Tag: safety equipment

How to make your house safer

How to make your house safer

Research from RoSPA has found that the home is the most common place for an accident to happen, with a cost of £45.63 billion to the British economy annually. Home is the place where we expect to be safest, so these statistics may be surprising and unsettling.

However, there are ways we can take safety into our own hands and reduce the risk of these incidents occurring. Here are a few proactive steps you can take to optimise your home for safety.

Make sure walls and doors are fire-resistant

Did you know that it’s possible to make the doors in your home less of a fire hazard by varnishing them and coating them in a special fire-resistant paint?

If you have a timber door that you want to preserve, simply varnishing it will increase its fire resistance without compromising on aesthetics.

For a solution that offers the greatest protection against fire, of course, opt for a fire door.

You can make your walls more fire-resistant too, using fire-resistant plasterboard. GTEC fireboards are a good product to look for. They’re available in different thicknesses; there’s a standard 12.5mm thickness or a 15mm tapered-edge plasterboard that works well for stud partitions, wall linings and ceilings.

Keep alarms in working condition

The official guidance is that you test your smoke detectors once a week by pressing the test button until the alarm sounds. The battery will probably need changing once a year, unless you have a ten-year alarm.

It’s recommended that you have at least one smoke detector on each level of your home, as the kitchen isn’t the only place where a fire can start.

Heat alarms are better suited to rooms that get steamy or smoky so that you won’t have to jump out of your skin just because you’ve burnt the toast. These are triggered when the room reaches a certain temperature. Ideally, these need to be tested every week.

Get a gas safety certificate

Landlords and small businesses are accustomed to acquiring gas safety certificates, but did you know that as a home-owner you can get one, too?

It may not be compulsory for you, but getting a thorough gas safety check will help pinpoint any problems before they become more serious or even, heaven forbid, deadly.

It’ll also come in handy if you sell your house, as potential buyers often want to see such documentation.

Keep the floor dry

Of course, fires aren’t the only cause of home accidents. Slips & trips can result in visits to A&E that you’d rather not have had, so it’s important to maintain a clear, tidy floor which can prevent these occurrences.

Wet floors are a major factor in causing accidents like this. If you can, clean the house when people are out and take measures to dry the floor thoroughly after mopping. Don’t use an excessive amount of detergent as this can make the surface slippery.

By taking a few simple steps and thinking about everyone’s welfare, you can make your house safer for yourself and others around you.

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The importance of wearing a hard hat

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Lego construction worker figurescredit

Every now and again, we get involved in DIY. Nothing heavy you understand. Perhaps a friend needs a hand repainting a room, changing their kitchen doors or demolishing a wall.

Our work also takes us to homes that are being refurbished and it’s clear that some people are far more skilled and adventurous than us. People will turn their hands to all kinds of things as a way to turn a shell into a home.

A lack of money is driving more people to do things themselves. Often they will sell or donate their old furniture to us as a way to raise funds or simply to make space for new furniture.

For the most part, things turn out well for these people. It’s amazing to see what people manage to do when they decide to learn new skills and carry out all kinds of home improvements themselves.

Sadly, every once in a while, things go array and unfortunately accidents happen. One such accident is prompting me to write this post. A friend of ours was knocked out when he was hit with the end of a scaffolding pole. It wasn’t a hard blow, no bones broken just a nasty bruise and a bit of a bump, but he still ended up in A&E being checked for concussion.

When I heard about the accident, it struck me that it wouldn’t have been serious if my friend had been wearing a hard hat. Of course, the accident could still have happened, but the consequences would not have been so serious. A hard hat would have absorbed more of the blow and potentially my friend would not have been knocked out and have needed to attend the hospital.

Golden retriever dogs wearing hard hat and saftey gogglescredit

Use the right safety equipment

When we work on a project or piece of furniture, we’re usually quite careful. We use gloves, safety glasses and wear a mask when sanding down furniture.

Over the years, the cost of safety equipment has fallen and these days, sites like Safetystock.co.uk sell to the public as well as professionals. On sites like this, it’s possible to buy industrial-quality safety equipment for a low price.

Man in a hard hat working under a wooden floorcredit

Keeping yourself safe while doing DIY

Staying safe while carrying out DIY is very much a matter of common sense, you just need to stop and think. It’s very important not to work with power tools when you’re tired, on medication, or after a night out when you’ve been drinking. Remember, it only takes a moment of inattention for an accident to occur and for someone to get seriously hurt.

It makes sense to wear gloves and safety glasses when using power tools. If you’re working in a confined space or somewhere where there are loose fixtures and fittings that could fall on your head, you need to wear a hard hat or helmet. Remember to protect your feet too. Wearing safety shoes is a wise precaution.

Next time you set out to do a DIY job in your home, stop and think about safety and take the necessary steps to keep you and your family safe.

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