Health Canada warns Canadians about the fire hazard of portable firepots sold on UBuy
by CM Staff
Health Canada is advising Canadians to immediately stop using these two products.
Xbeauty Tabletop Fireplace (CNW Group/Health Canada)
OTTAWA — The Xbeauty Tabletop Fireplace and the Rectangular Fire Pit sold on the Ubuy online store were found to pose a fire or burn hazard, and are missing appropriate labelling and hazard information.
Health Canada is recommending that people immediately stop using these products and contact the manufacturer for further information or your municipality for instructions on how to dispose of the products.
Following Health Canada’s decision in 2019 that certain firepots that use pourable fuels pose a danger to human health or safety, the Department recently completed a national compliance and enforcement project on portable firepots.
While the flames in these firepots may seem less intense or more controlled than traditional wood-burning fires, there are serious risks involved with using these products. When you pour liquid or gel fuels into a portable fireplace, firepot, or a fondue fuel reservoir that is still burning or hot, the vapour inside the fuel container can ignite, and flames can violently shoot out of the container onto nearby people or objects. For more information, please see this information on flame jetting.
Various firepot recalls were posted on the Healthy Canadians website on May 21, 2021, July 2, 2021, July 7, 2021 and July 12, 2021. In addition, two products sold on UBuy were also found to pose a fire or burn hazard with an unacceptable risk of flame jetting, and are missing appropriate labelling and hazard information.
Health Canada is advising Canadians to immediately stop using these two products.
It is possible that consumer products bought online are prohibited, counterfeit, not as advertised, poor quality, recalled, mislabelled (e.g., display the wrong hazard symbols, first aid statements or ingredients), or may not work as they should.
When purchasing a portable firepot, Health Canada is recommending that people look for one that uses single-use fuel canisters or gel fuels that aren’t pourable, which eliminate the risk of flame jetting.
