu like hand twists as I handwash.
Come on dishwashing softies I'll take yer!
who here both does the majority of the washing up in their house (be honest) AND thinks dishwashers are pointless indulgences?
We don't have a dishwasher, but let's face it, most things in peoples houses are pointless indulgences that you could make do without.
Some stats from Which:
Washing machines accounted for around 600 fires a year, tumble dryers more than 500, dishwashers 460, ovens 350, and fridges and freezers 300. (Government data from 2011 to March 2013 about faulty appliance fires).
It's well known that most major manufacturers have had recalls on dish washers due to potential fire risks. Bosch did a massive recall a year or two. NB: Bosch make for more than just themselves, so other brands were also affected.
New house came with a dishwasher though and it has won me over with its seductive ways, especially now we have two kids.
Us too. Dishwashers are better, and that's all there is to it.
Dinner parties must be a riot at Hora's house.
You dry and I'll scrub?
On the pointless indulgence stakes I reckon £200 to not spend 30 minutes a day in front of the sink is worth it. Plus it's almost an extra cupboard if you're feeling a bit lazy...
You and Hora love your Marigolds
They are a multifunctional bit of kit.
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i find a dish washer very very inefficient.
cook - eat - wife loads dishwasher - I empty and reload dishwasher - start dish washer - unload and dry stuff that isnt dry.
it'd be much quicker to just wash it by hand.
On the subject of coffee makers, bread makers etc. Presumably these carry similar spontaneous combustion risks as they both heat up and get left on sometimes unattended...?
<edit>
We don't have a dishwasher, but let's face it, most things in peoples houses are pointless indulgences that you could make do without
You've met the wife...? <sigh>
Join us, Chrispy!
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[i]cook - eat - wife loads dishwasher - I empty and reload dishwasher - start dish washer - unload and dry stuff that isnt dry.
it'd be much quicker to just wash it by hand. [/i]
Maybe you should load occasionally, wife should unload or one of you could do both. Just to shake things up a bit and make life a bit more interesting.
Why do you need to dry stuff?
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Those yellow scrubber things harbour lots of bacteria you know.
Im sure you have one in your kitchen and do to infrequent use/change it'll be a sprawling metropolis of bugs with vice, bug-casinos etc.
My girlfriends grandparents burnt there house down due to a dishwasher fire as if the water flow gets blocked they can and do catch fire. Only amusing side story was her grandmother saved the dog first, before going back in for her husband who had dementia so didn't know what was going on.
Personally I only put it on when I'm in and awake, makes me feel a bit sick thinking about it catching fire when I'm out but the dogs are locked in as it would be a horrendous way to die.
[i]Im sure you have one in your kitchen and do to infrequent use/change it'll be a sprawling metropolis of bugs with vice, bug-casinos etc. [/i]
I'm sure I don't, hate the things. If I had some scrubbing to do, I'd use a brillo pad then bin it.
[i]most things in peoples houses are pointless indulgences that you could make do without[/i]
Ooh! Let's make a list. I'll start:
Carpets
Chairs
TVs
Hi Fis
I'll add
Tables
Beds
kettles
toasters
freezers
Wow, this thread has gone mad. The message is don't use a dishwasher/washing machine or drier when you are out of the house or asleep because there is a higher fire risk with them than other household appliances. I'm not sure what the coffee machine comment is all about because I cannot think of a reason to be using a coffee machine (automatically?) when you're out of the house. By all means use the appliances, but be awake in case there is a fire so you can cut the power.
Having an escape route when asleep is more sensible than worrying about someone who might have already broken into your house being able to open the door. I think your electronic equipment will be gone (through the broken window), rather than the three piece suit out of the door.
Close the internal doors before going to bed and keep a working phone near your bed.
Yes, the chances of fire might be slim, but they're small steps to take to keep yourself safe. Mention not wearing a helmet while riding to the shops on here and people go mad, yet a head injury is very unlikely.
Presumably these carry similar spontaneous combustion risks as they both heat up and get left on sometimes unattended...?
It's not necessarily the "heating up" bit that's the issue.
As demonstrated by Siemens/Bosch that toasted itself (and half the kitchen) sitting there doing absolutely nothing.
