Safety

According to the law, every home must have a sufficient number of smoke detectors. There must be at least one smoke detector for each 60 square metres or part thereof on each floor of the home. 

Responsibility for the installation and maintenance of smoke detectors will be transferred to Espoon Asunnot at the beginning of 2026. We will install smoke detectors in our apartments during 2025. 

After installation, you will be responsible for the following:

• Test the operation of the smoke detectors once a month and whenever you have been away from home for longer.
• If a smoke detector does not work, report the fault immediately to the maintenance company.
• Smoke detectors must not be moved, removed or damaged (e.g. by painting them).
• Removing or replacing any parts of smoke detectors, even batteries, is not allowed.

You will be responsible for the purchase and maintenance of smoke detectors until Espoon Asunnot has installed new smoke detectors in your apartment.

Make sure that you have enough first-aid fire equipment, such as fire blankets, in your home. Keep them in a place where you can easily access them. Also learn how to use them.

If a fire breaks out in your home, do not try to put it out unless you can do it safely. Never risk your safety or the safety of your family.

If a fire breaks out in your home, the stairway usually serves as the exit route. 

• Plan in advance the route you will take to exit your home and get to safety in the event of a fire.
• Do not store bicycles, prams, doormats or other items in stairways or corridors. If there is a fire in the property, the items block the exit route, increase the fire load and are in the way of firefighting.
• The balcony may also have to be used as an exit route. That is why it is important not to store excess items on the balcony. If the fire spreads to the balcony, the excess items can cause the fire to escalate.
• Do not park your car on emergency access roads or other access routes. This may prevent fire engines and ambulances from getting to the building.

• Always have electrical appliances installed and repaired by a professional. If an electrical appliance has been left on by accident or is defective or improperly installed, it may cause a fire.
• Do not dry laundry in the sauna or store any items in the sauna that do not belong there. They increase the risk of fire.
• Only burn candles when you are in the room. The safest option is LED candles.
• A smouldering cigarette can cause a fire. Therefore, you should not smoke indoors, even if your lease agreement allows it. Also, do not throw cigarette stubs on the ground as they can cause a wildfire.

Read more about fire safety in the home on the website of the Finnish National Rescue Association (SPEK) and on the pelastustoimi.fi website.

• Do not flush anything extra down the toilet, such as food scraps or paper towels.
• Clean the floor drain regularly as it can easily become clogged, for example by hair.
• Falling asleep on the floor drain while intoxicated is a surprisingly common cause of water damage. 

• Place a drip tray under the dishwasher, washing machine and refrigeration equipment.
• If you buy a dishwasher, get a professional to install it.
• Do not leave your washing machine or dishwasher unattended when it is on.
• Always turn off the water taps of the washing machine and dishwasher after use.
• Check the connections of the dishwasher and washing machine regularly. After they have been running, wipe the hose connections with a dry paper towel and see if there is any moisture on the paper. If the paper gets moist, contact the maintenance company.
• The dishwasher outlet hose should be replaced every five years. Chemicals corrode the hose, and mechanical stress may cause the hose to leak.
• Do the following if you notice that your dishwasher is leaking: Turn off the dishwasher if it is running and close the water tap. Dry off any water you can see. Immediately report the leak to the maintenance company. When the extent of the damage is known, submit an insurance claim to your home insurance company.
• When defrosting the freezer, do not leave it unattended. There can be a surprising amount of defrost water, and it can cause water damage.
• If you remove a dishwasher or washing machine, their connections must be plugged. For more information on plugging, see the page "Moving out”. 

• Keep batteries, battery-powered torches and a battery-powered radio at home.
• Get back-up power supplies and keep them charged.
• Store food that does not require heating.
• Always keep a couple of litres of bottled water at home as a precaution. In the Metropolitan Area, the water supply usually works during a short power cut, but power cuts can also affect the water supply. If a water supply disruption lasts for more than 24 hours, water distribution points are usually set up. 

More advice on preparedness

• HSY’s guide on water use during power cuts
• Suomi.fi’s preparedness guide
• 72Hours website 

• When a power cut starts, switch off all electrical appliances and household appliances. If a cooker or iron, for example, has been left on, it can cause a fire when the electricity comes back on.
• Protect the floor under the refrigeration equipment from defrost water. Do not open the freezer door unnecessarily.

• Avoid using domestic water, such as taking a shower or washing the dishes and laundry.
• Flushing the toilet should also be avoided. In the sewer system, wastewater may need to be pumped to a sewage treatment plant in some places. Without electricity, sewage and solid waste cannot move normally, so they can block the drains.
• Do not put water down the drain. Use, for example, a bucket under the tap if you have to run water from it.

• Lifts will stop working in the event of a power cut. If power cuts are likely, avoid using lifts.
• If you get stuck in a lift, never try to get out on your own. Stay calm and press the alarm button on the lift. The alarm system for lifts also works during a power cut.

• During a power cut, you can get in with a key, and you can always get out without one.
• Door code devices will cease to function during a power cut. After the power cut, they will work with the same codes as before.
• If the sauna or laundry room door has an electronic time control, it may not work during a power cut or immediately after one.
• Electric tilt-up doors and sliding doors in garages will cease to function. They can usually be opened manually using the pulls inside the garages.

Mains-connected smoke detectors also have a battery. During a power cut, they get their power from the battery.

• Electricity supply disruptions are announced at sahkokatkokartta.fi (in Finnish).
• Call the emergency number 112 only in case of an emergency.
• If a power cut is long, follow the information from the authorities on the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yle) channels. You can listen to radio broadcasts on a battery-powered or rechargeable radio or car radio. If your internet connection works, you can also listen to the radio on your mobile phone or computer and search for information on the websites of your electricity company, municipality and the authorities. 

Almost all Espoon Asunnot properties have their own civil defence shelter. You can find the exact location of the civil defence shelter in your property’s rescue plan.

The doors to the civil defence shelters are marked with a sign featuring a blue triangle on an orange background and the text “Väestönsuoja / Skyddsrumm”.

If a property does not have its own civil defence shelter, it is covered by the general civil defence system. In the event of a crisis, the authorities will instruct the residents of these properties which general civil defence shelter to go to.

If a situation requires the preparation of civil defence shelters, the authorities will issue an order. By law, the shelter must be ready for use within 72 hours of the order.

The preparation of the civil defence shelter is primarily led by the civil defence shelter caretaker, who is appointed at the residents’ meeting. If the property lacks a civil defence shelter caretaker, or if the caretaker is absent, the other residents of the building shall begin preparing the shelter for use independently.

Residents will only move into the civil defence shelter if the authorities order them to do so. In the event of a crisis, the authorities will give instructions by radio.