A fire that recently destroyed a Richland Township home started in a basement furnace that had the wrong fuse in it, said Richland Fire Marshal Guy Pedicone.

A 15-amp fuse should have been used for the furnace in the home on Station Hill Road, but the circuit breakers kept popping, said Pedicone. Instead, a 30-amp fuse was substituted to keep the furnace running, he said.

The heat generated from the electrical fire penetrated the inner wall of the cover plate on the furnace, Pedicone said.

No one was injured, but Pedicone said the home was a total loss in the Oct. 28 fire. 

On the day of the fire, Fire Chief Jim Kelly of the Richland Volunteer Fire Department said the fire started in the basement and burned up through the floor on the main level.

Pedicone worked with the Allegheny County Fire Marshal's office to investigate the cause.

Homeowner Rich Laszczynski said he had lived in the house since 2009 and that he was planning to turn it into rental property.

Multiple fire departments responded to the morning fire, including Richland Volunteer Fire Department and Wexford Volunteer Fire Co.