There are many causes of commercial building fires and these can cause serious damages and injuries to employees and visitors. A commercial building usually incorporates restaurants with kitchens, numerous electrical components, wires, etc, so there are a lot of things that could go wrong. Fortunately, you can also do a lot to protect your business and prevent fires from happening in the first place.

But before you can prevent fires, you need to know what causes them from happening. Dive into this article and learn more about commercial building fires and their causes.

Malfunctioning Kitchen Appliances

Most fires in a commercial building, healthcare facility, or other establishment start in the kitchen. That’s because a kitchen provides a plethora of sources of an open fire. It only takes one spark or unattended kitchen appliance for a fire to start and spread all over the room. Therefore, make sure that you install a few fire extinguishers in every kitchen of your commercial building. Also, you should consider adding hood sprinkler systems that immediately detect fires starting on your cooking appliances. These sprinkler systems can put out a fire before it becomes dangerous and difficult to deal with.

Unintentional Fires

Unintentional fires can happen outside kitchens as well. For example, if someone doesn’t put out a cigarette properly, this might start a fire, especially if there are papers or packaging items around the ashtray. Fires can also start in mechanical rooms or in places where there are a lot of wires and electrical components. Ideally, you should inspect the electrical system of your commercial building every year and replace damaged or old wires that could cause a short circuit.

Intentional Fires

Unfortunately, there is also this possibility. Intentional fires or arson account for about 10% of all fires started in commercial buildings. These usually happen after business hours when most employees and visitors have left the building. As a result, the fire can spread easier because there’s little to no personnel to ring the fire alarm or attempt to put out the fire using a fire extinguisher. One way you can minimize the possibility of intentional fires is to enhance the security within your commercial building. Install surveillance cameras, lock entrances to your establishment after business hours and add more sophisticated heat and smoke alarms.

HVAC Problems

Not only can the electrical system become faulty and cause a fire, but HVAC installations can also become problematic. HVAC systems usually consume a lot of power and they ensure the transfer of heat to various places within your commercial building. These installations need to be properly maintained on an annual basis to prevent damages to the pipes, fittings, electrical components, heating wires, and other elements.

Preventing commercial building fires is not an easy thing, but you can do so much to mitigate the problem and minimize damages and injuries in case a fire starts. It’s all about being proactive and taking safety precautions to anticipate fires that might start by accident or intentionally. Contact ASCO Fire today to learn more about fire protection systems suitable for commercial buildings.