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Safety Tips worth Reading
A visual home inspection is an evaluation of
the home by checking items such as the furnace, A/C, plumbing
system, electrical system, and appliances. During a home inspection
I also try to point out safety issues as well.
Three safety issues I find not only in older homes but
in fairly new homes as well as recently remodeled homes are:
1. Dangerous Stoves. A kitchen stove should have an
anti-tipping device installed. This device installs easily at the
rear of the stove and is attached either to the wall or the floor
with a mating component on the stove. After the devices are
installed the stove is pushed back to the wall and the two
components interlock. This important safety device will prevent a
stove from tipping over, for example, if a small child should open
the oven door and stand on it to look into a boiling pot on the
stove or if something heavy, such as a large Thanksgiving turkey
were to be slid from the oven onto the opened oven door. An
appliance repairman or a handyman can easily check to see if the
stove has an anti-tipping device and if one is not present the
device can usually be installed in less than an hour.
2. Dangerous Stair Rails. A stairway should have a
handrail installed and the handrail ends should return to the wall
or support post to prevent snagging a purse, coat or shirt tail,
jacket etc. on the open ends. It may surprise you to know that in
about 1 out of 3 homes I find that something about the stairs is
considered a safety issue. Even in newly constructed homes I have
found on occasion hand rails missing or those with open ends. The
seriousness of these missing or unsafe hand rails is obvious when a
person falls and the doctor bills begin to arrive.
3. Missing Smoke Detectors. Your risk of dying in a
house fire is cut in half by the presence of smoke alarms. They are
required by code and they’re inexpensive and easy to install.
Protect every level in your home. Key locations include: one in each
bedroom plus one in the hallway outside, one in each living area and
one at the top of a stairway unless connected to a hallway with a
detector. Check the codes in your area for further information. Most
often in older homes, if any smoke detectors are present, I find a
single smoke detector installed in a hallway and that one usually is
old and outdated. In newer homes I find smoke detectors missing
possibly due to chirping batteries. Smoke detectors should be
checked each month and a new battery installed spring and fall. A
smoke detector is an essential safety device to have in every home
and the cost is affordable to all home owners.
The importance of these three safety tips cannot be
ignored. Due to the number of homes in which I find these safety
issues, it’s a topic worth writing, as well as reading about. As
with any home repairs if you do not feel confident doing the repairs
or upgrades then hire a qualified person to do them for you. But be
sure to have them done to protect you and your family as well as
your home.
Frank Ross is a Certified Utah Home Inspector for Pillar to Post
Professional Home Inspection and a full member of the National
Association of Certified Home Inspectors. Readers may contact Mr.
Ross at (435) 867-6400 or
frank.ross@pillartopost.com. You can learn more about Pillar To
Post Professional Home Inspection at
www.pillarposthomeinspection.com
