A home is the place where you spend most of your time. Therefore, it just makes sense that you might want to keep your home safe and away from accidents while protecting your family members. However, maintaining safety at home can not be easily accomplished if just one person works towards it. Instead, everyone needs to work equally to ensure that the home is a safe place for its members. To ensure the same, here are a few safety measures at home that you might want to implement to keep the safety and health of your family as the top priority.
Why is home safety important?
Our homes are nothing but just a roof and four walls that separate us from our surroundings while providing us with a sense of security, comfort, and belonging. However, amidst the hustle and bustle of life, it may be very easy to overlook the most important aspect of life which is the safety measures at home that you have taken. It doesn’t matter whether you are living alone or with someone. Prioritising home safety is important. Here’s why home safety is important, explained with the help of a few points.
Peace of mind
The most basic reason when it comes to why home safety is important is to create a secure and peaceful environment. When you feel safe at your home, it helps you to unwind and relax without having to worry about a thing. Not to mention, when you know that both your possessions and your loved ones are being saved from various unknown threats, you automatically enhance your overall well-being.
Prevention of any mishaps or accidents
Mishaps or accidents are something that comes unannounced. This is why implementing proper safety measures at home is one of the ways to significantly reduce the likelihood of running into an accident. Especially with households that consist of weapons, understanding how to safely store your weapons is an important responsibility that every weapon owner should be aware of.
Preparedness for natural disasters
Natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes, wildfires, and hurricanes can strike without even giving a simple warning. It also tends to leave a devastating effect afterward. This is why developing an emergency plan, which also includes evacuation routes and emergency supply kits, is essential for maintaining the safety of the household.
Safety tips for home
Having a safe home is one of the top priorities for most of us. However, it becomes overwhelming when you sit down to find the best ways to keep your home safe. Hence, to make it easier for you, we have curated a list of safety tips for the home that you can implement in your house for better safety.
Install a Home Security System
Among a multitude of safety tips for the home, one of the tips that most people would recommend is to get a strong home security system installed. A home security system can do more than just detect intruders. It can also detect smoke, carbon monoxide, or fire and water leaks in the house. If you have installed one of the best systems, then there’s a chance that it will help you make an emergency call. For example, if there is a fire, then it can contact fire safety responders. A home security system can either be installed by the homeowner themselves or by a professional in the industry.
Store Hazardous Substances Safely
You might probably consist of a few hazardous substances lying around in your house. Those might include stuff such as paint thinner or gasoline. Even detergent pods or laundry pods could be hazardous when consumed. As far as such hazardous substances are concerned, it is better to store them in their original containers. These substances should also be locked away and kept out of reach of the children. A few of the substances also consist of choking hazards. Hence, storing them properly is quite essential.
Always Have An Emergency Plan
Accidents are something that does not inform you that they are going to come around. In such situations, you might want to be always prepared. Having an emergency plan prepared should also be a part of the safety tips for the home since it is crucial to ensure the safety of your family members. Especially in case of an emergency, people need to react fast and implement a safe way to get away from the situation.
Remove Brush and Flammable Material from Around Your House
Dry brush, leaves, and flammable mulch can put your house at a high risk of fire; even the dry leaves that lie in gutters could lead to burning down your house if there’s a wildfire nearby. For the same reason, it is important to control dry leaf growth near your home and dispose of any flammable materials, such as charcoal or paper, that are used for grilling. Since fire is also one of the major issues that cause insurance losses every year, it is essential to follow proper fire safety measures.
Inspect and Replace Water Feed Lines
Those flexible, short water pipes that connect your washing machine, toilets, and dishwasher to the main water lines tend to cause major issues if they are not regularly inspected and replaced every few years. You could replace these pipes with braided stainless steel hoses instead of those low-quality plastic pipes that won’t last long. However, make sure you do not overtighten them because the fitting on fixtures and hoses could be fragile; if there is too much force being applied to them, it could lead to cracking and leaking through these pipes. So to ensure water safety, it is essential to conduct such inspections once in a while.
Keep Chemicals Away
Ensure that all chemicals and cleaners are locked away and kept in either a shed or under the sink such that children cannot easily access them. Cabinet locks are also one of the ways to keep the chemicals in a secure way.
