There are many reasons to take on a home improvement project. Some are serious, like adding on a room or remodeling an old home. Others are fun, like renovating a space to update its ambiance and appeal.
Some of the most important kinds of improvements are those that increase your home’s safety. Here are a few different projects that address the safety of your dwelling from several different perspectives.
Review Basic Safety Hazards
If you want to ensure that your living space is a safe place for you and your loved ones, it’s wise to start with several basic considerations. A few common safety hazards that can be addressed with quick DIY fixes include:
Trip and fall prevention: You can do this by installing handrails on stairs, adding guard rails on a porch, replacing slippery flooring, or even swapping out a steep step with two smaller stairs.
Adding storage: Storage, especially high and out of reach options, provides an ideal place to keep chemicals, medicine, and dangerous equipment out of reach of children. It can also help you avoid further trip and fall accidents by keeping items out of pathways.
Install alarms: Fire alarms, carbon monoxide detectors, and even flood alarms are all important to have properly installed throughout your home. If you don’t have them yet, schedule a time to install them.
Before you start looking for nuanced projects to work on, make sure basic safety considerations like these have been tended to.
Protect Your Home and Equipment
Safety doesn’t always revolve around things like physical accidents or fires and floods. At times they’re very human in nature. With that in mind, it’s also important to ensure that your property is properly protected from two kinds of theft.
First, review your home’s locks and safety features. You may even want to consider installing a smart home system to help deter potential theft. In addition, review your home insurance policy to see if you’re properly protected from everything from break-ins to natural disasters.
Second, consider all of the electronics in your home network. Cybersecurity is a serious concern these days. Make sure everything is up to date, password-protected, and has anti-malware and anti-virus software, too.
Consider Your Electricity
One DIY project worth consideration is conducting a review of your electrical situation. While most serious electrical jobs should be done by a certified electrician, there are many ways that you can look over your home’s electricity usage to make sure basic safety precautions are being made.
Take some time to go through your home and look for easy DIY fixes. For example, you can:
Make sure appliances have plenty of room for air circulation.
Check to see that outlets are properly protected with covers.
Unplug unused appliances to reduce potential hazards.
Check that exhaust fans are clean to prevent the risk of overheating.
Replace damaged electrical cords and appliances.
Electricity is critical to a functioning modern home. However, it also poses many risks. Reviewing your electricity setup is a great DIY project to regularly schedule into the calendar every few months.
Not-DIY Projects to Avoid
While there are many safety projects that are perfectly doable on your own, others should be left to a professional. They may cost more, but if your goal is to be safer, you want to make sure everything is done correctly.
For instance, if you’re trying to remove harmful substances like radon, asbestos, or mold, you may want to get a professional. Bigger projects like sanding down floors or repairing a leaky roof should also be kept off of the DIY list, and left in the hands of a professional.
Creating a Safer Home Environment
There are many factors that go into a safe home environment. Everything from removing trip and fall threats to addressing electrical, flood, and fire hazards to setting up physical- and cyber-security measures should be taken into consideration.
While there are some projects that are better left to a professional, many safety-focused home improvement activities are easy to do yourself. So review the suggestions above and consider where your home is lacking. Then make plans to start fixing things as soon as you can to create as safe a home environment as possible for you and your family.
Author Bio: Noah Rue is a freelance writer.
