When you have children in your home or business, whether they are your own children or visitors, you want the premises to be as safe as possible. In fact, you may have heard about children in the area who were seriously injured when a TV tipped over on them. The reality is that children have curiosity in spades. They see potential in a shelf or stove that adults do not, and an adventurous climb could be in the cards.
Here are some tips for making your premises as child-friendly as possible.
Furniture
One measure is to keep things attractive to children down low within their reach. In other words, keep remote controls and toys accessible so children do not have to climb to get them. Otherwise, a hike up can lead to them falling. If your goal is for the children to not play with something such as a book or office toy, it may be best to just hide the objects. Also, stabilize furniture by placing heavy items on the bottom and using straps, braces or brackets to connect furniture to the walls.
Appliances
Many of the same ideas for furniture apply to appliances. Use straps and brackets to secure your appliances, and keep attractions such as snack bowls or cookie jars in safe places or get rid of them entirely.
TVs
Many children go to the emergency room because a TV fell on them. To prevent this from happening, secure your TV by mounting it to the wall if it is flat-screen. Otherwise, you can slide it as far back as it will go so children cannot grasp it and pull it forward, potentially onto them. You can also use straps and brackets on your TV stand to stabilize a TV that is not mounted on the wall.
What if you have a TV you are no longer using? Keeping it around on the floor can be dangerous too, so get it recycled or sold as soon as possible.
