Many people know the uncomfortable feeling of having accidentally left the cooker or the iron on - including us shirt and blouse ironers. But how dangerous is it to forget to switch off the iron? Often, however, the forgotten appliance is not quite as bad as one would think and often only has a negative effect on the electricity bill. The danger depends on various factors, e.g. whether the iron is standing vertically or horizontally on the ironing surface. If it stands horizontally on the ironing surface on a combustible surface, a fire can quickly break out. If, on the other hand, it is standing vertically on its base, the risk of fire is rather low. However, the ironing surface is then constantly heated up to the set temperature and electricity consumption increases. With older iron models or those with technical defects, however, a thermal overload can occur after a very long period of operation, which in the worst case can lead to a cable fire.
If you have a reasonably modern appliance with safety seals such as GS, Tüv, VdS or VDE, it should have a fuse or a circuit breaker. Such built-in protective devices prevent thermal overload. There are also modern devices that have a kind of motion sensor and automatically switch off after some time when the device is no longer moving.
What to do if there is a fire?
If a fire does occur, you should proceed as follows:
Unplug the mains plug from the socket or switch off the fuse for that socket. Then dial 112 and call the fire brigade. In the meantime, try to extinguish the fire.
Reduce the risk of fire from the start
To minimise the risk of fire when ironing, we at the TUBIE ironing machine team advise you to take the following safety precautions:
Only place the iron on a stable, non-flammable base
Make sure that the cable is not in the way and becomes a tripping hazard. Otherwise the switched-on iron could topple over and fate will take its course.
Pull the plug out of the socket after ironing
Do not leave the iron unattended when using it, especially if there are children or animals around.
Check the unit for signs of wear, such as broken cables, before use.
Let the heating surface cool down well before storing the iron.
By the way, if you iron with a TUBIE ironing dummy, you are always on the safe side, because this shirt ironing dummy only heats up to approx. 50 degrees Celsius and is absolutely safe - and thanks to the low temperature, your clothes are also protected.
Iron carefully - your TUBIE shirt ironing team