What My Scary Electrical Fire Taught Me (and a Video from “Jack” from “This Is Us”)

Every year we get reminded that when we change the clocks, we're supposed to change our smoke detector batteries.  I confess, I haven't always done that.  I think, "I'll do it later" and then forget.

Well, two things happened this year that had me replace the batteries:

1. I had an electrical fire
2. I saw the Pearson home go up in flames on "This Is Us"

My fire was put out quickly so thankfully nobody was hurt and the house is just fine. 

I had an electrician come in and fix the wiring and install a new light switch.  But seeing flames come out of my wall?  That was a scary sight that I don't ever want to see again!

So I'll share some lessons that I learned:

• Have licensed electricians do the work.  DIY projects are a great way to save money but why risk electrocution or fire if you're not experienced?
• Test smoke detectors periodically. I've put alerts on my phone's calendar.
• Always change the batteries in smoke detectors, even if you think they don't need fresh ones.   Batteries are relatively inexpensive and could literally save your life, giving you and your family time to escape a house fire.

We all saw our favorite television family get out of their blaze.  Then we heard Jack and Rebecca saying they should have bought the battery that the knew their smoke alarm needed.

Knowing that people could really learn a lesson from the Pearson's tragedy, Duracell made a public service announcement with the actor who plays Jack.  This video PSA has Milo Ventimiglia doing the voiceover about changing the time and changing the batteries.  Watch the clip and please replace your batteries if you haven't done so already.