Childproofing Safety Tips

Before highlighting safety tips below that focus on some of the safety hazards in the home, please visit Links & Resources for more detailed information and safety tips for various areas of concern in and outside of the home. There is a wealth of valuable information out there from some amazing child safety organizations that do fantastic work and are making a real difference in reducing the risk of preventable childhood injuries and deaths.

Reducing the risk of childhood injuries and deaths is a preventable problem that together we can fix.

Some specific safety tips and reminders I’d like to address here as an experienced professional childproofer are as follows:

• When possible, operate child safety devices when your child is not watching, as imitation is one way children learn.
• Along those same lines, do NOT step over gates or allow older children or other adults to do so. This can break the gate, cause injury to the person stepping over the gate, and cause your child to try and imitate your maneuver.
• Do NOT allow children to swing on an open gate, as this can easily break the gate and cause it to come out of the wall. Gate warranties (typically one year) and Babyproofing Pittsburgh’s work guarantee do not cover product misuse or normal wear and tear over one year, but we will always work with you to ensure you have the desired safety products to protect your child(ren).
• Hardware mounted gates offer greater protection than pressure gates, which may be pushed over by children and often have bars to step over, which can present an added trip hazard. Do NOT install a pressure gate at the top of stairs. Click here for more valuable tips on baby gates from a few of Babyproofing Pittsburgh’s childproofer colleagues in the industry: https://www.todaysparent.com/baby/baby-health/is-your-baby-gate-dangerous-heres-how-to-ensure-its-safe/
• It is strongly recommended that safety gates be installed at the top and bottom of stairwells to prevent stairway falls.
• Empty buckets of water after use and avoid using them with small children nearby. Empty wading pools immediately after use and keep them turned over so that no rain can collect inside them.
• Beware of thin dry cleaning and grocery bags. They pose a suffocation hazard and should be removed or made inaccessible.
• To prevent accidental ingestion, regularly dispose of old medications using local safe disposal sites and drug take-back programs, or when no such alternative is available, certain medications can be flushed. For more info: https://www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/BuyingUsingMedicineSafely/EnsuringSafeUseofMedicine/SafeDisposalofMedicines/default.htm
• Use rear stove top burners first, and turn all pot handles towards the back of stovetop to prevent small hands from tipping over hot contents. Avoid letting your child use pots and pans as toys, as he/she may then want to reach for their “toy” as it’s being used on a hot stove.
• Keep items such as cleaners, cosmetics, shampoos, toothpaste, mouthwash, razors, air fresheners, dish washing detergent, poisonous plants out of your child’s reach. Remember that children can climb to get what they want, so have these items locked up and make sure you assess whether they are potentially reachable by a climbing, determined child.
• Avoid placing boxes, chairs or anything climbable by a child up against a wall that is next to a stair railing/half wall overlooking the floor below.
• Remove items that might tempt kids to climb, such as toys and remote controls, from the top of the TV and furniture.
• Every 30 minutes tipped furniture or a falling TV sends an injured child to the emergency room. Anchor all furniture that is assessed to be a tipping risk and has footholds for climbing (lightweight or tall furniture with accessible shelves or drawers) using appropriate devices (no nylon tie devices) and into wall studs. Visit anchorit.gov for additional information on the tip-over risk to children, appropriate anchoring devices and how to properly install if you choose to do yourself. This is an excellent resource for parents/caregivers.
• If TV is not mounted to wall (preferred), anchor TVs to TV stands, and anchor TV stands into studs in wall using appropriate anchoring devices. Avoid using dressers and other tables as TV stands. If using a stand, choose one that is wider and deeper than your TV.
• Upper floor windows that are accessible to children should have a limiting device on them to prevent child from opening further than 4 inches. For accessible windows that you want to be able to open more than 4 inches, removable window guards should be installed.
• Door stops with removable rubber caps are choking hazards and are right at a crawling child’s eye level. Replace with 1-piece door stops or super glue caps on to prevent removal.
• Keep purses in a safe area. Both the contents and the carrying strap present risks for small children.
• Remove any knots in blind cords that may have formed loops; keep all cords separate, with no loops. For any looped cords that do not have child safety breakaway cords, install cord cleats to keep looped cords inaccessible to children. Looped cords pose a strangulation hazard for young children who can reach cords directly or by climbing on couches or chairs. Make sure all tie-down devices for drapery cords are pulled tight and screwed into wall or window frame to eliminate strangulation risk.
• Working smoke alarms reduce the chance of dying in a fire by 50%. For the best protection, install smoke alarms on each level and in each sleeping area of your home, and regularly check/replace batteries.
• Make sure your home has at least one carbon monoxide alarm (preferably one for each level), and keep them at least 15 feet away from fuel-burning appliances. Carbon monoxide alarms are not substitutes for smoke alarms, and vice versa. Combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are also available.
• Keep Poison Control Number (1-800-222-1222) and other emergency numbers in a central place of your home that is known by all members.