Five Easy Ways to Make Your Home Safer for Kids
Written by Artisan Contracting on October 6, 2022
Baby safety and child safety should be at the top of your mind when you’re upgrading or renovating your home. So, how do you make your home safe for kids? Here, we go beyond a simple home safety checklist and instead talk about how the renovation and design of your home can make it safer for your children.
1. Create a Furnace Room
Some designs leave furnaces, boilers and other essential HVAC equipment out in the open in your basement. When you have a furnace room, you can close the door and guarantee that very young children cannot get near these potentially dangerous units. When children get older, the door may even be locked. This can make it easier to allow older children to play in the basement unsupervised too.
2. Focus on Open Floor Plans
Nothing makes a child as safe as your supervision. But, in homes with lots of walls and complicated layouts, it can be challenging to always keep your eye on your children. If you bring down some walls and make your home more open, it is much easier to supervise your child, especially while you’re doing other important tasks around the home.
3. Smaller Stair Railing Gaps
The gaps between railings are notorious trouble spots in sitcoms. In real life, children can get their heads stuck in railings. Small children can even fall through railings that were not thoughtfully made. Whether on your main staircase or your deck, it is wise to shrink the space between rails and add more so that they are not such a hazard to children.
4. Safe Mounting for Televisions, Bookshelves, etc.
Televisions and other large electronics, appliances or pieces of furniture can all be pulled down by inquisitive young children. Once they can stand to reach them, all young children will pull on these objects for support. It is essential to make sure that they are securely mounted to the wall to prevent any accidents.
5. Safe Fireplace Design
Who doesn’t want to add a gorgeous fireplace as the centrepiece of their living space? Whether you have chosen real flames, a gas insert, or an electrical fireplace, the heat generated by the fireplace is not safe for children. We suggest installing grates or other decorative elements that can serve as a barrier between your child and the actual fireplace.
Design Experts at Artisan Contracting
We believe anyone renovating a home should understand how their decisions impact child safety. At Artisan Contracting, we can make your home safer. Are you ready to talk to a professional about how your home design can be safer for kids? We can help you make wise decisions that make your new space a safe place for your children or grandchildren. Reach out to us today.
