NEW GLOUCESTER – A local man was treated for smoke inhalation early Wednesday morning after he inadvertently set his home on fire.

Kevin Fernald, 35, of 250 Sabbathday Road was soldering pipe in a bathroom ceiling at his home shortly after midnight when he set cellulose insulation on fire.

He tried to put out the blaze with a small fire extinguisher but failed, fire Chief Gary Sacco said.

Law enforcement officers escorted Fernald, who was standing in a doorway, out and away from the building. He was taken to Maine Medical Center in Portland, where he was treated and released by 4 a.m., Sacco said. No other injuries were reported.

The 2-story building and its contents sustained extensive smoke and heat damage on both main floors. Fire also burned a hole in the roof of an ell, Sacco said. He estimated the total damage at about $100,000. The building is insured, he said.

It took firefighters about two-and-a-half hours to bring the blaze under control, Sacco said. Fire companies from Poland and Gray assisted.