Significant life changes can be thrilling, whether you’re a parent or a parent of little children. It can be easy to forget about potential hazards in your home during this time of anticipation and joy. Everyday items within our homes can pose danger to our pets, children, and adults. With a little extra preparation, potential danger can be avoided and a safe environment for guests and household members.
Do you have an emergency?
First, call 911 immediately if there is a medical emergency.
There are many resources that can help you answer common questions regarding hazards in your home. Below is a list with common emergency numbers as well as who to contact for specialist help.
Safety for family members: Fast facts
It takes work to keep your home safe. But it is worth the effort. Accidents at home are more common than you might think. These are alarming statistics.
- Unintentional injuries cause over 12,000 deaths each year in children between 0 and 19. Center for Disease Control
- The leading cause of death for children younger than four years old is drowning. Center for Disease Control
- Children between the ages of 0 and 19 died from injuries sustained in their homes. These included suffocation and poisoning with chemicals and drugs, falls and drowning, and fire.
Expect the unexpected
Protecting yourself and your family from potential hazards on your property is a primary responsibility as a homeowner or renter. You can prevent injuries and accidents from happening by removing as many hazards as possible.
Properly maintaining major systems such as electrical and plumbing is one way to prevent this. To ensure quality repairs and maintenance, it is a good idea for major systems to be checked by certified professionals. Another important area to pay attention is maintaining your landscaping. You can increase the value of your house by maintaining your yard. In addition, you can avoid potential accidents due to a system breakdown or overgrown foliage.
Another important responsibility is to keep your renters or homeowners insurance current. A comprehensive policy will provide financial protection in the event of any injuries or damages to your home.
Safety hazards for children throughout the house
Here is a list of safety hazards for children in your house. You may be able to see potential dangers every day, but you may not know they exist.
Sharp edges
If you, or someone else, accidentally bumps into a sharp object, it can cause serious injury to your head or body. Commonly, sharp objects are furniture, fireplace edges, fireplace tools and cutlery such as knives, cutting boards, bowls, drinking glasses, and scissors. Keep sharp objects away from children and use childproof measures such as silicone protectors.
Sharp objects that we don’t always think of are equally dangerous. Sharp objects such as razors left out, barbecuing tools, paper shredders, paper shredders, edges of mirrors, and grooming tools such as clippers and nail trimmers all need to be kept away from small hands.
Cleaning chemicals
Chemicals and cleaners aren’t just under the kitchen sink, but also throughout your home and garage. To prevent poisoning, make sure you lock up any hazardous cleaners or keep them in childproof containers. To indicate that something is containing a hazardous chemical, you can use stickers such as Mr.Yuk from Pittsburgh Poison Center.
Bleach, a chemical commonly associated with cleaning is dangerous and should be kept out of reach. You should also avoid nail polish removers, spot cleaners as well as brake fluid, antifreeze and brake fluid. Chemical strippers, insecticides, and lawn chemicals should be kept out of reach.
Furniture
Although furniture may not be the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of dangerous objects, it is possible. The possibility of furniture tipping, lead paint in old furniture, and safety recalls is all real. To determine if additional steps can be taken to keep the furniture in place, or if it should be removed entirely, carefully review each piece. To help avoid tipping, you can use straps or anti-tip brackets to secure your furniture to the wall. It is possible that furniture and vintage toys from before 1978 could contain lead.
Televisions and large appliances can also be very heavy and easily fall over. Televisions should be secured against walls or strapped to a wide base.
An electrical socket
Children are especially at risk from electrical outlets. It is tempting for children to place objects in the outlets. However, if wet fingers come into contact with the outlet, it can cause accidental shock. You can prevent shock by purchasing childsafe receptacles at home improvement stores and covering them with plastic covers.
The cords that are electrical or cable should be cut as soon as possible. To prevent children from grabbing, biting or chewing cords, you can hang them out of reach. Overloaded outlets can cause fire hazards and should be avoided. Use the recommended wattage for each plug and limit the number of sockets you have.
