You want to keep yourself and your family safe and protected from danger. Don’t overlook these basic home safety essentials that should be in every house. Make sure that you have these items in your home and that they are ready to use in case of an emergency.
5 Home Safety Essentials
Whether you live in a house or an apartment, these five home safety essentials should be part of your home.
1. Carbon Monoxide Detector
You probably know that you should have a smoke detector on every floor of your home and near all bedrooms. But, did you also know that a carbon monoxide detector is equally important? Since CO gas is odorless and colorless, it’s undetectable without this device. Carbon monoxide gas sickens between 20,000 and 30,000 Americans each year and kills about 500 of those people. Don’t risk your family member’s lives by failing to have CO alarms in your house.
2. Deadbolt Locks are Home Safety Essentials
If you have concerns about theft or forced entry, a deadbolt lock for your exterior doors should be high on your list of home safety essentials. These locks offer more security than a standard doorknob lock with a steel bolt that passes straight through your door frame. A reinforced door frame makes your door even more secure.
If your family members lose their keys often, it may be time to invest in a smart lock for your door. This way you can add, remove, or change codes as needed so there aren’t stray keys to your home just laying about. Some even let you unlock the door remotely through a connected app.
3. Fire Extinguisher
If a small kitchen flare-up occurs, you want to be able to put it out quickly and safely. Have a multi-use fire extinguisher available in an accessible location. Make sure that your family members know how to operate it. Learn about when you should use a fire extinguisher and when you should just get out of the house. As a rule of thumb, if it takes you longer than 5 seconds to put out a blaze, you should vacate the building.
4. Emergency Ladder
Anyone with a second story or raised level in their home should have an emergency ladder in their home safety essentials kit. They are portable, collapsible, and can help you get out safely from a high window without waiting for rescue personnel with a ladder or jumping.
5. First Aid and Disaster Kit
Although these are technically two separate items, they can easily be combined into a portable and accessible unit. You should have them in your home no matter where you live. Include bandages and basic first aid supplies, bottled water and shelf-stable food, medicines, and flashlights with batteries. Make sure you have enough supplies for every family member to last at least 2 days, including pets.
Gathering these items isn’t hard to do, and the peace of mind that comes with having home safety essentials is worth it.
Elite Home Inspections provides home inspection services. Contact us to schedule an appointment in Louisville and the surrounding areas.