Your home is your place of shelter where you feel safe and secure but there are a lot of important activities that you need to perform as a responsible member of your home in order to keep it safe. There are a lot of safety measures that you need to take in order to completely protect your home against all types of dangers. Our safety checklist will help you know about all those and help you make your home both sweet and safe.
Home Safety Checklist
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Home Security should be your first priority when it comes to your safety.
Here are a number of points that you should keep in mind to secure your home completely.
1. Motion Activated Floodlight
Burglars are afraid of properly-lighted homes as they have the risk of getting caught in the light and prefer dark homes. So it is very important to keep your home lighted by installing bright floodlights wherever necessary. The Motion-Activated Floodlights can automatically switch on as soon as it senses the motion so you can install them in your home to keep it safe.
2. Dead Bolts and Window Locks
It is very important to keep your doors and windows safe by making sure that they are locked when you are sleeping or away and bolted when you are at home. Dead Bolts and Window Locks will add security to your exterior doors and windows.
3. Mug up the helpline numbers
You should mug up all the helpline numbers or write it in your phone book for emergencies. The police helpline, fire extinguisher, and ambulance are important helpline numbers that you need in times of an emergency.
4. Install cameras and peephole
Installing CCTV cameras at home can avoid a lot of danger like burglary taking place in your home. It can also give proof of the activities that have taken place somewhere inside. Installing a peephole installed in your doors will let you see outside if you find anything suspicious and make you aware of strangers coming at your door. You should install an easily manageable home security system to maximize your security.
5. Visible House Number
Make sure that your house number is clearly visible so that it would be easier for the police or ambulance to find your location in times of emergency.
6. Maintain friendly relations with neighbors
Try to make a good bond with your neighbors and live as a community that will protect each other to make their environment secure. You should also try to give your spare house keys to your trusted neighbors before going out and not hide it somewhere in the garden or anywhere else as the burglars are clever enough to know the places where you could possibly hide your spare keys.
7. Install Carbon Monoxide Detectors
Try to install the Carbon Monoxide detectors at home to avoid any fire accidents at home.
For Kitchen
The kitchen is the most crucial part of your home as it has all the electronics or flammable items like the stove, microwave oven, fridge, etc. which need to be properly taken care of. A little careless in your kitchen like leaving the stove on or using the lighter near the wires of the fridge and you may lose your life and your family’s life too. It also has all the sharp and pointed objects like knives which can harm the children at your home. Therefore, kitchen safety should be given priority when it comes to your safety checklist. Here is the kitchen security checklist for you-
1. Install the stove locks
Installing a stove lock would make your stoves safe from the reach of children at your home. You will feel relieved that they cannot light up the stove as per their wish and risk anything. Also, the knob protectors will lock the knob and children would not be able to use them.
2. Hide the sharp objects properly
You should make sure that the knives and other sharp and dangerous objects are kept out of the reach of children. If your child is very small then get the baby-proofing done in the kitchen and keep all the sharp objects in a good baby-proof cupboard.
3. Put off the stove knob after us
Do not let the stove knob stay open after its use and switch it off immediately as it can quickly catch fire.
4.Keep a fire extinguisher cylinder in the kitchen
The kitchen can catch the flame at any time and it can lead to a serious accident. So make sure that you keep a fire extinguisher at your place for these emergency situations.
5. Keep the matchbox and lighter in a locked cabinet
The flammable objects should not be kept close to the stove as they can lead to fire and should be kept away in a separate cabinet and locked properly.
6. Empty your garbage bag every day
You should empty your garbage bag daily because if you ignore doing it then the toxic waste can harm you and cause pollution at your home. Also, it would be better for your hygiene if you wear a mask while you go to dump the waste every day.
For Pool
Some people build swimming pools in their homes but do not know how to maintain it properly. People also go to clubs for swimming. Parents send their kids to these swimming clubs so that they learn to swim. But the pools, if not maintained properly, can lead to health problems and also lead to accidents. There are a number of things that you can do to stay safe in a pool. Here is the pool security checklist for you-
1. Install fences around the pool
If you have a pool at home then make sure that it is not open and it is surrounded by fences so that the children do not jump off on their own and drown themselves. You should also make sure that wherever your child is going to a swimming class, it should have the fences too.
2. Clean the pool every day after its use
You cannot empty the pool and fill in freshwater every day but try to do it on a regular basis if possible and you can always clean the pool by using the cleaning net so you should try to do it after its use so that it stays clean and there are no insects or frogs inside that can be unhygienic for you and your children.