Radiators
Radiators are a necessity in your home to heat the house, but they can also cause serious burns if not properly maintained. Install approved covers or screens to cover radiators and other heating devices in your home, such as steam pipes. This will prevent body burns. To prevent children from coming in direct contact with the radiator, you could put up a screen or a playpen gate.
Plants in the yard and at the house
While chemicals and cleaners are obvious poisonous substances around your home, household plants pose a similar threat. Many plants can be toxic to pets and children if they are ingested. The skin irritation may be less severe. To prevent poisoning, it is important to get rid of poisonous plants.
Poinsettias and peace lilies are toxic plants. You can ask the poison control center to determine if your pet’s favorite plant is poisonous.
Room by room, child safety hazards
You can also examine each room for potential hazards to assess the safety of your home. These are the most likely areas to identify safety issues.
Backyard
Your backyard is a wonderful place to relax, but it also presents safety hazards. Swimming in your backyard is a major concern. According to the CDC, there were an average of 3,536 drownings each year in the United States between 2005 and 2014. According to the CDC, one in five drownings took place with someone aged 14 or under. To make your pool safer, you can install alarms or a fence around it. Also, ensure that your kiddie pool is emptied after use. A drowning accident can happen in as little as one inch of water.
Unattended swing sets or jungle gyms pose a risk in your backyard. Unattended swing sets and jungle gyms can be dangerous for children. This will help to avoid injuries and falls. Sharp-edged equipment and tools for barbecue, gardening, pesticides, or other outdoor activities can pose hazards. To prevent injury or poisoning, all potential hazards must be secured.
Garage
Although garages present many safety risks for children, each one can be avoided. Because tools can cause injury, they pose a danger. Make sure you lock your garage doors or keep them off the ground. You should be equally careful with shelving. Make sure it isn’t placed where it can be pulled down. Do not load shelves with heavy objects.
Keep chemicals out of reach in your garage.
Special note about cars
Unfortunately, hundreds die every year from heatstroke due to either inadvertently getting into a vehicle or leaving a caregiver’s car in a hot place. To prevent a curious child from getting into your car, keep it locked in the garage.
Laundry room and bathroom
Bathrooms can pose a danger to your home and could be contaminated with poisonous substances. Keep all prescription drugs out of reach of children and locked up. Properly dispose of any medication that you no longer require or has expired before it becomes dangerous for anyone else. You should keep cleaners out reach in the same way you would in your laundry room or kitchen. To prevent accidental drownings from happening, you can put latches on toilet seats.
You should inspect the laundry room for any potential hazards. All cleaning products must be kept out of reach and locked away. Laundry cleaning products such as laundry detergent pods should be kept out of reach and in childproof packaging. Don’t forget the appliances. Your washer and dryer should be secure and not in danger.
It is crucial to keep the lint trap clean in order to prevent house fires. Simply removing any lint from traps after each use will help prevent this common cause of house fires. Your dryer vents should be cleaned at least once a year.
Kitchen
The kitchen is not only the most used area in the house, but it also presents many safety hazards. It is important to be attentive to both small and large items, including sharp or heavy appliances. Both tip-overs and burns can be caused by appliances, but they are avoidable.
Establish a safety zone within the oven’s reach and tell children to avoid it. To keep children away, make sure your appliances are securely attached to the wall. Cookware should never be left unattended without a handle. Instead, place the back burners to cook as often as possible and watch over the process.
Sharp edges such as knives, cutlery, graters, and mandolins must be disposed of. These items should be stored high enough so that no arms or legs come into contact with them.
Common cleaning supplies can be found under the kitchen sink. However, they should be kept in higher places or locked cabinets. Items such as white vinegar or spices can be equally dangerous if they are ingested.
The kitchen floor attracts dirt and food pieces. It is easy to clean up debris and keep food and other objects from little hands.
There are many hidden and obvious dangers in your home, but it is worth taking the time to assess and prevent any potential accidents.