Take Your First Steps to Home Safety

By Rem


Your home is a place of security and relief from the pressures of the outside world and most people feel relaxed upon entering their domicile. This is one of the contributing factors to statistics demonstrating that most accidents occur in the home and often by inattention to dangers. Home safety needs to be the first frontier to tackle in protecting yourself and your loved ones from accidents.

A very obvious source of danger in a house is the electrical system. Outlets for power are located in convenient and easy to reach places to facilitate plugging in our appliances and devices. Moving the outlets to secure locations defeats the purpose of having electricity, so the best practice for home safety is to cover them up. Many designs and types of outlet protection are available to match your dcor while protecting the family.

A basic concept for home safety is to remove clutter around the house and organize your belongings. Usually this push starts in childhood with mothers directing their kids to clean up their rooms and put all of their toys away. As adults, we often fail to put everything away and it is very easy to trip or bump into those objects later causing bruises or scrapes.

Shelves in closets and storage areas in general are very often victims of clutter and overloading. It is a classic cartoon notion for the closet door to open and everything fall out on the hapless character involved. In real life it is not funny and can be painful. Overloaded shelves can fall on a head or body at any time to cause injury.

The elderly are usually more sensitive to tripping and falling concerns such as varied flooring or rugs. The differing levels for materials covering the floor are potential sources of tripping. The danger grows over time as the borders get worn. Home safety experts additionally recommend non-slip pads for rugs and periodic review of floor covering boundaries.

Bathrooms can be wet and messy venues, requiring many strong cleaning products using hazardous chemicals. For ease of use, many people store these supplies under the sink or nearby. Due to the danger, the chemicals should be locked away or put up in an elevated place that is not as easy to access. All of the containers should have child-proof lids to add extra home safety to the situation.

The kitchen is an area where chemicals are used to clean and sanitize surfaces daily. Many of these chemicals are hazardous to contact, inhale, or swallow. To provide quick access and easy use of the cleaning products, they are often stored under the sink or in a nearby cabinet. Home safety is greatly improved when the items are put up and away, preferably in a locked cabinet.

Sharp and hot objects are another danger in the kitchen to take precautions against. Knives are essential to food preparation, but need to be stored in a wood block or drawer. Stove tops and ovens need precautions as well to note if the heat is on and to avoid contact.

About the Author: