POTSDAM -- Potsdam Public Library is hoping make home heating a little safer by loaning moisture meter out to patrons who want to check their wood for water.

Miles Manchester a Potsdam man with an interested in fire safety suggested the idea, and the meter was donated to the library by the Local Living Venture.

To help spread awareness the library has created a display, which includes two pieces of firewood. One is a year old and one freshly cut with the moisture content marked on the wood.

Manchester is also holding a public meeting Aug. 12 at the civic center that will focus on fire safety.

“I'd like this to be good natured and humorous but we are talking about safety issues. I personality worked with someone who had two children die in a house fire caused by a wood stove,” Manchester said in his release. “And besides the people in the home there are safety concerns for the “first responders.” I recently spoke with someone who was a volunteer firefighter who was nearly “blown off” ladder while extinguishing a chimney fire. The chimney was blocked with creosote and when air finally got to the volatile gases trapped in the chimney it blew up nearly knocking him off the ladder.”

The meeting will cover a variety of topics including woodstoves, wood harvesting, wood stacking and techniques to assist in drying wood.

Manchester will also discuss the costs associated with burning wet wood and the safety risks that can arise from burning wet wood.