How to keep your children safe? Here are 8 ways to childproof your home.
Photo by Paige Cody on Unsplash
Your home could serve as a place for comfort for your kids, but certain items around your home could also risk their safety. Household injuries have become one of the primary reasons kids under three years old visit the emergency room each year.
So, it’s always best to prepare for the worst. In this post, we’re going to provide expert advice on how to effectively childproof your home. To keep your child safe from any danger in your home, here are some tips to follow:
Furniture straps
Just in case something happens, tie-down your TV and other furniture around the house. You can utilize furniture straps to hold appliances such as bookshelves, dressers, TVs, and other heavy furniture in rooms that you might place your child alone- even if it’s just for a minute.
Don’t place your TV on the dresser. In the past, while tube TVs can be too heavy for children to tip-over, flat-screen TVs can be easy to topple. Bringing down shelves and dressers that could easily injure them. Y
Our drawers can also be used for climbing as well. Place edge or corner bumpers to any furniture in your home that has sharp edges.
Safety latches and locks
These can be surprisingly tricky to open, even for adults. Your lower cabinet could hold resources such as dishwashing detergents and other toxic household products.
But you still need to keep a close eye on your little ones. Once they learn how to open those latches, you might need to look for another place to store these products.
Stove knobs cover
Most toys have knobs on them, helping them improve a child’s dexterity. So, turning any sort of knob in your home could be tempting for your kids, too. Make sure that you cover your oven and stove knobs properly. It reduces the risk of being turned on by your toddler, who might be able to grip.
If you can, take off the knobs on your range so that they won’t turn on the burner and hurt themselves.
Outlet protectors
There are gadgets that you can buy to childproof your home, such as outlet protectors. They’re known to be one of the cheapest and useful supplies that you can purchase at a store or online.
Since babies are always naturally curious and want to try everything they can get their hands on and stick their hands to electrical outlets, consider outlet protectors as inexpensive peace of mind.
You can purchase 36 pack of outlet plugs even for just a couple of dollars, or you can opt for something fancier like self-closing outlet covers. Also, avoid stringing your extension cords and power strips in a room, which can present another hazard for the entire family.
Sharp corner guards
You can buy foam pads and corner guards to cover various sharp corners in your home from your local hardware store, even for just a couple of dollars.
Foam pads and corner guards will protect your kids from injuring themselves from sharp corners. Make sure that these bumpers stay securely on your furniture or sharp edges to avoid injury.
Anti-scald devices
Ideally, your showers and heaters should be set in temperature only up to 120 degrees Fahrenheit to prevent burns caused by hot water. These anti-scald devices will regulate the water temperature in the shower to avoid the likelihood of burns.
Also, to prevent burns, a fireplace cover should be installed in your fireplace to prevent kids from accessing it.
Doorknob covers
Installing doorknob covers is another way you can prevent kids from unnecessarily wandering out of your home while you’re away, or not looking. These could also prevent your kids from going to hot tubs, pools, and other hazards in your home.
Keep hazardous items out of reach
Ideally, your home’s hazardous items should be safely locked up or placed in childproof cabinets with safety latches and locked to avoid chemical poisonings and other injuries. Make sure that you pay attention to:
- Small items in your home like kid’s toys, as it could pose choking hazards.
- Matches, plastic bags, candles, and lighters.
- Lock away firearms, guns, and other dangerous equipment.
- Drawstrings for blinds, straps, and other hazards that can cause strangulation.
- Toxic chemicals, cleaning supplies, and medications
Stop falls
Kids, toddlers especially, are quite prone to stairs, even from balconies and windows. So, you need to protect them from these areas as well.
Make sure that you keep your balcony door locked. You can also install childproof locks on windows and your exterior doors. The last thing that you want is for your kid to decide to wake up in the middle of the night and have a little adventure outside.
Surprisingly, kids can still manipulate deadbolt latches and doorknob locks. You might also want to move your furniture away from windows so that your kids can’t climb up on them and suffer an accident. Install handrails on your stairs, and teach your older kids how to use them. You can also buy baby gates to keep your toddler away from the stairs.
According to Maid Sailors, “It’s also essential that you have a clean and clutter-free home. This prevents occurrences of floors and accidents that might lead to serious injuries. Make sure that you schedule a weekly cleaning routine or work with a reputable cleaning company in your area.”
Create a safe place for them to sleep
For newborn babies, you need to make sure that they’re sleeping soundly. Whether its a crib, bassinet, or pack and play, the surface should be flat and firm.
It should also be free from blankets, toys, bumpers, and pillows than can be a suffocation hazard. How you put the child to sleep is also important.
Infants should always sleep on their backs.
The New American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that to decrease the risk of suffocation or sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), your baby should sleep in the same room as you for the first six months. Please don’t share the same bed with them, as it increases their risk of death.
Over to you
While you couldn’t protect your kids from every danger in the world, as a parent, it is your duty that your home should be a safe place for them to live in.
About the Author – Jacky Xu is the Chief Operating Officer for MaidSailors.com, home cleaning services NYC. Maid Sailors provide a wide range of cost-effective, yet high-quality cleaning services that are sure to delight their customers.