Maintaining a modern home requires many dangerous chemicals and devices that are threats to home safety. Especially if there are any children in the home, the utmost care should be used to properly stow or protect these hazards. These may seem like simple measures and full of just common sense, but death and injury result from ignoring the precautions every year.

It is a fact of today’s lifestyle that we all like stuff and lots of it around our home. Often times this stuff either doesn’t have a permanent storage area or has not been replaced in the proper area. A classic home safety tripping hazard is all of the stuff left in the walkways of our homes. Boxes, toys, shoes, clothes and many more items are common problems when left on the floor where people walk.

Furniture can be a painful problem for shins, knees, and elbows if the proper spacing is not maintained due to squeezing it all in a hall or room. The government sets safety standards at about 30 inches for walkway clearances between furniture and other obstacles. Many hallways or rooms do not meet this standard and have not been adjusted for the actual size needs of the family.

Shelves in closets and storage areas in general are very often victims of clutter and overloading. It is a classic cartoon notion for the closet door to open and everything fall out on the hapless character involved. In real life it is not funny and can be painful. Overloaded shelves can fall on a head or body at any time to cause injury.

Many homes have a mixture of carpet, wood floors, and tile or vinyl in the kitchen and bathroom areas. The transition areas that border the different types of flooring can be home safety difficulties. The trim used for the border can trip people or the nails holding the trim can come loose over time. Just the different heights of the surfaces can cause careless walkers to stumble at best.

Bathrooms can be wet and messy venues, requiring many strong cleaning products using hazardous chemicals. For ease of use, many people store these supplies under the sink or nearby. Due to the danger, the chemicals should be locked away or put up in an elevated place that is not as easy to access. All of the containers should have child-proof lids to add extra home safety to the situation.

Walking inside the house is not the only home safety hazard of interest but the outside walks and decks need attention too. Concrete will crack and lift with age to create problems and wooden deck boards often warp after time. Both of these create uneven surfaces for walking that can cause tripping.

Sharp and hot objects are another danger in the kitchen to take precautions against. Knives are essential to food preparation, but need to be stored in a wood block or drawer. Stove tops and ovens need precautions as well to note if the heat is on and to avoid contact.