Think friend's Siemens/Bosch dishwasher was one of those eventually part of the recall.
Carpets
Chairs
TVs
Hi Fis
Weirdly I'd happily do without the TV licence, I hate carpets and rather than sit on the sofa I prefer sitting on the floor (I have sofas in two rooms). No idea why.
There was a spate of Beko fridge freezers catching fire. The London Fire Brigade made them aware of a high number of fires caused by their appliances, but they ignored them and kept producing the same design for a few years.
http://www.which.co.uk/news/2012/04/are-your-kitchen-appliances-putting-you-at-risk-283135/
I've just had a good look round for unnecessary stuff in our house and it looks like I'm right up there, top of the list
this is the perfect STW thread, I nominate it for thread of the week.
It isn't just the dishwasher that is trying to kill you:
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/aug/08/experience-my-microwave-nearly-killed-me
I'm v paranoid and switch everything off when I leave the house or overnight - the only exception being the digi-box to record shows - risk vs benefit and all that.
Also have fire extinguisher and fire blanket, which I used to have in the property I let.
The new house I just bought has 5 rooms - and 6 smoke alarms ! Not my doing, blame t'cooncil for that, it was required for the completion cert on the work done by former owners. Now even I think that is overkill. Upstairs there are 3 smoke alarms all within 2 metres of each outer.
also on the dishwasher/laziness argument - who here both does the majority of the washing up in their house (be honest) AND thinks dishwashers are pointless indulgences?
Raises hand, but doesn't really understand why as it does seem to miss the point of this thread by some distance.
Can I add to the "PSA" list of washing machines etc. the exhortation to not leave on charge while asleep or out of the house: laptops, tablets, mobile phones etc. Again, people have lost houses through this. No, I don't have the statistics so I can't tell you the probability of it happening, but if it could happen, and I can do something to stop it happening, I'm not personally that bothered - I'm 100% keen to not have it happen to me, thanks.
Weirdly I'd happily do without the TV licence, I hate carpets and rather than sit on the sofa I prefer sitting on the floor (I have sofas in two rooms). No idea why
Is hora saying he is flameproof?
By all means use the appliances, but be awake in case there is a fire so you can cut the power.
Damn,do I have to ditch the Teasmade ? 🙂
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Is hora saying he is flameproof?
Yes,he could never have survived STW this long without it.
Can I add to the "PSA" list of washing machines etc. the exhortation to not leave on charge while asleep or out of the house: laptops, tablets, mobile phones etc. Again, people have lost houses through this. No, I don't have the statistics so I can't tell you the probability of it happening, but if it could happen, and I can do something to stop it happening
Really?
Why not just have the leccy board disconnect you. It's the only way to be safe....
Why not just have the leccy board disconnect you. It's the only way to be safe....
Because that would be really stupid, whereas mitigating the risk of a house fire through some easy actions that won't massively inconvenience me isn't?
watch out on the on the bike....whereas mitigating the risk
Because that would be really stupid,
Worrying about risks which are negligible certainly qualifies in my book.
Worrying about risks which are negligible certainly qualifies in my book.
+1, and this is from someone whose immediate family have over 100 years service in the fire brigade.
he exhortation to not leave on charge while asleep or out of the house: laptops, tablets, mobile phones etc
That one is a step too far for me in the risk vs benefit. Phones get charged every night at the bedside. Though I do insist on genuine Apple chargers, not ropey Chinese copies off eBay.
The new house I just bought has 5 rooms - and 6 smoke alarms !
Blimey! The fire brigade fitted ours. One in the hall at the bottom of the stairs and one on the upstairs landing.
Worrying about risks which are negligible certainly qualifies in my book.
