Cost: $5.00

Fire Permits are available at the following locations:

1. Municipal Office  Village of Lanark
2. ONLINE

PLEASE NOTE that the Township of Lanark Highlands will no longer be offering the purchase of Burn Permits at remote locations.

Fire permits can be renewed in three ways

1. From the BurnPermits website
2. Phone: 613-259-2398 ext 242 or toll free 1-800-239-4695 ext 242
3. Fax: 613-259-2291
4. Email:

To reactivate your fire permit you require your name, address and date of your burn. This information can be left on a recorded message at:

Phone:
613 259-2398 ext. 242 or 1-800-239-4695 ext. 242

Email:

Carbon Monoxide Alarms are now mandatory for residential occupancies that contain at least one fuel burning appliance, fireplace or attached garage.

Carbon Monoxide and Smoke Alarms are available for sale at the municipal office 75 George Street, Lanark. Special pricing, limited supplies.

Ontario Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services- Carbon Monoxide Questions/Answers

CO Alarms - It’s the Law Ontario

Ontario CO Alarm Law What You Need to Know

Is Your Wood Stove Safe?

Improperly installed and maintained wood stoves and fireplaces can lead to dangerous conditions that put you, your family, and neighbours at risk.

Follow the rules – When purchasing a new wood stove or fireplace insert, look for the mark of an accredited certification agency that ensures the product has been tested and meets established safety standards.

Check with your local building department and obtain any necessary permits prior to installing a wood stove, fireplace insert, or chimney. Always follow the manufacturer’s installation instructions.

The Ontario Fire Code requires homeowners to ensure that their home heating appliances and chimneys are safe. This requires periodic inspections and maintenance.

Tips for maintaining your wood burning appliance

1. Inspect and Clean your Chimney
   • Check your chimney and clear any obstructions at the start of the heating season, and make sure damper controls work properly to keep smoke and toxic gases from building up inside the home.
   • Check chimneys and flue pipes often for creosote and soot build-up and clean to prevent a chimney fire.
   • Your chimney may have problems you can’t see. If in doubt, consult a WETT (Wood Energy Technical Training) certified chimney sweep.
2. Cap It Off
   • Maintain an appropriate chimney cap on top of your chimney to protect against damage from rain or snow.
   • Spark screens should be inspected regularly to make sure smoke can vent properly.
3. Check Stove Pipes and Connections
   • Ensure all joints in flue pipes are securely fastened with at least 3 screws. Where flue pipes are joined together, the small (crimped) end should point toward the appliance.
4. Protect Floors and Walls from Heat and Sparks
   • Keep combustible materials a safe distance away from wood stoves and fireplaces.
   • Always use a properly fitting screen for your fireplace.
   • Consult a WETT certified chimney sweep if walls get too hot.
5. Burn Dry Wood
   • Burn properly dried well-seasoned wood to reduce the risk of excessive creosote build-up from inefficient burning or smoldering fires.
   • Store wood outdoors, stacked in an open area or shed away from the house or deck to provide good air flow that will assist drying.
6. Remove Ashes Safely
   • Allow ashes to cool fully before cleaning them from your fireplace or wood stove.
   • Use only metal, non-combustible containers to remove ashes from the appliance.
   • Take them outside immediately and store well away from buildings on a non-combustible surface.
7. Install Carbon Monoxide Alarms
   • All homes with fuel-fired appliances should have a carbon monoxide (CO) alarm. Check with your fire department or municipal office regarding Building Code and municipal by-law requirements.

Smoke Alarm Pointers to Save your Life

1. Choose the right smoke alarms. There are many types of smoke alarms available with different power sources, technologies and features. Before purchasing smoke alarms, visit www.ofm.gov.on.ca for information, or contact the fire department.
2. Install in the proper locations. Ontario law requires that working smoke alarms be located on every storey of the home and outside all sleeping areas. Avoid installing smoke alarms in or adjacent to kitchens and bathrooms, or near air vents, windows and ceiling fans.
3. If a smoke alarm frequently activates due to cooking activities or using the shower do not remove the battery! Try moving the smoke alarm, purchasing a smoke alarm with a hush feature, or replacing ionization alarms located near kitchens with photoelectric alarms. For more solutions to nuisance alarms, visit www.makeitstop.ca
4. Install a new battery at least once a year or whenever the low-battery warning sounds. Test the smoke alarm after installing a new battery.
5. Smoke alarms should be tested monthly, and upon returning home after an absence of more than a few days. If the alarm fails to sound when the test button is pressed, make sure the battery is installed correctly, or install a new battery. If the alarm still fails to sound, replace the smoke alarm with a new one.
6. Smoke alarms more than ten years old should be replaced with new ones.
7. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions for installing, testing and maintaining smoke alarms.

Nuisance Alarms a Problem?

If your smoke alarm frequently goes off when you’re cooking or using the shower, do not remove the battery or disconnect the power source.