3. Know the emergency measures of the pool
If you do not know swimming then it’s high time that you learn basic water rescue skills and CPR skills so that you can save your child’s life if he/she accidentally falls down in the pool. You should get a pool alarm to keep an eye on your kids. You can also save your life if you accidentally fall down in the water. Get your pool certified by the authorities.
4. Make sure you do not put a lot of chemicals in the pool–
Chlorine is an important component to be put in the pool after it’s filled up but make sure that it is not mixed in abundance and only the required amount is mixed as the excess of it can harm your eyes and your skin.
For Baby
Families with babies in their homes have to be very careful of the home as small babies are so innocent to understand what is dangerous for them and where not to go. That’s the reason why families are concerned about the safety of their babies and take steps to protect them from any harm.
Here is a home safety checklist for babies by us that you can refer to-
1. Get the baby-proofing done
Babies are likely to hurt themselves by the open drawers and electronics at your home and take out dangerous items from the cupboards and wares. Baby proofing your complete house would avoid that situation and your baby would not be able to open anything without your assistance.
2. Make your nursery safe
You need to make the nursery a safe place for your baby. Once the baby starts crawling, climbing, walking, etc. you need to make sure that no sharp or pointed objects are around in the nursery. Also, make sure that the edges of the bed or the cupboard are not pointed otherwise the baby can get hurt as he walks all around the place. There shouldn’t be any water or cream, gel, medicines, etc. lying around in the nursery too.
3. Set baby’s crib accordingly
Once the baby grows 3 feet or more, he tries to come out of the crib after waking up and the baby can fall down and get hurt. So set the crib to its highest point so that the baby would not be able to come out of the crib.
4. Keep the large soft toys or pillows away from the crib
Keep the big pillows and soft toys away from the crib as the baby can try to climb on them to come out of the crib and it can be harmful.
5. Keep the electronics away from the nursery
Do not keep any electronic item like a TV, Cell-phone, Power Bank, etc. in the nursery.
6. Check the loose fittings of the crib
Regularly check the loose fittings of the crib especially when you move it to other places and make sure that it is tightly intact
7. Keep a baby alarm near your baby
Set a baby alarm and keep it near your baby when they are sleeping as it can catch your baby’s voice when they wake up and inform you wherever you are so you can come and attend to the baby.
8. Keep the baby diapers away
Do not keep the used or unused diapers near the baby as it can be very unhygienic and they can put them in their mouth anytime when you are not watching them.
For Seniors
Often, the seniors of the family become so engrossed in protecting their young ones that they almost forget to take care of themselves. Remember, your safety is your child’s safety. If you do not keep yourself safe and healthy then the whole family can disintegrate. So, here is a safety checklist for the senior members of the house-
1. Take your medicines on time
After a certain age, everyone faces some health problems and medicines are a common thing in an adult’s life. But a lot of them, due to their busy lives get a bit careless about taking their medicines regularly which is very wrong. You should make sure that you take your medicines regularly and on time to remain healthy and be able to concentrate on your work in a healthier way.
2. Do not take any risk
Many times, the senior members of the family take initiative when a refrigerator is not working or the phone is not getting charged. Make sure you’re using an automatic refrigerant leak detector if you find leaks, you should use an automatic refrigerant recovery device. You should only try to mend the things in which you have a good experience and call the experts if you have less knowledge of that particular task. Also, do get a lock for your refrigerator under your budget.
3. Carry a self-defense weapon with you when you move out
There are a lot of self-defense products like pepper spray, stun guns, etc available in the market which you should buy and keep in your pocket or purse always when you go to the market or away on business trips in order to save yourself from the attacker.
4. Keep your valuables in a Home Safe
You should keep your valuable documents and extra cash in a home safe in order to protect it from any danger.
5. Make sure your staircase is not slippery–
Staircase accidents are common. Especially the old ones fall down of the staircase and hurt themselves so please make your that your staircase is not built of any slippery material and is not very steep. And also clean your staircase regularly so that if it has any slippery material, it can be washed off easily. You can simply get a good stair thread under your budget.
6. Keep a big barking dog at home
Dogs can detect any danger very fast so keeping a big barking pet dog can save your home from unwanted guests like burglars coming inside without your knowledge.
Make sure you carry all the best safety devices for your seniors at home.
For Foster Parents
There are a lot of things that Foster parents can do to make their home a safe place for their children.
Go through the checklist made by us for the foster parents-
1. Keep the self-defense weapons or dangerous tools away
Keep the Safety weapons like a gun if you have, in a gun proof and other weapons in a locked drawer too. Do not keep the dangerous tools in the open so that they will be easily accessible to the children.
