TREASURE COAST – As cooler weather starts to prevail in south Florida, the risk of at-home fires sometimes seem to increase.

With October designated as Fire Safety Month nationwide, Chrissy Gregory, vice president of franchise operations, of United Water Restoration Group, offers tips to help Treasure Coast residents be safe not only this month but year-round.

• Check smoke alarms regularly. Test batteries monthly and replace units every 10 years.

• Create a home escape plan to make sure everyone knows two ways out of each room and where to meet outside.

• Stay safe in the kitchen. Never leave the stove unattended and keep flammable items away from burners. “Grease fires are the second common cause of fires that we see,” Gregory said.

• Maintain heating equipment. Furnaces, chimneys and space heaters should be inspected before use.

• Always remove lint from filters in clothes dryers after use. “With a dryer, the buildup of lint adds more heat to what you’re drying,” she said.

• Changing air filters on window air-conditioners regularly also is important, she said.

• Put all important documents on a computer flash drive or through cloud storage. “Things like birth certificates, insurance policies, especially insurance policies in case of fire,” she said.

• During the holiday season, be careful of the type of battery packs that may be used for lights, Gregory said. “We’ve had a handful of jobs resulting from Christmas lights when people purchase battery packs from overseas,” she said. “Even if the lights are off, if the battery pack is not sufficient to handle the load, it could overheat.”

No matter how small the fire damage may be to a home, it’s important not to treat restoration as a “do-it-yourself” project, Gregory said.

“When there is a fire, some of these gasses can be toxic,” she said. “At least call out a professional company or you could make it worse.”

The Port St. Lucie-based United Water Restoration Group takes on jobs from Vero Beach south to Hobe Sound, she said.

For more information, go to uwrgportstluciefl.com.