Soon the fireworks sale will start. After two New Year’s Eve without fireworks due to corona, December 31 will probably shoot more than ever. But not everything is allowed this year. And there is a maximum on how much you can have at home. What exactly are the rules, and how safe is it to store fireworks in the house?
New fireworks rules will apply for the first time this year. For example, we can still usher in the new year with stars, ground flowers and fountains. Compounds, boxes with several pots that you can fire at once, are also allowed. But loose rockets and ‘throwable’ firecrackers are no longer allowed.
This is prohibited:
- Fireworks of the category F3. These are professional fireworks and prohibited in our country, just like in Belgium and Germany.
- Firecrackers and bang strands, like Chinese mats. According to the Dutch Safety Board, these cause too much nuisance and provoke reckless behaviour.
- Loose single-shot tubes and loose flares. Because that hurts a lot of people.
You can keep that much at home
If you are going to buy fireworks, keep in mind that you cannot fill your entire attic. Fireworks in the F1 category, such as sparklers, are fairly harmless and you can store as many of them as you want. But for the larger (legal) fireworks there is a limit of 25 kilos, including packaging material.
Exactly how many fireworks are involved, that varies, explains fireworks importer David Smits of Cafferata in Uden. But assume 300 to 400 euros in bangers. “A pot with 500 grams of gunpowder weighs about two to three kilos. So you should have eight to ten of them at home. A compound usually contains six to ten kilos, so you can only keep a few of them at home.”
What if a fire does start?
But is that also safe? “Gow powder in fireworks is very stable and really needs a spark or flame to ignite,” reassures Mark van der Kaap of the Central and West Brabant Security Region. “It never goes away by itself. Not by static electricity, shaking or shock. Unless there’s been tinkering.”
According to Van der Kaap, if fire does come near the fireworks, it will lead to a large fire that is difficult to extinguish. “However, it will never lead to a big explosion, it will happen piece by piece. This is different with illegal fireworks. Cobras and shells can explode in one go and that leads to a pressure wave and a very loud bang.”
Nevertheless, fireworks importer Smits recommends lighting up all the fireworks on New Year’s Eve. “I wouldn’t like to live next door if my neighbor still has it in the attic,” he says.
“I’m sure no one properly stores their fireworks at a sprinkler system nearby. If it is in the attic near a gas boiler and a fire breaks out, you get the newspaper.”
Tips for storing fireworks:
- If you store it at home, don’t do it on an open flame. So in a dry shed, cellar or attic.
- A less safe place is right in front of the fireplace or above your gas stove. The chance that a flame will reach the fuse is then greater.
- There is no expiration date on fireworks. Nor does it become more dangerous by keeping it for too long.