We were feeling very close to the finish line a week ago.  The reclaimed Ash floors were being finished with a beautiful coat of AFM Safecoat Natural Oil and Wax (see http://www.afmsafecoat.com/downloads/acjyox4016%20Naturals%20Oil%20Wax%20Finish%20data%2008.pdf)

This product is primarily linseed oil, and the floor finishers left a pile of soaked rags in the stairwell when they finished for the day.  An hour or so later, our neighbours saw flames and smoke.   It seems that the rags spontaneously combusted.   The fire department was on site in about 4 minutes and saved us from certain ruin as the stairs and railings had begun to burn.

The fire fighters used very little water, which saved us from a lot of damage, but there is a lot of smoke and soot in the house.  The floors certainly took a beating as well since the finish was not dry and the fire department walked through the entire house to open up the windows.  In addition, the fire fighters had to smash their way through our front and side doors.

All in all, we are thankful it was not worse, but can’t believe our bad luck.  We need to tear out drywall near the fire site, clean the entire house, re-prime and paint, refinish the floors, and replace the doors and frames.  This is going to set us back considerably.

So, Green Builders – beware:  The warning on the cans of linseed oil based products are real.