Burning Leaves Safely

10/2/2019 (Permalink)

Burning Leaves

Fall is finally upon us after a rainy and hot summer. This time of year means leaves falling from the trees and piling in your yard. The following are some tips to follow if you want to take the route of burning your leaves.

• Contact the fire department to see if there is a good day to burn and if you need to obtain any special permits as each town is different. A good rule of advice to follow is to only burn when skies are clear and wind speed doesn’t exceed 15 miles per hour.
• Rake the leaves into a manageable pile with 6 feet clear in every direction. Light a small branch with a match and then place it among the leaves. It is not advised to use gasoline or fire starters to ignite leaves as it can sometimes cause a large unmanageable fire.
• Constantly supervise and keep a garden hose and/or a multipurpose fire extinguisher just in case the fire gets out of hand.
• Hose the fire down once it burns out just to make sure you put out any embers that might still be glowing.
• Once the fire is completely out gather up the ash safely and properly dispose of it. You can place the ashes in a metal container to reduce the risk of an out of control fire.

Have a safe and fun fall!