Okay, now I know that the plural of anecdote isn't data, but I just googled "mobile phone house fire" and it certainly wasn't negligible for these people. Apologies for some DM linkage, but how about three kids killed:
[url= http://www.****/news/article-1342734/House-killed-3-children-caused-mobile-phone-charger.html ]How depressing[/url]
or five killed (including another three kids), this time suspected a cheap, aftermarket charger (reminds me to add to my first post: cheap chinese bike lights..):
[url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-27371854 ]That's quite sad[/url]
And three dogs earlier this year (not clear tbf whether charger or extension lead at fault, but if it wasn't left on it wouldn't have happened):
[url= http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/three-dogs-killed-fire-caused-5301039 ]At least no dead kids this time I suppose[/url]
A lucky escape this time:
[url= http://www.staffordshirefire.gov.uk/1699.asp ]TFFT[/url]
Staffordshire seems a particularly unlucky place for such things:
[url= http://www.staffordshirefire.gov.uk/2062.asp ]The pets got rescued this time[/url]
And that's just the first few on page one of google...
My point is, based on how I risk assess things, yes, of course, the likelihood is low, but the severity is high, so not "negligible" to me, and certainly not negligible to the people in those stories. To save you having to read any or all of them, there's pretty much a common feature of people who are, sure, risk averse, but may know a bit about what they're saying, recommending not leaving phones on charge unattended because it might cause a fire...
I'm really not sure how following that advice could be seen to be stupid, or considered equivalent to not having an electricity supply at all...
What about if I mitigate the risk by washing up instead then leave my Edinburgh Crystal decanter on the rack to dry (more hygienic than usinf a tea towell) then the sun comes through the window, reflects through the decanter and sets fire to the solid oak work top.
I could mitigate this by closing the blinds, but then I will need to turn the lights on. And what if a light catches fire?
Won't someone think please think of the children!
[url= http://www.righto.com/2014/05/a-look-inside-ipad-chargers-pricey.html?m=1 ]Insides of a genuine iPad charger compared to a cheap Chinese copy. [/url] 😯
[quote=dragon ]Some stats from Which:
Washing machines accounted for around 600 fires a year, tumble dryers more than 500, dishwashers 460, ovens 350, and fridges and freezers 300. (Government data from 2011 to March 2013 about faulty appliance fires).
Apparently 11 million households have dishwashers. So that's a 0.004% chance of having a dishwasher fire. Or if you make the rather daft assumption that such a fire will kill you, then you still have 99.7% chance of being killed by something different.
I think the point is not to leave appliances unattended.
Given how easy that is to do, and the potential harm from not doing so, in spite of the low likelihood of an incident, I will stick with my mildly obsessive switching off regime, thanks v much.
You could say that there are several million bike journeys made every year, but only 5 people die. I still wear a helmet, as the consequences of an incident although unlikely, are easy to mitigate.
(with apologies for mentioning the H word)
So that's a 0.004% chance of having a dishwasher fire.
No, that's the chance of having a dishwasher fire in any particular year. You need to multiply that by the number of years you intend to have a dishwasher for to establish the overall probability of having a fire..
Personally I don't go along with the reassurance of a low probability like that in any case - I'd look at it more that there is 100% probability (not technically true, but for the sake of illustrating a point) that there will be 460 dishwasher fires in any given year. There is as much chance of mine being one of the 460 as anyone else, unless I do something to make that not be the case.
And even on those numbers, the odds of having a dishwasher fire are massively greater than the chances of hitting the jackpot on the lottery. Logically, anyone who thinks it's worth buying a ticket really should think it's worthwhile turning the dishwasher off when they go to bed if we're taking a statistical approach.
Non-lottery player here
There is as much chance of mine being one of the 460 as anyone else, unless I do something to make that not be the case.
The fact that each individual has an equal chance does not negate that fact that you still only have a 0.004% chance of it being you.
That's pretty much the reason my mum gives for playing the lottery 🙂 It has to be [i]someone[/i]!
Something will happen somewhere at some point.
hora - Another tip. If you have a spare set of front door keys, keep them in your bedroom. If you are trapped by fire you can lob them out to us which makes getting in more controllable, quicker & less destructive.
Ah good point- our front door has multi-point latches and is that bouncy-plastic material so anything slammed against it would bounce off for the first few tries.
I mentioned this topic to MrsH as she always sets the washing machine to come on during the night.
[quote=hora ]Ah good point- our front door has multi-point latches and is that bouncy-plastic material so anything slammed against it would bounce off for the first few tries.