2. Make a room for the child
Make sure that your house has enough space to have a foster child at home and you should have a spare room for the child which is well-ventilated and clean with all the necessary requirements like a bed, cupboard, study table, etc.
3. Your home should be clean and hygienic-
An unhygienic home can harm your health as well as your child’s health too so make sure that your home is healthy and dump the garbage daily.
4. Repair the loose fittings
Repair all the defective furniture and electronics in your house to avoid accidents.
5. Do not neglect the child
As foster parents, you should be responsible enough to make your child feel at home and welcomed. Interact with him/her as much as you can and give them enough time so that they don’t feel neglected and out of place.
For Fall Prevention
According to research, every year thousands of people fall down at homes and sometimes get severely injured too. In 2002, more than 12,000 people died of falling and 1.6 million people had to be admitted to the emergency department.
You can protect yourself and your family, especially the old members from falling down by following the checklist given below-
1. Make your staircase safe
Make sure that your staircase is not made of any slippery material and that they are not broken from anywhere. You should also clean the staircase regularly so that there is no slippery material left on your staircase which can make anyone slip and fall down. Also, fix handrails on your staircase, and don’t leave them open so that you can get support while climbing up and down on the stairs. Also, make sure that there is proper lighting near your staircase so that you can see the stairs properly and not slip down.
2. Keep your kitchen safe
Keep all your regular items in the lower sections of your kitchen cupboard and don’t keep them very high as you can fall down if you climb up on anything to reach the cupboard or an accident might happen. Don’t use the chairs or step tools to climb up on the higher cupboards in your kitchen. Always call some other family member for help and don’t try to take any risk alone.
3. Keep your bathrooms and washrooms safe
Check if the bathroom tiles are too slippery and replace them if possible. Also, put grab bars near the toilet and bathtub if there are old members in your family so that they have support to stand up after they are done. Make sure you have a good toilet seat for heavy and old people installed at your washrooms. Moreover, you can also store a good medicine cabinet in your bathroom.
4. Keep your bedroom safe
You should keep the table lamps close to your bed and also your room should have proper lighting. Do not keep heavy bags or other heavy items on the top of your cupboard so that they do not fall down and harm you.
5. Get your eye check-up done regularly
You should get your eyes checked regularly. You should also take the old people in your house for an eyes check up so that their vision is clear. It can prevent you and your family from falling down due to poor eyesight.
6. Wear an alarm device if possible
If you wear an SOS button alarm device then it will send a signal to your family members as soon as you fall down and cannot help yourself. It can call for help immediately. You should also make the old members of your family wear this alarm as long as they can.
For Fire
Home is the center of a lot of activities like cooking, electronics like fridge, microwave oven, washing machine working consistently, etc which can cause a fire. You should be very careful while handling candles and lanterns. You should be careful enough to prevent fire accidents to happen in your home and take safety precautions to avoid fire. Here is the checklist to protect your homes from fire.
1. Install smoke alarms
Make sure to install smoke alarms in your home and also maintain them regularly by changing its batteries on time, making sure that it’s not expiry, they are tested and cleaned monthly. They should be installed on every floor of the house.
2. Kitchen area safe
There shouldn’t be any dangerous items like a lighter kept near the cylinders or any other item that can catch fire. You should keep your kitchen clean and not leave the cooking pan unattended on the stove.
3. Check the electronic items–
No electronic items like video games, laptops, or the washing machine should remain switched on after its use. The wires of these items should not be damaged or open. For additional outlets, it would be better if we use the multi-prong adapters. And you immediately get your plugs checked if you find any unusual activity going on there.
4. Carbon Monoxide Alarms–
Install the Carbon Monoxide Alarms to provide additional safety to your home from fire.
5. Smoking properly–
If you smoke, then it would be better if you smoke out in the open and not inside your home especially in the kitchen or near any flammable item.
6. Learn the fire extinguisher number
It would be better if you mug up the emergency numbers especially fire extinguishers so that you can call them immediately in the time of an emergency. Ask your family members also to mug up the number for emergency situations.
7. Heating activities
Do activities like barbecue and bonfire outside your home at a safe place and get your chimney and fireplace regularly checked and keep it clean. Also make sure you have a good gas log Splitter to split logs and have a good bonfire at your fireplace safely.
8. Make a home escape plan
Make a home escape plan for your family and make sure all your family members know about it in case of accidental fires destroying your home. In the end, just make sure you have a good medical box for the first aid at the time of emergency.
Final Talk
We hope that you find the safety checklist effective and follow it too. We wish for the well-being of you and your family. Stay safe, stay alert.
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