Furniture Flammability

In recent years, considerable worldwide effort hasbedding and upholstered furniture, account for 36%
been expended in investigating the flammabilityof US fire deaths. Further analysis of this data shows
characteristics of upholstered furniture. Analysis of USthat about 15% of all US fire deaths can be
fire data collected from a number of sourcesattributed to the scenario involving smoking materials
indicates that the primary hazards associated withand upholstered furniture.
fires where upholstered furniture is the first item toMost pieces of upholstered furniture are made up of
ignite, are smoking materials. Specifically cigarettes,three basic components. First is the underlying frame
and to a much lesser degree cigars and pipes. Inor support structure. Second is the stuffing like foam,
addition, the data indicate that the typical scenariobatting, or some other filling material. Finally, the third
for fire fatality incidents involving upholsteredcomponent is the upholstery itself which is generally a
furniture include an elderly smoker, whose reflexesfabric or other covering that encapsulates the
may have been dulled and mobility restricted bystuffing. In terms of cigarette induced ignition of
fatigue, old age, infirmity or the influence of alcoholupholstered furniture the structure or frame is of
and/or prescription drugs, who falls asleep whilevery little concern, as it is highly unlikely that
smoking in the living room. The cigarette - probablystructural components would be directly ignited by
filter tipped - drops onto an item of furniture. Thecigarettes. Therefore, disregarding the frame, the
resulting smoldering combustion generatesfurniture/cigarette hazard totally involves the
considerable quantities of smoke, toxic gases andinteraction of the ignited cigarette with the fabric
soot, with the most likely cause of death, anoxia,initially and then perhaps the Interior stuffing
resulting from inhalation of toxic combustion products.materials. The nature and constituent components of
In a survey of data to identify and rank whatfabrics and furniture stuffing may critically influence
appears to be the most frequent scenarios for firethe combustion characteristics of the furniture piece.
death in the United States, Clark and OttosonHowever, the total fuel load of the furniture
established that, "the most common fire scenario, bystructure and, therefore, the nature of the structural
far, is a residential furnishings fire caused by smokingcomponents, may be an important consideration in an
materials, which alone accounts for 27% of the USongoing fire, or when the furniture piece becomes a
fire deaths." When all ignition sources are considered,secondary rather than a primary ignition source.
residential furnishings, which include mattresses,