Disabling a smoke alarm will leave your home vulnerable in a real fire emergency and it’s against the law. Instead, try the following practical solutions to end frequent nuisance alarms:

• Keep stove burners and ovens clean, adjust the timer setting on the toaster and use the range hood fan.
• Install smoke alarms with a “hush” feature. These devices have a button that, when pressed, will temporarily silence the alarm for 7 – 10 minutes, then automatically reset itself.
• The smoke alarm may be too close to the kitchen or bathroom and moving it to a different location could significantly reduce nuisance alarms. Battery-operated smoke alarms can be easily moved by homeowners; however electrically-connected alarms will require the services of an electrician.
• Try a different type of smoke alarm. There are two common types of smoke alarm technologies: Ionization and photoelectric. Photoelectric alarms are less prone to activate due to cooking activities. Replacing ionization smoke alarms located near kitchens with photoelectric alarms may solve the problem.
• Smoke alarms wear out over time and may be more likely to activate unnecessarily. If your smoke alarms are more than ten years old, replace them with new ones.

How to Build a Safe Incinerator

If you burn forest litter or debris often, build and use a good incinerator.

• Select a site at least five metres from anything that could catch on fire, like trees, overhanging branches, or piles of debris. Clear an area two metres around the incinerator down to mineral soil.
• Use a metal barrel in good condition
• A heavy metal mesh must be put on top of the incinerator. Mesh size must be less than five mm. Weight the screen with a rock or brick to stop it from falling off your incinerator. Without a mesh cover, a hot fire can spread burning sparks.
• Material will burn more quickly and cleanly if the incinerator has good air flow. To create this, punch holes about seven centimeters above the bottom of the barrel. Punch a few more holes slightly higher and insert steel rods or pipes to support the material to be burned.
• Keep a shovel, rake and water nearby.
• Monitor any fire burning in the incinerator.

Always follow safe campfire practices to prevent your campfire from starting a forest fire. Remember, you could be held responsible for the cost of putting out the forest fire, and for any property damage.

Choose your site carefully

Select a site with easy access to water, sheltered from prevailing winds. Look for a patch of sand or gravel (mineral soil). An area of bedrock is even better.

Your fire should be at least three metres away from any log, stump or overhanging tree, and 15 metres away from any buildings or forest debris that might catch fire. If you make a circle of rocks around your fire make sure the rocks to not hide hot coals after you leave.

Preparing the site

Start by cleaning a one metre space around your campfire site. Remove all pine needles, grasses, leaves and twigs. Scrape away the surface area, right down to mineral soil.

Keep you fire small. You can always add more fuel as you need it. A smaller fire will keep your cooking tools from blackening and let you get close enough to cook. Remember that the forest is no place for a bonfire, and a small fire is easier to control and put out.

Stay nearby

Never leave your campfire unattended. Every person who starts a fire outdoors must:

• take all reasonable steps to keep the fire under control;
• ensure that responsible person is tending the fire at all times;
• drown the fire before leaving the site of the fire for any period of time whatsoever.

How to put your fire out

Begin by thoroughly drowning your fire with water as soon as possible after use. The ground will cool faster and the hazard to surrounding trees or shrubs will be greatly reduced.

Stir the ashes with a stick to uncover hot coals. This will cool the fire faster and allow water to soak in better. Move the rocks to uncover embers.

Drown it again! Make doubly sure the fire is dead out before you leave the site or retire for the evening.

Each year, hundreds of lives are lost because emergency vehicles could not arrive on scene fast enough. Common causes for this are no PIN numbers, private lanes not adequately marked, and lack of access for emergency vehicles.

Tips to allow emergency responders to find your home or cottage:

• Ensure your PIN Number clearly identifies your home or cottage. If you don’t have a PIN number, contact the Township Municipal Office at 613-259-2398 to arrange for installation.
• Ensure laneways and private drives direct responders to your home. It may be necessary to install a second pin number tree or post directing responders down a lane to find your PIN number. If you believe that emergency responders would benefit from this secondary identification, please call the Township office at 613-259- 2398
• Send help to access points that emergency vehicles will arrive by. Provide directions for responders.
• It is the owner’s responsibility to ensure private laneways are plowed with limbs and trees cleared to a minimum of 15 feet with overhead clearance of 15 feet. Turns and corners must be wide enough to allow trucks to drive directly to the building.

Limited Access May Affect Emergency Response

It is important that a fire truck or ambulance be able to use your laneway when responding to an emergency call at your house or cottage.

The owner of a building in the Township of Lanark Highlands is responsible for the access to the building from the traveled portion of the road to the building.

An access that is not suitable for a large pumper truck or ambulance may affect the effectiveness of emergency personnel responding to an emergency call at that location.

Laneways should be snowplowed and cleared of limbs or trees to a minimum width of 15 feet with a clearance of 15 feet overhead. Any turns or corners must be wide enough to allow the trucks to drive directly to the residence.

Here are some tips offered by the Office of the Fire Marshal and the Township of Lanark Highlands Fire Service on Fireworks Safety to keep you and your family safe:

• Check with your local Fire Department during Fire Bans
• Always follow the label directions
• Never make your own fireworks
• The shooter should always wear protective eye glasses or protection for their hands
• Fireworks are meant for outdoor environments only
• Have an adult present to light them
• Discharge fireworks well away from combustible materials like buildings, trees and dry grass
• Discharge fireworks only if wind conditions do not create a safety hazard
• Always have water handy when lighting fireworks (ie: a garden hose) you can also use sand in a bucket if need be to put them out.
• Only light one at a time. Never attempt to re-light fireworks that have misfired (duds). Wait 30 minutes and then place them in a bucket of water.
• Never throw/point fireworks at other people
• Sparklers burn extremely hot and can ignite clothing, cause blindness and result in severe burns. As the sparkler wire remains hot for some minutes after burnout, it should be immediately soaked in water to avoid injury