Certificate from FEMA

I just took the online course (IS-55 Household Hazardous Materials - A Guide for Citizens). The course is free and only takes a couple hours to complete. It covers a lot of different areas from household cleaning supplies to outdoor fuel tanks. There are a lot of hazardous materials around our homes. They teach you about acids, bases, and pH; pesticides; gases such as carbon monoxide, and how to read labels on hazardous chemicals.

They also give practical advice for making your home a safer place. One eye opener is a video demonstration of how pool chlorine mixed with brake fluid can easily burst into flames. It would be easy to buy some pool chemicals at the store, put them in the trunk of your car where you might have petroleum products stored, and drive off. One bump or a tap on the brakes and your car could burst into flames. They are certainly right when they state: "You may be surprised how dangerous mixing chemicals can be. After only a few seconds, the mixture begins to produce heavy smoke and then burst into flames."

Get trained, get safe. We can all use a little refresher course now and then.