House safety issues – Smoke and Carbon Monoxide detectors, Stairs, Fire safety and much more
The cooler months of the year are certainly full of their own distinct charms, but for homeowners they also bring a distinct set of challenges. The precipitation levels increase, cold winds blow, and temperatures drop. Keeping our homes in good working order and ensuring they remain bright and warm doesn’t happen accidentally. Instead, it’s a … Read more
Garage Safety
While checking the news this morning I stumbled upon this short article listing a few garage safety issues by U.S. Home Safety Council. To explore a little more their garage safety suggestions I followed a link to their website and looked at much longer list. I have to tell you that I’m disappointed after reading it.
While working as a home inspector I‘ve evaluated close to 5000 properties and majority of them with car garages. In most cases there were serious, even life threatening garage safety issues involved, and yet, 3 of them have not been included in that list, part […]
Smoke alarm maintenance (and smoke detector) is a very simple task and should be performed in addition to weekly testing and yearly battery replacement (some manufacturers might suggest to replace the battery twice a year) – put it on your house maintenance priority list!
Carbon monoxide alarm maintenance doesn’t require any special skills from you. However, just like the smoke alarm maintenance it is something that should become a routine for you. Those few minutes dedicated to CO alarm maintenance and testing might be a difference between life and death.
Before I explain where to install Carbon Monoxide detector alarm and show you recommended CO detector alarm locations in your home, let me list a few areas where CO detectors are not required. However, if they are required and you have them installed – make sure to put them on a house maintenance priority list.
Where to install a smoke alarm detector and its positioning are as important as having this life saving device installed at all. Remember that placing a smoke detector in a wrong location might delay its response to smoke or even prevent it from sounding an alarm at all.
Do you have a balcony and small children running around the house? If so, before you start reading about the balcony railing safety code, make sure that they are not playing alone.
My children are already older and I don’t have to worry about them fitting in between the balcony railings. However, every time I inspect a property with guardrails that a small child can simply walk through or climb up, I get goose bumps.
Remember to inspect balcony railing periodically – it’s an important house maintenance schedule item!
Many associations / management companies responsible for older multi-unit condominium buildings and townhouses with […]
Simple devices like the kitchen stove anti tip bracket can save your child and yourself from serious injuries and sometimes even death.
Kitchen stove anti tip bracket is a single or two piece device, supplied by the stove manufacturer, that must be installed at the base / behind the stove. It prevents the stove from tipping over or tilting while somebody applies pressure to the open oven door.
Since 1991, after “voluntary safety standards” have been developed by UL (Underwriter Laboratories) and ANSI (American National Standards Institute), gas and electric stove installers are required to install provided by the manufacturer stove anti […]
Telescopic Ladders Review
One of the first questions asked during my inspections is: where did you get this telescopic ladder? So, to make my life easier and yours happier, I’ll give you my telescopic ladders review, a few words about that famous piece of equipment, actually two manufacturers and 3 telescopic ladders.
Telescopic ladders are made out of aluminum, which makes them significantly light. Because they are telescopic / collapsible, they take up very little space in your storage, or anywhere else if you don’t have a storage area. I’ve been personally using two different brands […]
Have you ever looked at your garbage disposal wiring?
If you did, you’re probably not one of the homeowners that own garbage disposal units visible on the pictures.
This is just another waiting for an accident type of a situation and garbage disposal wiring should be on a home maintenance routine check-up list.
Garbage disposal vibration, especially under some heavy loads … by the way – this is not a garbage can, and don’t use it as such, sometimes causes garbage disposal wiring and plumbing connections to separate.
Even properly wired garbage disposal electrical cable might become loose and fall off the connector creating […]
