Image credit: Goodhousekeeping.com

Image credit: Goodhousekeeping.com

Recently, Remodeling Magazine wrote a piece on how to build a drawer with a built in plug so that hair dryers could stay plugged in.  They received a storm of responses from good contractors letting them know how unsafe it is to leave appliances with heating elements plugged in.  Here is just one.

Just read your email about the idea of putting a hair dryer in a drawer and you don’t even have to unplug it. As a Fire Damage Restoration contractor I have done many restorations, if the house was restorable at all, where the fire was caused by a heat producing appliance that its electrical circuit has somehow failed.

I use a toaster as an example when I suggest to people to unplug when not in use. You can buy a toaster on sale for $14.99. It consists of a cabinet, feet, cord with plug, heating element, thermostat, and many other items. A quality thermostat alone would probably cost $100.00. Now, would you trust the quality of this thing to not start when it shouldn’t?

A hair dryer is in the same category. This also applies to battery chargers that home owners and contractors use. A heat producing appliance of any type, left plugged in, cannot be trusted with the safety of your home.

“Plug it in, turn it on, turn it off, unplug it.” That is the motto that should be used with any electrical device. Period!”

We hope that you keep your home safe from fire by unplugging appliances with heating elements.  In most cases this will also save money by reducing phantom loads.