Child Safety

By: Rob Parker, RHI, CMI, CHI

Each year in Ontario, many children are injured and sometimes killed by hazards and accidents in the home.Many of these incidents can be prevented by using simple child safety devices available on the market. Any safety device you buy should be sturdy enough to prevent injury to your child, yet easy for you to use. It’s important to follow installation instructions carefully. Remember, too, that no device is completely childproof; determined youngsters have been known to disable them. You can buy safety devices at hardware stores, baby shops, supermarkets, drug stores, home and linen stores, and through mail order catalogues.

The National Association of Home Inspectors (NACHI) website offers these suggestions on devices to help keep kids safe:

• Use safety latches and locks for cabinets and drawers in kitchens, bathrooms, and other areas to help prevent children getting access to hazards such as medicines, household cleaners, knives and other sharp objects. Look for safety latches and locks that adults can easily install and use, but are sturdy enough to withstand pulls and tugs from children. They’re no guarantee of protection, but they can make it harder for kids to reach dangerous substances. Even products with child-resistant packaging should be locked away; this packaging is not childproof.

• Use safety gates to help prevent falls down stairs and to keep children away from dangerous areas. Safety gates can help keep children away from stairs or rooms that have hazards in them. Look for safety gates that children cannot dislodge easily, but that adults can open and close without difficulty. For the top of stairs, use hardware-mounted gates that screw into the wall, not pressure-mounted gates held in place by a pressure bar applied to a door frame. If you have an older safety gate, be sure it doesn’t have ‘V’ shapes large enough for a child’s head and neck to fit into. For more information, visit Health Canada’s website at www.hc-sc.gc.ca/cps-spc/child-enfant/equip/gate-barr-eng.php or call 1-866-662-0666.

• Use doorknob covers and door locks to help prevent children out of rooms and other places, such as swimming pools, that may be dangerous. Choose a doorknob cover that’s sturdy enough not to break, but that will let an adult open a door in an emergency. To prevent access to swimming pools, door locks should be placed out of reach of young children. Locks should be used in addition to fences and door alarms. Sliding glass doors, with locks that must be re-secured after each use, are often not an effective barrier to pools.

• Use anti-scald devices for faucets and shower heads and set your water heater temperature to 49 C (120F) to help prevent burns from hot water. You may need a plumber to install some anti-scald devices.

• Use smoke detectors on every level of your home and near bedrooms to alert you to fires. Check detectors monthly to make sure they’re working. If they’re battery-operated, change batteries at least once a year or consider using 10-year batteries.

• Use window guards and safety netting to help prevent falls from windows, balconies, decks, and landings. Check these safety devices frequently to make sure they’re secure and properly installed and maintained. There should be no more than 10 centimetres between the bars of a window guard. If you use window guards, make sure there’s no more than 10 centimetres between the bars. Also, ensure that at least one window in each room can be easily used as a fire escape. Window screens are not effective in preventing children falling out of windows.

• Use corner and edge bumpers to help prevent injuries from falls against sharp edges of furniture and fireplaces. Be sure to look for bumpers that stay securely on furniture or hearth edges.

• Use outlet covers and outlet plates to help prevent electrocution. These can help protect children from electrical shock, injury or death. Be sure the outlet protectors cannot be easily removed by children and are large enough that they pose no choking hazard.

• Use a carbon monoxide (CO) detector outside bedrooms to help prevent CO poisoning. If you have gas or oil heat or an attached garage, you should install CO detectors near sleeping areas.

• Cut window blind cords:  Use safety tassels and inner cord stops to help prevent children from strangling in blind cord loops. Inner cord stops can help prevent strangulation in the inner cords of window blinds. For older mini-blinds, cut the cord loop, remove the buckle, and put safety tassels on each cord. Be sure older vertical blinds and drapery cords have tension or tie-down devices to hold cords tight. When buying new mini-blinds, verticals, and draperies, ask for safety features to prevent child strangulation.

• Use door stops or holders to help prevent small fingers and hands from being pinched or crushed in doors or hinges. Be sure any safety device for doors is easy to use and is not likely to break into small parts, which could be a choking hazard.

• Use a cordless phone:  These make it easier to watch your child continuously, without leaving to answer the phone. They’re especially helpful when children are in or near water, whether they’re in the tub, the pool, or at the beach.

We hope you find the above information helpful in making your home more child safe.