Home | Family | Parenting | Children

5 More Ways to Childproof Your Home

By: Jesse Whitehead

Read More About Children

Young children are naturally curious, and have a tendency to explore their surroundings. However, this exploration and discovery can often lead the child into areas that are potentially harmful. A previous article written by this author presented an overview of five (5) child safety devices that you can easily install yourself to help protect your child from injury in the home. The article included a look at safety gates, safety latches, doorknob covers, window guards, and corner bumpers. This article will continue that overview by presenting five more things you can do to keep your young child safe in the home.

1) Smoke detector. We all know we need smoke detectors in our house, but do we have one installed at every level, and near every bedroom in the house- especially near your child's bedroom? If you don't, then adding additional smoke detectors in your home will increase the safety factor in your home. Smoke detectors are essential for early fire warning and prevention of fire-related injury and death.
Also, you should test your smoke detectors monthly to make sure they're working. Most smoke detectors have a small button that you press to test the unit with. Additionally, be sure to check the batteries in your smoke detector at least once per year. A good time to schedule battery replacement at the New Year-on or about January 1st

2) Electrical outlet covers. It's important you cover your electrical outlets to protect your children from possible electrical shock or even electrocution. Outlet covers have two prongs on one side that you plug into the outlet so children can't insert anything into the outlet. Covers should be large enough that children can't choke on them, and plugged into securely enough that they can't be easily removed.

3) Anti-scald valves. Hot water can cause nearly instantaneous burns on babies and young children as their skin is much more sensitive than adults. Install an anti-scald valve in your faucets and shower heads and set your water heater temperature to 118 degrees Fahrenheit to help prevent burns from hot water. This device may be more difficult to install, and you may need to hire a plumber to install it for you. Whether you do it yourself or you hire a plumber, installing anti-scald valves will help protect your children from a scalding burn.

4) Carbon Monoxide Detector. Carbon Monoxide (CO) is an odorless, colorless, invisible gas that comes from incompletely burned fuel. Potential sources of CO in the home include gas stoves, wood stoves, fireplaces, furnaces, space heaters, gas water heaters, auto exhaust, gasoline-powered generators, and tobacco smoke, among others. You can reduce risk of carbon monoxide poisoning by installing CO detectors outside bedrooms and other sleeping areas in your home.

5) Child monitoring system. If your child is out of sight in another room, perhaps taking a nap or playing with toys, a child monitoring system can help you keep an eye and ear on your child. Systems come in two basic configurations: audio and video. With an audio monitor, there's a transmitter which is placed in the child's area and receiver which the parent uses to listen to the child. With a video monitor, there is a small camera that is in the child's room and a video receiver that the parent can watch to keep an eye on the child.

In conclusion, we have looked at five more ways we can child-proof the home, including installing smoke detectors, electrical outlet covers, anti-scald valves, carbon monoxide detectors, and child monitoring systems. Although some of these devices may be more expensive to install than others previously examined, it will be worth your while to install them for the safety of your children and your entire family. After all, what is more valuable and irreplaceable than our kids and our family?

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Jesse Whitehead lives in the Central Valley of California where he enjoys writing articles on a variety of different subjects. His latest interest is in Fluke 87v Digital Multimeters. Come visit his latest website at FlukeDigitalMultimeter.org which provides more information about Fluke's great line of testing products.

Please Rate this Article

 

Not yet Rated

Click the XML Icon Above to Receive Children Articles Via RSS!
Additional Articles From - Home | Family | Parenting | Children
Sign Up for a free account.
Our other websites
All about SEO
Beauty Tips Forum
Submit Articles
Member Login
Link Us
Submission Guidelines
Ezine Notifications
Article RSS Feeds
Sitemap
New Stuff
About Us
Developer
Good shopping portal
Link to Us
Contact Us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service

counter easy hit

Powered by Article Dashboard