Childproofing your home is a VERY SERIOUS matter that I believe anyone with children, or is expecting to either start taking preventive measures now, or hire a professional company to come in and do an overall assessment and then decide if you want to the work yourself or hire the company to handle it. Due to an overwhelming response from a survey our company conducted with past clients we have decided to add a childproofing service to our many other household services. We have a professional childproofing technician come out to your home and preform a top to bottom assessment of what measures need to be taken, placing emphasis on areas that differ from one household to another depending on the amount of children as well as their ages. This service is between $100.00-$150.00 , and if you decide to use our service to complete the childproofing that amount will be deducted from the service cost. After the evaluation is completed which on average takes about 1-2 hours, the inspector will sit down with you and go over whet he/she feels is in need of immediate attention and continue to make suggestions on the items listed on the report in which you will be furnished a copy of so you can start acting on those safety issues now, or hire another service to complete it for you. We normally charge between $300.00-$1200.00 depending on the size of the home and the amount of services and products required. Our prices are all inclusive and their is never a separate charge for materials or labor it is all included in the price. We have had some clients who wanted the normal safety issues taken care of while we had others who requested we have cameras placed in every area the children will be in so they can monitor them from another location. We also have installed hidden "Nanny Cameras" that are hidden cameras that are placed throughout the home to ensure the person taking care of your child is doing the right thing. Please take a moment to visit our website by
clicking here and the go to our childproofing page. If you decide you would like to speak with us, or schedule an appointment for an evaluation you can use the "
contact us" form here or on our website. However, below we have listed in detail several measures we feel every parent should put into place a.s.a.p. because there is no putting the milk back in the glass after it has spilt!
Child proofing your home can seem like a formidable task at times, but when you consider some of the statistics regarding child injuries in the home, you begin to realize that even the smallest prevention measures go a long way.
Now is always the time to get started, whether you have a baby already or if one is on the way. Time passes so quickly, and before you know it, your baby will be rolling, crawling and walking his way into everything.
If you’re short on time, consider hiring a professional child proofer versus doing it yourself. Often these professionals can accomplish in a couple of hours what would take you days to complete. If you plan on doing it yourself, consider the following hazards and remedies:
Stoves, Ovens and Other Appliances
Hazards: With stoves, toddler hands are at just the right height to reach burners, pot handles and sometimes even knobs.
Ovens can be opened and crawled into, whether on or off. Dishwashers can be opened and often contain sharp objects such as knives or breakables like glassware. Refrigerators contain many items that pose choking hazards and they are airtight, which could cause a child to suffocate if they managed to crawl inside and shut the door.
Remedy: Install locking latches on all appliances that open and close. Install knob covers to prevent a child from turning on burners and a stove guard to protect hands. Always keep pot handles turned inward while cooking.
Suggested Products:
- Safety 1st Stove Knob Covers
- Adjustable Stove Guard
- Safety 1st Oven Lock
- All-Purpose Locking Strap (for dishwashers)
- On/Off Appliance Lock (for refrigerators and other appliances)
Cabinets and Drawers
Hazards: Cabinets and drawers contain a multitude of hazards including sharp objects, chemicals, medications, and items that could pose a choking hazard.
Remedy: Install latches to the insides of drawers and cabinets whenever possible. Use knob latches on doors with knobs, if necessary. Make sure drawers and cabinets in all rooms are equipped with these devices. If you have an irregular cabinet and you can’t find a latch that fits, consider emptying the cabinet or making it a spot for toys and other safe objects. If you can, keep poisons and chemicals completely out of a baby’s reach and locked away.
Suggested Products:
- Safety 1st Magnetic Tot Lok for Cabinet Doors and Drawers
- KidCo Swivel Cabinet and Drawer Lock
- Safety 1st Cabinet Slide Locks
Plants
Hazards: Many plants are poisonous and can cause illness or death. Potting materials pose a choking hazard.
Remedy: Be aware of the types of plants you keep, and make sure they are labeled. Do not use rocks or marbles in potting materials or as a ground cover for plants. Keep poisonous plants well out of reach, preferably outside the home completely.
Vases, Decorative Glassware
Hazards: Vases, decorative bowls and glassware, and other knick-knacks can break and cause cuts or lacerations. Many knick-knacks or plastic flowers have small parts that can break off and cause a choking hazard.
Remedy: Put all vases and other dangerous decorations out of the reach of children. It may be tempting to leave some items out in order to “teach” your child about off-limits objects, but it’s safer (and less frustrating) in the long run to just remove them.
Tables
Hazards: Coffee tables and other tables have sharp corners. Coffee tables are especially hazardous because as babies learn to walk, they use these low tables to “cruise.”
Remedy: Install table cushions. There are some brands that just fit on corners and others that go all the way around the table. You can also make your own padding system or remove any tables that might cause injury until your child is older. One company will even custom make a machine washable, cushioned top to fit your exact table.