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Ah good point- our front door has multi-point latches and is that bouncy-plastic material so anything slammed against it would bounce off for the first few tries.
Hahaha! You wish.
No composite doors that's another issue but the brickwork usually gives in after awhile.
hora - Another tip. If you have a spare set of front door keys, keep them in your bedroom. If you are trapped by fire you can lob them out to us which makes getting in more controllable, quicker & less destructive.
Works great apart from he's left the other keys in the lock. 😀
my dishwasher caught fire twenty years ago. front door had to be knocked in by fire brigade and whole flat redecorated.
does that mean I can leave as many dishwashers on at night as I want because the chances of having two go woof are so low?
igm - Member
Non-lottery player here
POSTED 2 HOURS AGO # REPORT-POST
you are in deep statistical trouble, mate.
We go hinge side everytime.
does that mean I can leave as many dishwashers on at night as I want because the chances of having two go woof are so low?
You know when you occasionally hear about people that have won the lottery twice?
If the worst should happen I can at least blame the wife. Only had the bloody thing about 6 years and so far I have found out how to unload it. Wait for ages and she'll do it. Put the knives in the wrong way or something else terrible and you'll never load it again. Still don't know where I am supposed to squirt the Fairy
Still don't know where I am supposed to squirt the Fairy
You've got bigger issues to worry about than the dishwasher then.
If the worst should happen I can at least blame the wife. Only had the bloody thing about 6 years and so far I have found out how to unload it.
Mind. Boggled.
Hora - don't leave the keys in the door, it just makes it easy for anyone breaking in to unload in the middle of the night because they can open the door without breaking it (after coming in through a back window)
and all houses of multiple occupancy must have thumb turn locks on all internal lockable doors so no hunting for keys.
From experience ive had a tv catch fire, a tumble drier at my mums caught fire, a customers fridge burnt out the garage, and another custome was watchuing tv while in the bath with the tv safely placed on a small table in the doorway, but with 2 nightlights alight on the top they soon melted through the casing of the tv and set fire to the tv, destroying the bathroom.
as for a previous comment i only live down the road from the fire station, fire engines are not always on base, but out fighting fires, checking premesis, extracting smal children from railings or just driving round.
[quote=konabunny ]does that mean I can leave as many dishwashers on at night as I want because the chances of having two go woof are so low?
Risky. You're a vast amount more likely to have two go woof than I am.
"You've got bigger issues to worry about than the dishwasher then."
😀 😀 😀
bruneep- We go hinge side everytime.
Not suitable for fire service use. Gotta be a controlled method nowadays 😉
Not on my watch
I'm putting mine on now, and going for a beer at the pub #dangerwash
lol
Looking a bit deeper, is there any statistic for the % of these fires that happened in a household without RCD and MCB protection?
That is a very good point squrellking. Having seen the state of my wiring when i ripped it out for rewiring .
Im more worried about the wiring in old houses than i am appliances catching fire....
As its a Friday..lets have a Friday analogy..Dishwasher users are like Council departments- meetings discussing what they are going to do and how they'll go about it...whereas sink users are like go-getting private businesses.. just get it **** done.
Another thing- after loading it you've got to unload it, moan about the streaks and sometimes scrub the stubborn ones again in the sink with washing up liquid?
Yer anaolgy is as crap as your arguement im afraid.
Was it on here someone was talking about the solution to the unloading thing? Two dishwashers side by side. More plates and cutlery.
Load, wash, then use as supply for clean while you start loading the second.
Looking a bit deeper, is there any statistic for the % of these fires that happened in a household without RCD and MCB protection?
A good percentage of fires start at the consumer unit allegedly - from the end of this year the regs require new installs to be fully metal cases to CU
Was it on here someone was talking about the solution to the unloading thing? Two dishwashers side by side. More plates and cutlery.Load, wash, then use as supply for clean while you start loading the second.
That was me, yes. Can't wait to have a kitchen big enough...though given that it negates the need for a crockery cupboard...
I was quite interested to see that washing machines have more fires than tumble driers , because , you know, water?
I reckon theres more risk of me amputating a thumb in the cupboard door while hunting for the dishwasher switch than having a dishwasher fire.