Install locks on windows
Most of the windows might already consist of locks, however, if yours do not or if the original locks have been broken down then you might want to consider attaching the market locks that you get to secure your home. You could also keep an additional screen guard on your windows that will prevent children from falling out of the windows.
Install a smoke alarm
This is one of the most basic safety tips for home that most people tend to skip. Especially making sure that there are proper functioning smoke or fire alarm detectors is important, especially in residences. It is also seen that those homes without fire alarms are more prone to fire accidents than other homes that consist of one.
Keep an emergency kit in the house
Emergency kits consist of a lot of content and help you to be ready to go when the condition is quite critical. A quick search could also provide you with what to include in your emergency kit.
Home safety assessment certification
Before you move into a new house it is of utmost importance that you get a few of the home safety assessment certificates. These include gas and electricity safety certificates which is a mandatory requirement for most of the new houses. It is also essential to get a house inspection yourself to ensure that all the electric appliances, fitting, and gas appliances in the house are ready and safe to use.
A gas safety certificate is obtained only after an inspection is done which is normally conducted annually by a gas safe engineer. The inspector ensures that all the appliances and fittings in your house are working properly. Any unsafe appliances could lead to gas leakage which could further lead to carbon monoxide poisoning, explosions, and fire issues.
You can also contact the owners of the house to show you the safety record of the property and if they do not have it then you can consult a safety engineer to conduct a safety check of the house before your family decides to move in.
Childproofing your home
While a lot of safety measures at home show you how to protect yourself from others, however when it comes to children it is important to save them from themselves. They can really do unimaginable stuff while hurting themselves without their knowledge. So childproofing your home can be done with the help of these few of the ways.
Put lighters and matches out of children’s reach
Children are often the ones who start fires in your homes. Hence, discarding any excessive matches or lighters is important. You can also hide the remaining lighters or matches that are out of reach for children. Also, do not leave candles unattended, especially in front of children.
Dispose of unused or open chemicals
Oils, cleaners, and other chemicals when they are left open on the floor, in cabinets, or in the backyard could seriously cause major injuries among children. Taking care that they are not left open carelessly is quite important.
Dispose of plastic bags promptly
Just like small objects that lie around the house, plastic bags are a choking hazard among children. They could easily take these and put them in their mouths without thinking much. Hence, make sure you do not leave them as it is around the house.
Cover all unused electrical sockets
Outlets when kept uncovered could lead to electrical fires. Preventing electrical fires is hence essential especially when kids are around. One of the ways to keep this from happening is by installing outlet plug covers that will protect children from open electrical sockets.
Use safety latches and locks on cabinets and drawers
First of all, make sure all your cabinets and drawers are at a height that your children cannot easily access. Also, ensure they do not try to climb these elevated surfaces since a small fall could also lead to injuries. Secondly, you might want to attach locks to these drawers and cabinets to keep stuff out of reach for the children.
Conclusion
With all the implementation of safety measures at home, you can be ensured that safety will be the top priority. Also, while all of the above safety tips for home are great, they cannot be implemented in a single weekend. You might have to work on it for days. However, with Propchks, you can be sure of getting the best quality work being done. Be it in terms of a home security system being installed or getting a new lock for your window. You will get it all! For more information, you could also check out the blog page and update yourself on the details.
FAQ
What are some basic safety measures I can implement at home to ensure a secure environment?
Some basic safety measures include installing smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors, ensuring all locks on doors and windows are secure, using anti-slip mats in bathrooms and kitchens, keeping a first aid kit handy, and regularly checking and maintaining home appliances to prevent accidents.
How can I make my home childproof to ensure the safety of young children?
To make your home childproof, cover electrical outlets, use safety gates to block stairs, secure heavy furniture and appliances to walls, keep small objects and toxic substances out of reach, and use corner guards on sharp furniture edges.
What are some fire safety tips I should follow at home?
Fire safety tips include installing smoke alarms on every level of your home, testing smoke alarms monthly, keeping a fire extinguisher in the kitchen, creating and practising a fire escape plan with your family, and avoiding the use of candles or ensuring they are never left unattended.
How can I improve the security of my home against potential break-ins?
To improve home security against break-ins, install high-quality deadbolt locks on all exterior doors, use motion-sensor outdoor lighting, keep bushes and trees trimmed to eliminate hiding spots, install a security system with cameras, and avoid sharing your travel plans or routines on social media.
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