Suggested Products:
- Safety 1st Table Edge Bumper
- Table Edge Guard with Four Corners
Stairs
Hazards: More than half of all nonfatal injuries to children are from falls, according to the National SAFE KIDS Campaign. Many of these falls involve unprotected stairways. In addition, baby walkers cause more injuries than any other type of nursery product, with most of these injuries involving stairs. This has led the American Academy of Pediatrics to call for a ban of baby walkers.
Remedy: Install safety gates at the top and bottom of stairs. For the top of stairs, make sure that the gate has a secure latch and is not a pressure-type gate. Keep stairs free of clutter that could cause a fall not only for your baby, but for you as well. Always supervise a young child as they learn to climb stairs. If you feel you must use a walker, make sure you never allow your child to use it near stairs.
Suggested Products:
- Secure Solutions Stair Gate
- Extra Tall Stair Gate with Alarm
- Clear Banister Guard Kits (come in various sizes)
Smoke Detection
Hazards: According to the United States Fire Administration, two thirds of home fires that kill children happen in homes that have no smoke detectors. Infants and toddlers are especially susceptible to the dangers of fire and smoke, since they are often elevated in cribs where smoke can rise and are unable to escape a fire on their own.
Remedy: Install smoke detectors on every floor of your home, with detectors outside every bedroom door as well. Check your smoke detector’s battery at least once a year.
Suggested Products:
- Kidde Smoke Detector
- Vocal Smoke Detector (uses your recorded voice to alert your family of a fire)
- Bosch Covert Color Smoke Detector Camera
Carbon Monoxide
Hazards: Carbon Monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas that is a by-product of combustion.
Common sources include water heaters, gas stoves and ovens, gas dryers, and fireplaces. Dr. Marc Bayer, medical director of the Connecticut Poison Control Center, warns about the dangers saying, "Carbon monoxide poisoning can cause neurological problems, learning disabilities, memory loss and personality changes in children and can lead to miscarriage or stillbirth for women exposed during pregnancy."
Remedy: Install carbon monoxide detectors in your home. Because alternate light and heat sources like candles and fireplaces may be used during power outages, consider a model that is battery operated or has a battery backup.
Suggested Products:
- Kidde Carbon Monoxide Detectors
- First Alert Battery-Operated Carbon Monoxide Detector
- Carbon Monoxide Detectors with Digital Displays
Water Heaters
Hazards: According to the TOMA Foundation for Burned Children, scalds are the leading cause of accidental death in the home for children from birth to age four and account for 40 percent of the burn injuries for children up to age 14. At 130 degrees F, it only takes 30 seconds for a serious burn to occur and at 140 degrees F, it takes just five seconds.
Remedy: Make sure your water heater’s thermostat is set at 120 degrees F or below. Consider purchasing temperature-change bath products like those listed below that will indicate when the water is too hot for your baby’s skin. In addition, when running bathwater, make sure that you run cold water first and then hot water. Run all water before you put the baby in the tub and always test the water beforehand.
Suggested Products:
- Safety Bath Cradle from Munchkin
- Safety First Comfy Duck Bath Center
Electrical Outlets
Hazards: Unprotected electrical outlets cause thousands of injuries and hundreds of deaths each year. The Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that of those reported injuries, a full 86 percent occurred in children that were 1 to 4 years of age.
Remedy: Install face plates or outlet covers and make sure power strips are covered with a suitable safety device. The Biokinetics Research Laboratory of Temple University conducted a study to determine the effectiveness of the plug-in type outlet covers, and found that in most cases, children aged 2 to 4 could remove the covers. In covers that were 1/16” thick with a flat oval face, 100 percent of the children in the study could remove the cover! So while these covers are better than nothing, it’s best to install the tamper-resistant outlet face covers.
Suggested Products:
- Baby Safe Slide Outlet Cover
- Power Strip Cover
- Summer Infant Safe and Secure Outlet Covers
Electrical Cords
Hazards: Electrical cords pose two hazards. First, they are often attached to heavy equipment or lamps, and babies and toddlers can pull them down onto themselves. Second -- and many parents aren’t aware of this hazard -- if a baby or toddler mouths a cord, even the smallest break can cause electrocution or burns. Saliva is an excellent conductor of electricity, so the burn area can be quite extensive.
Remedy: Buy cord bundlers and secure cords to furniture so that they cannot be pulled. Buy cord shorteners for cords that babies can frequently reach (such as a baby monitor near a changing table). Watch teething babies very carefully, since cords are a tempting treat. Make sure all electrical cords are free of breaks, kinks and holes.
Suggested Products:
Fireplaces
Hazards: Fireplaces can cause injuries due to the hard, sharp edges of a hearth, from burns and also from materials inside that could cause choking, even when the fire isn’t burning.
