You’ve built your home in the perfect neighborhood, complete with parks and great schools. the kids. The home itself includes all the exciting perks kids love, like a swimming pool and playroom. Now, safeguarding your children from the plethora of dangers lurking around the place is the next step in living comfortably.

More than 3.4 million children are injured each year as a result of falls, burns, and other accidents at home. Thousands more children die from the same injuries. Kids will be kids, so while preventing every single injury is impossible, you can take measures to provide a safe haven that allows them to thrive without dangers lurking around every corner.

5 Ways to Make Your Home Safer for Kids

With a little consideration, preventing many common accidents and injuries around the home is possible. A ton of money isn’t necessary to keep kids safe from danger. Start safeguarding your home using the five tips on this list.

1- Think and Look Around the House Like a Kid

Little kids find odd and unusual items most interesting. Their curiosity leads them to explore them, which leads to injury and accidents. Get down on your hands and knees to crawl around the home looking for items little ones might find enticing. We all know some of the fixtures and dangers that kids find enticing, like water, toilets, and electrical outlets.

Protect the kids from these dangers with simple fixes. A few safety pointers to help give you an idea of the dangers to look out for during the inspection:

• Use electrical outlet protectors in unused outlets to prevent electrical shocks and injuries from prying kid fingers.
• Safety gates keep children confined to certain areas of the house, i.e. inside the living room with no way to access other rooms, like the bathroom. Use them!
• Ensure kitchen shears, knives, and other sharp objects are out of reach of children.
• Cabinet latches ensure fingers aren’t smashed or broken and prevent many other dangers. Install them!
• Keep small bags, plastic bags, small toys, etc. out of the floors since these items pose a choking hazard for small kids.
• Use cordless blinds on windows.
• If your family owns a firearm, never leave the weapon lying around the house. Safe gun ownership mandates the use of a gun cabinet for your weapon.
• Never place a child’s bed near a window. Children can open the window and sneak out and are at a greater risk of kidnapping.
• Keep chemicals, including household cleaners and pesticides, out of the reach of kids. Experts recommend placing these items in locked cabinets inaccessible to children.

Home remodeling services can help turn your home into a safer, more child-friendly place. Whether you want minor additions made to the home or want something grandeur, it’s possible to recreate your home with help from the right remodeling company in Denver.

2- Install a Fence

Fence installation helps confine children to a specific area of the home or yard. This can prevent children from wandering into the street and potentially getting struck by a car.

Fences also protect homes from intruders and the plethora of dangers lurking around the neighborhood. This can help stop kidnapping/child abduction, home invasion, and other crimes.

Thousands of children fall into swimming pools at their homes every single year. The results are devastating. A fence around the pool almost diminishes the risk of accidental drowning.

Several fence styles and options give homeowners their choice of designs and price ranges. For a couple of thousand dollars or less, you can prevent devastating accidents at your home.

3- Prevent Drowning

While on the topic of drowning, here are more tips to keep little ones safe around water.

According to the Child Safety Network, about 900 children die from accidental drowning every single year. Accidental drowning is a very preventable cause of death.

• Use toilet locks to keep curious toddlers from falling inside
• Door Knob covers prevent small hands from turning the knobs. The covers work wonders on many doors in the home, including the bathroom.
• Do not leave kids younger than six unsupervised in the bathtub, even for a couple of minutes.
• Empty water from buckets, tubs, sinks, etc. when finished using it so kids do not accidentally fall inside and drown.
• Never leave children unattended in a swimming pool.
• Install a security camera around your swimming pool.

4- Crib Safety 101

New parents want nothing more than to keep their newborn baby safe once he or she comes home from the hospital. There are so many things to do to protect the health and well-being of your newborn, including limiting the number of people he or she is in contact with.

You should also take time to prepare the crib for the baby before the first night at home. Following crib safety precautions is one of the easiest ways to protect your new bundle of joy.

Start with a firm but a comfortable mattress that meets all safety standards. Always purchase a new baby’s mattress from a retail location rather than a used mattress from a secondhand shop or seller.

A Baby’s crib is much different from an adult bed in that you do not want lots of pillows, sheets, or soft blankets lying around that can suffocate the baby. Remove these items promptly.

Further tips that reduce risks to your baby:

• Remove bumper pads and loose blankets or stuffed animals.
• Do not use a crib with slats more than 2 ⅜ inches apart. Wide slats make it possible to trap a baby’s head.
• Check around the crib for small parts or loose parts that pose a choking hazard for the baby in the first few months of life
• Periodically inspect the crib to make sure parts haven’t come loose or are not missing.
• Always purchase a crib brand new from a retail location. Avoid buying secondhand cribs or accepting donations from friends/family members because the chance of a recall could put your little one in danger.

5- Check the Alarms

Check the smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector each month. These two alarms detect fire and dangerous levels of carbon monoxide, potentially preventing a dangerous or deadly situation for your family. Check the batteries in the alarm each month, and inspect them for any signs of damage or defect.

Smoke alarms generally sound off with a loud chirp when it is time to change the batteries. However, it is better to replace batteries before the smoke alarm makes this loud, obnoxious noise.

Every home should have one smoke alarm minimum on each floor. Experts recommend installing a smoke alarm inside each bedroom as well. If your home lacks a CO detector, consider installing one. This detector has saved countless lives and could very well do the same for your family.

Protecting Kids from Dangers in the Home

Kids and danger seem to go hand in hand. Maybe little ones really are prone to accidents and injuries. You can take measures to safeguard the home against potential dangers and keep your kids safe starting from the moment they arrive home from the hospital as a newborn baby.

The tips provided in this article work as a great starting point to protect your kids from the many dangers lurking around inside.

You can also reach out to Denver Urban Builders to learn more about home remodeling services that can improvise safety measures in your current home design.