If you’ve got a live Douglas fir decked out with all the lights and accoutrements of the holiday season in your facility’s lobby, you might also have yourself a fire hazard.
Live Christmas trees are actually prohibited in many locales (the city of Chicago, for one) in many types of commercial facilities. But many local codes will allow live Christmas trees, as long as the building is equipped with a fire sprinkler system.
While a vast majority of the fires from Christmas tree mishaps are residential, any commercial facility that has a live Christmas tree is at risk as well. According to NFPA, the longer it’s been since the tree was chopped down, and therefore the drier it is, the greater the risk of fire. Trees that are frequently watered are less prone to fire than neglected trees, according to research by the Fire Research Division of NIST.
Most Christmas tree fires are caused by some sort of electrical malfunction with lights or other decorations. NIST has several recommendations for reducing the fire hazard of your facility’s tree, including:
Greg Zimmerman is senior contributing editor for FacilitiesNet.com and Building Operating Management magazine.
