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24 -- PORT PERRY STAR -- Mon. December 24, 1984 ! --| Kerosene heaters Christmas joy at Immaculate Conception Catholic School Youngsters dressed up like Santa Claus, Christmas skit in the Immaculate Concep- tion Catholic School Christmas Concert, Fri- day afternoon. his reindeers and Santa's dry cleaner (the fellow in the parka) romp through a LQ @ wm In yet another skit, '"Santa" (without his missing red Santa suit. suit) asks his '""elves" to help him find the RR LT J afternoon. can destroy lives Carelessly used, kero- sene heaters can take lives in exchange for the instant warmth they provide. At least five serious fires have been started by kerosene heaters this year, leaving one Ont- ario resident dead. With proper care and maintenance, these pop- ular appliances can pro- vide safe home heating for many years, says Dr. Robert Elgie, Min- ister of Consumer and Commercial Relations in Ontario. But a few basic rules must be followed to avoid accidents, he says. Most importantly, be - sure to read and carry out all manufacturer's directions; If instruct- ions say the heater must be placed at least three metres from the nearest combustible surface, don't decide two metres will do. Read the manual again when the heater is brought back into use for the winter. Clean the heater and inspect it for defects. Always fill the fuel tank outside and never use anything but kerosene. Kerosene for use in home heating units is clear and colorless, but several different grades of the fuel have similar characteristics. An improved grade called "1K" or "K1" was recently introduced in Ontario. It is the purest grade on the market and only this kerosene should be used in heaters. Lower grades can leave gummy deposits on the wick which could com- bine with other prob- lems in a heater to create poisonous carbon monoxide fumes. Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that causes headaches, dizziness, drowsiness, nausea and, in large doses, death. Use of poorer grades of fuel can also cause heaters to smoke and Choir after choir fook the stage and entertained ception Catholic School Christmas Concert, Friday teachers, students and parents at the Immaculate Con- give off odors. Storage containers for many fuels are now universally color-coded to help avoid mix-ups that could cause injury. When buying or storing erosene, always put it in a blue plastic fuel container designed for the purpose. When carrying ker- osene home in a car, place it securely on the floor and leave at least one window fully open. Never transport the fuel in a closed trunk where fumes could build up. Kerosene should not be stored in or near a house, nor should it be used after about 100 days as it will begin to deteriorate. Fuel that has past the 100-day shelf life could foul-up heaters with deposits. Buy only enough to last about three months at a time. If some fuel is left over, take it to a service station and ask the attendant to dispose of it. Do not pour Kerosene down drains, sewers or onto the ground. Although kerosene heaters have been used in Ontario for decades, their popularity soared a few years ago. Most units now sell for between $100 and $250. When buying a heater, be sure it has been certified by the Canad- ian Standards Assoc- iation (CSA), Warnock- Hersey Professional Services Ltd., Under- writers Laboratories of Canada (ULC) or the Canadian Gas Assoc- iation (CGA). Make sure the unit is the right size for the room and never use a kerosene heater in a poorly vent- ilated area. These appliances and the fuel used to operate them should be kept out of children's reach. Raising the Dickens at Canadian banks by Tony Carlson Our day-to-day actions have a way of ~catching up with us. So it was for Ebenezer Scrooge when he was haunted by the ghosts of Christmas Past, Pre- sent and Future on that fateful night when he browbeat Tiny Tim's father. And so it may be for the major chartered banks who, according to many small businesses in Western Canada, have been unfair in demands for collateral and in cutting lines of credit. Those firms were responding to a survey by the Canadian Feder- ation of Independent Business carried out in the four western provin- ces where the economic slump has been prolong- ed. The survey found that while a majority of the smaller companies were satisfied with their bankers, there is still a significant number who have seen a marked change for the worse in bank operating policies. Topping the com- plaint list were excess- ive collateral demands. British Columbia res- pondents voiced the loudest protests in this area, with 14.7 per cent reacting against their bank's actions. As well, many firms suffered the extra blow of higher collateral demands at the same time as credit lines were being cut. This problem was most severe in Alberta where 11.5 per cent of the respondents reporteu trouble from this double whammy. In all, 64 per cent of those who replied to the survey considered the bank's actions to be unfair. "A common theme which came through was that the banks have too much power and are using it arbitrarily against small business clients,'"' says Brien Gray, vice-president and general manager of the CFIB. 'Indeed, the new requirements by the banks were some- times demanded re-- gardless of how well the firm was managed or the state of its financial health." Compounding the small business problem is the mobility of bank managers who seem to stay in one branch about as long as an Oilers' winning streak. Nearly half of the business in B.C. have dealt with three or more managers in the last five years. And even in Saskatchewan, where things are more stable, 29 per cent of the operations report the same problem. It means the branch manager has no chance to learn the needs of his clients, forcing him or her to assess the small firm on a '"'numbers only' basis. It's a problem that has shown up in repeat- ed banking surveys, and the latest evidence does nothing to put this ghost to rest. To be fair, many banks have taken steps to improve relations with small firms. But with so many complaints still being aired, it seems bankers can add a few things to their Christmas shopp- ing lists for small busin- ess--things like less arbitrary imposition of policy, less reliance on .éormula lending, and in general, more sensitiv- ity to the special needs of the independent owner-manger. -- -------- I