Child Safety Tips for the Home

Would you invest in 12 safety devices to protect your children?

Wouldn’t we all do just about anything to keep little ones safe in our homes?

The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission has provided these 12 ideas that we can do around our houses to keep children safe.  Are these all things that you have already thought of and have in your home?

Tips tie to the numbers on the photo.

1. Safety Latches and Locks on cabinets and can help prevent children from gaining access to medicines, household cleaners, matches, or cigarette lighters, as well as knives and other sharp objects.  Even products with child-resistant packaging should be locked away and kept out of reach. This packaging is not childproof.

2. Use Safety Gates at the top of your stairs and at the doors of other areas with possible dangers. For the top of stairs, only use gates that screw to the wall. Use safety gates that meet current safety standards. Replace older safety gates that have “V” shapes that are large enough to entrap a child’s head and neck.

3. Use Door Knob Covers and Door Locks to help prevent children from entering rooms and other areas with possible dangers. Door knob covers and door locks can help keep children away from places with hazards. Be sure the door knob cover is sturdy, and allows a door to be opened quickly by an adult in case of emergency.

4. Use Anti-Scald Devices for faucets and shower heads and set your water heater temperature to 120 degrees Fahrenheit to help prevent burns from hot water. Anti-scald devices for regulating water temperature can help reduce the likelihood of burns.

5. Use, check and change the batteries in your Smoke Alarms!  Put them in on every level of your home, inside each bedroom, and outside sleeping areas to alert you to fires.

6. Use Window Guards and Safety Netting to help prevent falls from windows, balconies, decks, and landings. If you have window guards, be sure at least one window in each room can be easily used for escape in a fire.

7. Use Corner and Edge Bumpers to help prevent injuries from falls against sharp edges of furniture and fireplaces. Be sure to look for bumpers that stay securely on furniture or hearth edges.

8. Use Outlet Covers and Outlet Plates to help prevent electrocution. Be sure outlet protectors cannot be easily removed by children and are large enough so that children cannot choke on them.

9. Use a Carbon Monoxide (CO) Alarm to help prevent CO poisoning. All consumers should install CO alarms near sleeping areas in their homes. Change batteries at least once a year.

10. Use Cordless Window Coverings in homes with young children, in order to help prevent strangulation. If you have window blinds from 2000 or earlier and you cannot afford new, cordless window coverings, call the Window Covering Safety Council at 800-506-4636 or visit WindowCoverings.org for a free repair kit.

11. Use Anchors to Avoid Furniture and Appliance Tip-Overs. Furniture, TVs and ranges can tip over and crush young children. Deaths and injuries occur when children climb onto, fall against or pull themselves up on furniture and appliances. For added security, anchor these products to the floor or attach them to a wall.

12. Use Layers of Protection with Pools and Spas. A barrier completely surrounding the pool or spa including a 4-foot tall fence with self-closing, self-latching gates is essential. If the house serves as a side of the barrier, doors heading to the pool should have an alarm or the pool should have a power safety cover. Pool alarms can serve as an additional layer of protection. Sliding glass doors, with locks that must be re-secured after each use, are not an effective barrier to pools.