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GAZETTE Newspapers
By: Arthur S. Lazerow
Be Safe in 2006
It seems as if yesterday was
New Years Day and the day before was Valentine’s Day 2005. Now
a year later, Valentine’s Day 2006 is upon us. Best to you and
all your loved ones!
The mail as been slow this week, so I thought about some of the
subjects I have not had the opportunity to discuss this past
year. For some reason, I started 2006 with a focus on safety,
for families, for my home inspector colleagues and for the
Realtors with whom I have worked so closely over the years.
Below is amplification of an article I wrote last month in the
Frederick County Association of Realtors monthly newsletter.
If there is one thing to think about when looking forward to the
remainder of 2006 and beyond, it’s a desire for personal
safety. Stan Garnet, a fellow member of the American Society of
Home Inspectors’ Public Relations Committee living in Georgia,
sent me an excellent list of safety suggestions. He in turn had
obtained this list from a buddy at State Farm Insurance. I have
added several of my ideas to this list. Think about your house
and car. How safe are you and your environment?
Protect your belongings. Do not leave your keys in the car,
ever, including when filling up with gas. Lock your house and
install deadbolts on every exterior door. Do not forget a
deadbolt on slider doors. Charlie Bars are worthless for
security. Close your garage door after taking out the trash.
Install a house alarm and keep it energized when inside and at
night.
Check Around your house. Rubber washing machine hoses
should be replaced every 3-5 years and consider flexible metal
wrapped hoses. Look for dishwasher leaks and water heater
leaks. Make timely replacements as equipment ages. Leaking
toilets account for 10% of all water losses.
Electrical Safety. Replace frayed wires and extension
cords. Test GFCI’s or install Ground Fault Interrupting Circuit
breakers in all bath, kitchen, garage, exterior and basement
circuits if not already in place. For any house with aluminum
wiring in walls to outlets and switches, have an electrician
make the connections safe with aluminum-copper pigtails. Buy a
$10 circuit tester at HomeDepot or Lowes and check every outlet
for reversed polarity, open ground and all the other wiring
deficiencies the tester covers. Remove pennies from fuse
bases.
Smoke and Carbon Monoxide (CO) Alarms. Check operation of
all smoke and CO alarms. Install additional smoke detectors so
that there is at least one on every floor and in every bedroom.
If your home has natural gas or oil heating or appliances,
install CO detectors, one near the furnace and water heater
(battery powered) and one in the master bedroom (plug-in). Do
not steal batteries for the kids’ toys.
Inspect Your Home. Replace appliances and household
equipment that have reached or exceeded their useful life span.
Have your fireplace and chimney cleaned by a professional
chimney sweep each time you finish burning a cord of wood.
Child-Proof Your Home. Gates at the top and bottom of
stairs and cabinet door locks are a must.
Do not leave medications, toiletries,
or other household products in drawers or on nightstands.
Install electric outlet blanks. Make certain drapery cords
and/or blind cords are well out of reach of children. To avoid
accidental scalding, make certain the tap water temperature is
set no higher than 120° F. Never leave a child or disabled
person unattended in a bathtub, or in a bathroom where there is
a tub, sink, or bucket containing water. Place protective
material on sharp furniture edges. Keep toilet lids closed.
Store medicines, cosmetics, toiletries, and cleansers well out
of reach of children. Make certain hazardous items, such as bug
sprays, cleaners, auto care products, and weed killers, are
secured and stored in their original containers in the garage,
utility room, or basement out of reach of children.
Check your Clothes Dryer. They are hidden fire hazards.
Remove all lint with a vacuum cleaner. Replace plastic dryer
vent duct pipes, as the accordion folds create fire hazards.
Dryer fires are very common and are totally preventable.
Replace these plastic vent pipes with 4 inch galvanized metal or
flexible aluminum vent pipes. Find the shortest and most direct
distance to vent the dryer outside.
Be safe. Let’s not read about your home in the morning papers!
Have
a question relating to a housing or environmental issue? To
contact Mr. Lazerow, click on “Contact Us” at
Albaninspect.com. Mention “Gazette Newspapers” in your
question. Every question will be answered and some will be
included in this column.
Arthur Lazerow, president of Alban Home Inspection Service,
Inc., is a nationally certified ASHI home inspector, having
performed more than 6000 inspections during the past 12 years.
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