A soldering iron being used to make plumbing repairs in a downstairs bathroom sparked a fire Friday that damaged a house at 609 Phelps St.

The owner, Excell Williams, and his son, Brian, who was asleep downstairs, escaped without injury. Their dog, Little, a 7-year-old Lab-pit bull mix, was rescued from the house and suffered some effects of smoke inhalation. The dog was taken to a veterinarian and was expected to survive.

“He was wagging his tail as they took him away on the stretcher,” Excell Williams said as he sat in a patio chair on the sidewalk outside his damaged home.

Williams had lived in the house since 1965.

Excell Williams was working about noon with a soldering iron in a first-story bathroom. A flame started on the interior of the wall of the room and traveled quickly to the attic.

The fire damaged about 25 percent of the home, mostly in the back, said Greg Walters, a Peoria Fire Department assistant chief. Damage was estimated at $25,000. The fire was put out in about 20 minutes.

“The owner of the home was very forthcoming with what had occurred,” Walters said. “The puzzle of how it started came together pretty quickly.”