Being safe in your house should be your number one concern. But are you overlooking a few useful safety components? Use this home safety checklist for Utica and see where your living space needs some work.
This guide starts with five whole-house safety ideas, and then we delve down room-by-room. Then, you can call (315) 367-2727 or send in the form below to speak to a security expert.
General Home Safety Checklist for Utica
While you may want to use a individual room approach to home safety, there are some items that work for all of your rooms. These devices can link with one another through a smart hub, and often can respond to other things. You might also manage each of your home safety equipment through a mobile app, like ADT Control:
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Monitored Fire Detectors: At the very least, you need to have a smoke detector on each level of your house. You can improve your fire game by utilizing a monitored fire alarm that detects unusual heat and smoke, and notifies your round-the-clock monitoring experts when it thinks that there’s a fire.
Living Room/Family Room Safety Checklist For Utica
You’ll hang out most in your living room, so it’s the best place to optimize your home safety. Popular items, like a big screen or video game console, usually reside in your family room, making it a popular area for robbers. Begin with placing a motion sensor or indoor security camera in there, then take a look at the following ideas:
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Motion Detectors: By putting in motion detectors, you’ll hear a loud noise if they detect unexpected motion in your living room. The best devices are motion detectors that filter out a dog or cat or you’ll see your sirens go off each time your dog comes in for a bite of food.
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Security Camera: An indoor security camera gives you an eye on your living room. View live feeds of everything so you can find out what’s happening without leaving your bed. Or chat with family members in the living room by using the two-way talk feature.
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Surge Protector/Cord Maintenance: Make sure you protect all your electronics and stop overburdening your circuits with a surge protector. For additional energy-efficiency, use a smart plug with surge protection in the unit.
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Furniture Secured To The Wall: If you have any small children, you’ll want to bolt your heavy furniture and entertainment center to a wall. This is extra crucial if your family room uses carpet that could make furniture extra wobbly.
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Special Locks For Glass Doors: If your living room uses a sliding door that opens to a backyard, deck, or screened-in porch, you already get that the lock is pretty worthless. Install a special lock, like a cross bar or small locks that are located on the bottom and top of the door frame.
Kitchen Safety Checklist For Utica
Your kitchen has plenty of items that should bring safety and security to your home. Some of these items are also a snap to add and can be purchased from the grocery store:
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Fire Extinguisher: Fire can happen from an overfilled frying pan or a faulty burner. Always store a fire extinguisher in close reach for any kitchen mishaps.
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Circuit Interrupter Box On Each Outlet: A circuit interrupter outlet should be installed anywhere they’re by running water to ward off electrocution. That includes the plugs by your sink and kitchen counter. For 30 years, it’s been code to have one GFCI per dedicated circuit. But for simplicity’s sake, try to install a single GFCI on each outlet.
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Monitored Carbon Monoxide Detector: A CO detector is needed in the kitchen if you employ gas for the oven and range. If your gas lines spring a leak, the CO detector will play a loud sound and call your monitoring professional.
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Cleaning Wipes Or Spray: The biggest safety hazard in the kitchen is the viruses, bacteria, and cross-contamination that comes with blood from meat and vegetables. Always have cleaning wipes or spray to sanitize your counters when preparing food.
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Refrigerator Alarm: The milk, meat, and perishables in your fridge need to remain at a chilly temperature to be safe to eat. If you leave the freezer or refrigerator door open, then an alarm beep will remind you to check the seal. Some appliances come with an alarm, older models don’t, and you’ll have to pick up a refrigerator alarm from the hardware store.
Bathroom Safety Checklist For Utica
Just because you don’t a bunch of space in your bathroom doesn’t mean that there aren’t safety hazards. From flood prevention to anti-surge outlets, here are five safety ideas for your bathroom:
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Flood Sensors: A leaking toilet or tub can create a whole lot of damage. Discover water problems early with a flood detector and save yourself from redoing the whole bathroom.
