LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — A house fire in southern Indiana Tuesday was sparked from oil-soaked rags used in a home improvement project, fire officials said.
Columbus Fire Department crews were called to the 3400 block of Riverside Drive at 4:48 p.m. after a neighbor reported smoke coming from the second-story window of a home undergoing renovations, according to department spokesperson Michael Wilson.
Once on the scene, firefighters noticed the smoke coming from the home was visible from the street. Crews deployed a "rapid fire-attack" to the second-story bedroom and stopped the flames from spreading further into the residence.
The house was not occupied during the fire, and no injuries were reported. Damage from the fire itself was contained to the bedroom, Wilson said, but there was visible smoke and heat damage throughout the rest of the house.
Investigators with the fire department interviewed the owners of the property and learned that the wooden flooring in the bedroom was just recently stained using an oil-based product.
It was determined through further investigation that the cloths used to stain the floors — soaked in the oil product — were left in the area believed to be where the fire started.
Columbus Fire Marshal Troy Todd said oil-based stains have a higher fire risk than water-based stains. He said when oil stains dry, they undergo a drying process called exothermic oxidation, which can be dangerous.
"This chemical reaction can create a significant amount of heat, especially if the oils have soaked onto an applicator cloth," Todd said. "The reaction can cause the spontaneous combustion of the cloth material from the heat generated during this drying stage of the stain. That's what we see here."
To avoid fires starting this way, the department said oil-soaked rags should never be placed in residential trash can. In addition, people should thoroughly inspect labels to learn how best to store staining products, which could include soaking cloth rags in water and placing items in a non-combustible metal containers.
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