Remedy: Install a fireplace guard to keep children out of the fireplace and place a hearth cushion around sharp edges. It is probably a good idea to stop using the fireplace if possible until your child is at an age where they can understand fire safety. Never leave a child unattended near a fireplace, whether there is a guard in place or not.
Suggested Products:
- KidCo Hearth Gate
- Hearth Cushion
Doors
Hazards: Doors pose several hazards. Doors can lead to areas of the home (or outdoors) that aren’t safe for your child. They can also pose a finger-pinch hazard. Additionally, an often overlooked problem exists in the doorstop. If you have the metal coil doorstop, the end cap can pose a choking hazard. You might be tempted to just remove the cap, but the metal coil can be sharp.
Remedy: Cover doorknobs with safety covers – one for each door you don’t want your child to be able to open. Purchase finger protectors to prevent pinching, and install one-piece plastic doorstops.
Suggested Products:
- Clear Grip Door Knob Covers
- KidCo Sliding Door Locks
- Safety 1st Lever Handle Lock
Windows
Hazards:
Each year in the United States, nearly 4,700 children receive injuries caused by falls from windows.
At least half of these occur when children climb on furniture to look out a window. Another hazard comes not from windows, but from cords used on drapes and blinds. These pose a serious strangulation hazard.
Remedy: Install window guards that only allow the window to open a few inches. Move all furniture that children can climb on away from windows. Keep windows locked, and never allow children to sit on window sills. Purchase cord winders for window blinds and make sure the cords are always out of reach of children.
Suggested Products:
- Kidco Window Wedge
- Window Blinds Cord Wind-Ups
Bookcases and TV Carts
Hazards: Bookcases, TV carts, microwave carts and other top-heavy furniture pose a risk because they can tip over if a child hangs or climbs on them. Your child could become entrapped or crushed underneath the weight of such furniture.
Remedy: Use straps or anchors to secure furniture to a wall or floor. Several TV carts have been recalled recently, and companies are offering repair kits to make the pieces safe. Check to see if a brand you are using has been involved in a product recall.
Suggested Products:
Toilets
Hazards: Toilets cause a hazard to young children because a child can drown if they fall in. It only takes a small amount of water to cover a baby’s mouth and nose. Children cause a hazard to toilets, as well, when they throw small objects and toys inside.
Remedy: Use toilet lid locks on all toilets or keep the bathroom door securely shut at all times. Supervise children at all times in the bathroom and take a baby out of the bathroom if you have to run to answer the phone or door.
Suggested Products:
Purses and Keys
Hazards: Purses contain an assortment of hazards, including medication, coins, paper clips and sharp objects. Decorative key rings often have small parts that can come off and pose a choking hazard.
Remedy: It may seem like you’ve got the entire house completely baby proofed, but not if you regularly set your purse or keys where your child can reach them. Make it a habit to keep these items locked away or out of reach and never let a baby teeth on a key ring.
Floors
Hazards: Deep carpets hide objects that can cause choking such as coins. The corners of kitchen floors, especially underneath cabinet edges, often harbor choking hazards like dried pasta, beans or pet food.
Remedy: Get down on the floor and check for items regularly.
Keep the floor swept and vacuumed and make sure any pasta or other spills are cleaned up immediately. Keep pet food and bowls inaccessible to children.
Other Tips
Child proofing is ongoing. Don’t just do the job of baby proofing once. Take a look around before your baby is born, once your baby is crawling, and again once he starts walking. Be sure to get down on your hands and knees as you look around the home, to find hazards your adult eyes may not see as readily as your baby’s eyes will.
Educate Yourself and Other Caregivers. Make sure you take a first aid and CPR class, and encourage anyone who will be taking care of your child to do the same, including grandparents, aunts and uncles. Make sure child care providers and babysitters are CPR certified.
As an extra measure, consider purchasing a CPR Prompt Rescue Aid for around $40. This device contains spoken, step-by-step instructions on how to perform CPR on a child. There are full-size versions available as well as a keychain version.
Employ Constant Supervision. Remember, the most crucial part of baby proofing involves adult supervision. Always be aware of your surroundings and keep a close watch on your child at all times.
NO MATTER WHERE YOU BUY IT, WHO DOES IT, JUST DO IT FOR YOUR CHILDRENS SAKE. I HATE TO THINK OF ALL THE BEAUTIFUL, INNOCENT CHILDREN WE LOSE EVERY YEAR TO DISEASES WE HAVE NO CURE FOR, ACCIDENTS THAT THERE WAS NOTHING ANYONE COULD DO TO PREVENT, BUT THIS IS SOMETHING WE CAN PREVENT! DO THE RIGHT THING!
Christopher C. Purnell
President & Founder
www.ezfurnitureassembly.com