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No-slip Bathroom Mats: A slip in the bathroom can be painful, causing bumps, gashed heads, or trips to the hospital. You can prevent these hazards with a non-slip bath mat for after your bath or shower.
Kid’s Bedroom Safety Checklist For Utica
Your kid’s bedroom should counterbalance safety with simplicity. If their window treatments or other things are safe but difficult to manage, then your children may get around the device with unsafe activities -- like scale a dresser -- to use them. Here are 5 easy, yet safe, ideas:
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Cord-Free Window Treatments: Safety experts have long called corded window treatments a hidden hazard for children and animals. Install motorized shades that kids can easily open and close through a remote. Or even better, connect your motorized coverings to your security system so they can raise on a schedule when the sun comes up, and go down at night for an easier sleep.
Master Bedroom Safety Checklist For Utica
The bedroom should be an oasis, so let your safety items make you more responsive if you have an emergency. After all, being jerked awake by a high-decibel buzzer can be disorienting.
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Phone Charging Station: We rely on our phones for almost everything now alarms, internet searches, game machines, and sometimes even phones. However, a depleted phone in the middle of the night cuts us off from communications if during an emergency. To keep it nice and ready, a charging cord or station is an important part of your nightstand.
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Nightlight/Smart Lights: A tiny light can be a beacon when you’re bolted awake from an alarm or other noises. If you can’t fall asleep with a nightlight, install smart bulbs in your bedroom. Then you can have light on-demand with a mobile device or voice direction.
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Fireproof Lockbox: Keep your vital papers like insurance cards, stock certificates, or banking information in a fireproof lockbox. This can be a large one that is located in a corner or a slender handheld lockbox that you can snatch when you leave during a fire or break-in.
Garage/Basement Safety Checklist For Utica
Most safety issues in the basement or garage are with your water or HVAC system. Finding hazards at the source can stave away more devastating problems in the future. So, as you take a look around your basement or garage, take note of these safety items:
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Carbon Monoxide Detector: It’s nice to install a carbon monoxide detector in areas where a CO leak can spring up. If you have gas heating, you should hang a detector in the same place as your HVAC unit.
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Remote Water Shutoff Valve: If your water sensor finds a hot water heater leak or a busted pipe, then you will have to shut off the primary water line quickly. With a wireless shutoff valve, you can turn off your water flow from your phone. That’s perfect when you’re on vacation and receive a flood sensor alert on your mobile device.
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Garage Door Sensor: Leaving the garage door up brings about all sorts of issues. You can waste heat through that gaping hole, and critters or lurkers can just wander in. A sensor will notify you about a forgotten garage door and lets you lower it with your phone.
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Heat Sensor: A temperature alarm in your garage or basement is a definite if you wonder about your pipes freezing. The temperature in these rooms can be wildly different than the main part of the house, so you may need to have a constant look on the temp with the ADT mobile app.
Outside Perimeter Safety Checklist for Utica
Your foliage, drive, and front step are just as imperative to secure as the interior of your house. Try the items on this checklist to create a safe outside:
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Window Height Shrubs: High foliage can give you some serenity, but they also hinder your line of sight of the yard and curb. Don’t provide potential burglars an area to hide. Plus, large shrubs or foliage too close to your home can obstruct gutters and invite bugs.
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ADT Signs And Decals: One of the most popular discouragements for a thief is telling aspiring burglars that you have an updated home security system. An ADT yard stick by the front door and a window sticker will alert lurkers that they ought to move on to an easier target.
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Motion Triggered Flood Lighting: Light is the largest obstacle to those who skulk in the shadows. Motion-triggered flood lights on your porch, garage, or deck can frighten possible intruders away. They also help you work the locks when you get back home late after work.
Use Secure24 Alarm Systems To Help Complete Your Home Safety Checklist for Utica
While Secure24 Alarm Systems can’t install each household item on your Utica home safety checklist, we can offer a powerful home security system. With easy-to-use devices and ADT monitoring, we can install the ideal system for your family’s needs. Just contact (315) 367-2727 and talk to a professional or send in the form below. Or personalize your own system with our Security System Designer.