Spontaneous Combustion Blamed For El Dorado House Fire

EL DORADO HILLS, Calif. (CBS13) -- A simple home improvement project and a stray sponge apparently led to a man's home burning down, according to fire investigators.

The El Dorado Hills Fire Department said the heat of the middle of the day caused a small amount of oil in a sponge to spontaneously combust.

"I had been using the sponge to apply the oil to the railing on the deck," Mouritsen said.

Mouritsen left the sponge out on the deck when he left his house for a short time, but by the time he came home, a pillar of smoke was already rising above his house.

The simple mistake sparked a fire that completely gutted his home and destroyed nearly all of his possessions, including his guitar collection. Only a few valuable heirlooms and pictures were salvageable.

"We managed to get this photo out, which was my grandpa and great grandpa," he said.

Mouritsen said he plans to rebuild his home by next year.