Decorate Your Home With Safety In Mind This Holiday Season

After you recuperate from your Thanksgiving feast, it’s time to take down your turkey tables and transform your home into tinsel town. However, before you get caught up in glitz and glamour of holiday decor, it’s important to be aware of the potential hazards that come with home embellishments, especially for small children and pets. According to a recent survey completed by the Allstate Insurance Company, approximately 60 percent of consumers are trying new cooking and decorating techniques and 37 percent of respondents with small children admit to being distracted or forgetful during the holiday season. If you have small children and are trying out new decor, make sure you’re aware of potential safety hazards caused by cooking and holiday decorations.

To get some tips on holiday home safety, we checked in with Louie Delaware, the Home Safety Guru, who shared 10 pointers that will help you decorate safely this holiday season.

1. Secure your tree. If you’re putting up a tree this year—real or artificial—make sure that it’s secure and stable. “Children can push, pull and even climb trees,” says Louie. “To prevent your tree from falling, try tethering it to the wall or ceiling.” If you’d rather not put holes in your walls or ceiling, consider placing the tree in a room that's off limits to unsupervised kids. Watch out for pets, too—they can just as easily knock over a tree. Also, if you are decorating with an artificial tree, it should be marked as flame resistant; if you are decorating with a natural tree make sure, it’s fresh to avoid dry, falling needles, a fire hazard.

2. Trim your tree wisely. Low hanging ornaments and lights pose a dangerous hazard for small children and pets. Low decorations can be choking hazards or they can easily fall and shatter on the floor. Louie suggests limiting light strands and ornaments to above where you think your little one can reach. To be safe, use non-breakable, flame-resistant ornaments. According to the Allstate Insurance Company there is a 15 percent increase in home fires during the holiday season so using flame-resistant materials is important when decorating.

   

3. Be conscious of electrical cords. With more decorations comes the need for more electricity. Electrical cords are dangerous because they present a risk of strangulation and they can be chewed through so if you have small children and pets ensure that these cords are out of reach. Make sure extension cords with unused outlets are also tucked away. Better yet, put child-safety outlet covers in any unused openings.
4. Be aware of electrical outlets. If you have any exposed outlets in your home, install tamper-resistant outlet covers or safety cover plates that will automatically cover the outlet when a plug is pulled out. Keep these covers on year-round, too!
5. Instill an off-limits policy for fireplaces & wood-burning stoves. We know that warm and cozy fires will be crackling in homes throughout the holiday season and beyond, but even beautiful fires are dangerous. Louie points out that it’s important to keep children away from a fireplace or wood-burning stove because the surfaces around the fire can reach 450 degrees—a serious burn hazard. He suggests putting up an articulating barrier placed 20 inches away from any hot surface to help prevent burns.
6. Watch out for toppling tablecloths. Tablecloths and runners look pretty, but are an invitation for kids and mischievous pets to pull down, along with anything else on the table. Louie says that this is especially dangerous if you’re decorating with lit candles that can start a fire or small items that present choking hazards.
7. Be aware that not all nature is nice. If you’re decorating with plants or creating crafts with bits of the outdoors, Louie points out that berries of mistletoe, bittersweet, and holly, among many others, are poisonous so be cautious about what you use and where you place these plants.

   

8. Clean up wrappings. After all the presents are opened, you’re left with heaps of holiday wrappings and bows, which can actually be hazardous to children and pets. Louie points out that small wrapping items, like twist ties inside packaging, can be choking hazards so it’s best to immediately dispose of them.
9. Tune in to holiday TV specials safely. If your family likes to gather around the TV to watch seasonal specials, make sure that television is safely secured. Louie says that televisions injure over 17,000 children annually. To prevent this type of accident he suggests that you either mount your television on the wall or tether it to the wall or entertainment center using solid straps. If you decide to tether it, make sure the solid straps are securely affixed into wall studs or mechanical wall fasteners. If you have a large tube or plasma TV and it cannot be mounted, consider using Velco strips that are designed to be used in earthquake zones.
10. Review your home through your child’s eyes. After you’ve decorated your home for the holidays, Louie suggests doing a walk-through of every room, looking out for any new objects that your child or pet could reach. He adds that limiting the amount of decorations or altering them may be the smartest option if you have small toddling and crawling children.

Louie Delaware is the author of The Home Safety Guru’s® Definitive Guide on How to Childproof Your Home: Making Your Home Safe and Secure for Little Ones. He is a licensed general contractor and an advanced certified professional childproofer in Boulder, Colorado.