Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, April 4, 1991                   TAG: 9104040113
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: E-4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Tammy Poole
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

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Electric heater troubles

As a result of the Consumer Product Safety Commission's 1987 inquiry into the hazards posed by portable electric heaters, two models made by Patton Electric Co. and one sold by Sears, Roebuck & Co. were voluntarily recalled for repairs. But because it found that the necessary evidence was lacking, the commission did not recall other models that its engineers said could cause fires.

In one such case, all six samples of a heater examined by the commission's engineers were identified as having either design or production defects.

"All of these conditions could result in ignition-capable failures at any time during the products' useful lives with no prior warning," the safety commission report said. Federal law prohibits such reports from identifying the brand name of a product unless it is being recalled.

Carlos Perez, the safety commission's deputy director for compliance, said a recall of the heater, which carried the Underwriters Laboratories' seal, was not sought because "we could not develop the evidence to prove a sufficient pattern of defects to take action."

Perez said such evidence is very difficult to produce in heater cases because the devices are often destroyed in fires.

The safety commission is investigating several years' production by one heater manufacturer for problems that could pose a fire hazard, said Jesse Aronstein, a consulting engineer in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., who is working on the inquiry under contract to the commission.

Here is some advice from federal officials about how to use a heater safely:

If the heater must be used at night, put a smoke detector in the room. Turn the heater off when leaving the room.

Keep the heater at least three feet from combustible fabrics like bedding or draperies. Never use heaters to dry clothes.

If you must use an extension cord, make certain is the heavy-duty type intended for high-wattage appliances. Never run the cord under a rug, or put anything on top of it.

Always put the heater on the floor, unless the instructions specify that it can be used on a table or counter top.

Do not use a heater in the bathroom, where it can pose a shock hazard unless it has been specially designed for such use.

If a heater frequently causes a fuse to blow or a circuit breaker to trip, stop using it and have it checked.

Never try to repair a heater yourself; let a qualified appliance service center do it.

This information is from the N.Y. Times News Service.