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Topic: Electric fan heater caught fire!

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EasyLu

28/5/2013 at 4:16pm
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We’ve just returned from bank holiday camping having had quite a scare. I had just sat down to an evening meal in the porch of our tent when I noticed a glow coming from the electric fan heater. After a double take I realised it was on fire. I dashed over and snatched it up off the floor so that the anti-tip device cut the power. I unplugged it and went to run out of the tent door, which I then realised was zipped up, but I got yanked back before I got to it as in my haste I had unplugged the wrong cable and so the heater was still attached to EHU. Flames were now gathering and I was still holding the heater trying frantically to unplug it to get it outside. My partner finally got himself together and came to help.

Once outside the pouring rain assisted by a kettle full of water put it out. The children pretty much remained paralysed in their seats with fear/ shock the whole time. I suppose the whole thing only lasted around a minute but had I not seen it straight away......

The heater is a couple of years old and only used for camping it wasn’t blocked from the front or behind and had been used for the previous two evenings without a problem. We have a RCB on the EHU and it didn’t trip.

As we calmed down and told our friends over a glass of wine that evening they revealed they’d had a problem with their halogen heater when the wind blew through the tent it blew the pod door fabric against the heater and gave them a fright! I felt we were very lucky really but thought I'd share our experience.

VangoMan02

28/5/2013 at 4:26pm
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Lucky escape good job it wasn't on overnight when you were all sleeping..

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mikegalagher

28/5/2013 at 4:26pm
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What an awful experience. Glad you were all OK, if a bit shocked.

An anti-tip switch suggests it was a specific camping heater. Can you tell us the make and model?

Would it be worth asking Trading Standards if anyone was able - as a public service - to do a forensic check on the device to see if a cause could be established?

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Bernie47

28/5/2013 at 4:28pm
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What was burning?

Heaters do not, or should not, contain any flammable materials so it sounds like something flammable had been poked or sucked into the heater to cause the flames.

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Bernie

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28/5/2013 at 5:34pm
Location: Hertfordshire
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Just to make you feel a bit better, all the good makes of tent are fire retardant which means they will burn a hole in the fabric but they will not catch light. You can put a flame against the fabric (dont try this at home)and yes it will cause a hole but no flames. Another reason to go for a good brand.
Gary Cross

Scrunchkins

28/5/2013 at 6:19pm
Location: Sheffield
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Goodness, how scary

. Glad you are all ok.

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Whippetlover

28/5/2013 at 6:24pm
Location: Somerset
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God, that must have been awful for you, especially with children there. So glad you got it out and you were all ok.

TCx

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LesD

28/5/2013 at 6:48pm
Location: Stourbridge
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A very lucky escape.

EasyLu

28/5/2013 at 6:56pm
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Thank you for all the nice comments. It was a Proline fan heater which we threw in the bin on the campsite. I think you're probably right Gary I guess you get what you pay for! Most of our equipment is Outwell but we went for a value range on the heater.

RTS5

28/5/2013 at 6:57pm
Location: North Wiltshire
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Pretty hair raising that is for sure. Glad you were all okay and suffered nothing more than frayed nerves.

dk168

28/5/2013 at 6:58pm
Location: Devizes Wiltshire
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Indeed a lucky escape, and I too am interested to hear about the make and model of the affected heater.

DK

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VangoMan02

28/5/2013 at 7:32pm
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Just as an aside, the tent may well be flame retardent but the item inside the tent may not be.

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VangoMan02

28/5/2013 at 7:39pm
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should have read items..

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It is a wise man who has something to say.
It is a fool who has to say something.

gulliver7952

28/5/2013 at 7:50pm
Location: Corinium in the Cotswolds
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Quote: Originally posted by Bernie47 on 28/5/2013

What was burning?
Heaters do not, or should not, contain any flammable materials so it sounds like something flammable had been poked or sucked into the heater to cause the flames.

The wiring will melt and burn.
The most likely cause is a loose connection on the wiring terminals inside the heater.
The loose connection will start arcing.
This will then cause overheating of the electric wiring and eventually flames will appear.
The RCD will only trip if the wires short out (touch each other)

Electric or gas neither are 100% safe to be left unattended.

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saxo1

28/5/2013 at 8:17pm
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A lot of fan heaters are class 2 ( double insulated) and aren't earthed so an RCD won't trip on a Live to neutral short circuit.

You are relying on the plug top fuse or MCB to trip, either can carry a fair amount of overload before they operate.If it is a fairly high resistance fault then as the conductor gets hotter the resistances increases and it can reach a point where the resistance is too high to allow enough current to flow to operate the MCB and the conductor will catch fire.

Saxo1

football lady

28/5/2013 at 9:19pm
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Oh dear I glad your ok . I just managed to buy a heater today as we are away and have been freezing for the last two nights we where going to leave heater on over night is that a bad Idea ???

Post last edited on 28/05/2013 21:38:31

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