I almost died Wednesday, but my dog saved my life!

By Matt Sloane
CNN Medical News Producer

It was 2 a.m. and Kylie, our 3-year-old Australian shepherd, started barking.  Dexter, her brother, jumped in between my wife and me, scared of what I thought was a thunderstorm.  But it turned out the "lightning" was coming from a power outlet over our bedroom vanity.  This is the second time in as many months that this has happened.  After the last scare, we had the electrician out to fix it, and he installed a special arc-fault breaker that was supposed to cut power to the outlet if it started to burn.  We were $400 lighter in the wallet but reassured, that is, until Wednesday morning when it happened again!  Outlet melted, wall burned, six-way adapter destroyed, and (false) sense of security shattered.

Kylie, the 3-year-old Aussie that saved our house from burning down

We found out from the electrician the next morning that our 30+ year-old house had aluminum wiring, which tends to overheat, and that our arc-fault breaker may have been faulty.  So, our six-plug adapter with a hair iron and hair dryer plugged in was probably drawing a ton of power, and caused the fixture to melt – and it didn't trip the breaker. 

Our house most certainly would have caught fire within a few hours had the furry ones not awakened us.

So, rather than be completely freaked out, I decided to share my near-death experience, hoping to impart some of the lessons from my old house, my electrician, a handful of experts and my dog.

 1. Older aluminum wiring can be dangerous.  The "old-style" aluminum wiring used in homes before 1972 was found to be incompatible with many receptacles being manufactured at the time, and it caused a whole host of deadly fires around the country. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, older homes containing aluminum wiring installed before 1972 "are 55 times more likely to have one or more connections reach 'fire hazard' status."  Since 1972, wire manufacturers have been using a much safer aluminum alloy wire.

Our electrician also recommended we plug just two appliances into our two plugs, and steer clear of six-way adapters.  The more power you draw, the hotter the wire gets, the more likely it is to cause a fire.

 2. Beware of counterfeit electrical parts.  According to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, more than $500,000 worth of counterfeit Christmas lights were seized at U.S. ports last December alone.  This could be just the tip of the iceberg, and some of these components are making it through undetected. Some even bear the coveted "UL Listed" (Underwriters Laboratory) mark of approval, although they haven’t earned it.  According to the National Electrical Contractors Association, some of these components are so well disguised they're reaching the toolboxes of legitimate electrical contractors.  But despite a few fake "UL" logos, NECA safety chief Jerry Rivera says, looking for the these logos is your best bet for avoiding counterfeit parts.  Nobody can say for sure whether our bad breaker was counterfeit, but experts say counterfeit electrical parts are one of the leading causes of electrical fires.

3. If you do suspect that your electrical components may be melting, call 911.  "Most electrical fires are hidden behind the walls," says Allen McCullough, fire chief and public safety director for Fayette County, Georgia.  "You may smell that electrical smell, but you may not be able to chase it and find the origin, so even when you're suspicious, call 911."  McCullough goes on to say that while fire departments used to come in and tear down sheet rock to find the origin of electrical fires, high-tech thermal imaging cameras can now find hotspots without doing damage to your home. 

If you wake up to an electrical fire already burning, McCullough says, don't use water to extinguish it.  A dry-chemical or all-purpose fire extinguisher is your best bet.

4. Dogs. Although annoying, when a dog barks incessantly at night, there's probably a reason.  PAY ATTENTION!