Your home is supposed to be a place where you can relax and feel comfortable. However, emergencies and accidents can happen any time, anywhere—including your home. If you aren’t prepared for these situations, your home may not provide you the level of security you’ve come to expect.
For your peace of mind and to make sure your home is safe, here are a few things you may want to consider having:
A First Aid Kit
There are plenty of mishaps that can happen at home and lead to injuries. You can slip on a bit of spilled water on a floor and get a bump on your head, for example, or accidentally cut your finger while preparing food. Someone may also get sick with minor infections. To prevent things from getting worse, you need to be ready to provide immediate care and relief.
Some of the things you should include in your first aid kit are bandages, gauze, micropore tape, antiseptic wipes, cotton balls or pads, antibiotic cream, tweezers, and a small pair of scissors. You should also be ready with pain killers, fever reducers, antihistamines, as well as cough and cold medications. If anyone in the household takes prescriptions, prepare about a month’s worth of these drugs. Fortunately, you can buy online medicine to easily replenish your stock.
Other items you can put in your home first aid kit are a digital thermometer, rash cream, burn ointment, eye drops, and insect repellents.
A Smoke Alarm and a Carbon Monoxide Monitor
A fire can be a devastating accident. It can result not just in the loss of your home and possessions, but also in the loss of life. Of course, no one wants any of these to happen; that said, no one knows if and when a fire can spark at home. Thus, it’s best to be prepared. Installing a smoke alarm or detector can help in this regard. With ample warning, you and your family can make it to safety. A smoke alarm or detector is particularly helpful in case a fire happens at night, when everyone is sleeping.
A carbon monoxide (CO) monitor is also helpful. At home, CO is usually produced by water heaters, gas ranges, open flames, grills, and fuel-powered generators. Generally, this gas dissipates quickly if there’s somewhere for it to go (e.g., outdoors). Once it builds up, however, it can be dangerous and result in carbon monoxide poisoning.
The problem is that CO is colorless, odorless, and tasteless, so you may not realize that it has already accumulated. You need a CO monitor to detect the presence of the gas and either evacuate or make changes to reduce the gas’s concentration. What’s great about a CO monitor is that it can also serve as an early warning for an undetected fire.
A Fire Extinguisher
If a fire should happen at your home, you usually have two options: get out and go to a safe area or try to contain it. Obviously, the latter is only possible for smaller fires and only if you have the proper tools like a fire extinguisher.
Ideally, you should have one fire extinguisher for every high-risk room in the house such as the kitchen and the garage. You should also undergo some training so you know how to use fire extinguishers properly. Do note that these tools need to be recharged and inspected for proper pressure regularly. This will ensure that they will work whenever you need them.
A List of Emergency Numbers
Sometimes, you simply aren’t able to handle emergencies no matter how prepared you are. When this happens, you need to call the proper agencies for assistance. Have a list of emergency numbers posted in an easily visible area of your home; it’s also helpful to have the numbers saved in your cellphone and placed near a landline phone.
Some numbers you need to store are for the fire station, the nearest hospital, and the police department. If you have pets, a veterinarian should also be on your list of emergency numbers. You should also include a contact person outside your family, such as a close friend or trusted family member who doesn’t live with you.
A Set of Quality Locks
You can’t be 100% confident that your neighborhood is safe. What’s more, criminals will always find ways to break into homes (especially if they’re desperate). As such, you need to have reliable security to keep would-be intruders out. You can start by installing quality deadbolt locks on your external doors; a reinforced strike plate (the part where the deadbolt’s “tongue” connects with) is also a good idea.
If you have the budget for it, you should also set up security cameras to monitor your property. You can also install window locks, as well as alarms with motion detectors.
A Childproofing Plan
If you have a child or are planning to have a child, you need to childproof your home for increased safety. Toddlers are particularly energetic and curious, so they can get into all sorts of trouble and accidents. Some things you can do to childproof include:
- Installing electric outlet covers
- Organizing power cord to avoid tripping
- Installing baby gates
- Using corner guards or rubber bumpers
- Securing furniture to the walls (to avoid tipping)
