Winter can be a hazardous season. Fires, floods, slips, and spills are more likely than in other seasons of the year. As a tenant, you hold a lot of responsibility to maintain the home during the colder months of the year. What can you do to keep your, your family, and your rental home safe during the winter?
Keep Your Rental Home Safe in Winter
Keep Walkways Clear
One of the biggest hazards that come with cold weather is slipping and falling. Protect yourself, your children, and your guests by keeping all exterior sidewalks, stairs, and driveways clear of ice and snow. Having a few bags of rock salt stowed away can mean the difference between getting to your car or getting to a hospital. Preemptively, it’s also a great idea to lay down Anti-Slip Grip Tape. It’s fairly inexpensive, easy to install, and combined with your salt, your exterior steps should be less of a risk for slipping.
Test the Smoke Detectors
The frequent use of the furnaces, fireplaces, and the oven can greatly increase your chance of a fire. One of the easiest ways to keep your rental home safe, not to mention yourself, is to test the smoke detectors. If you find they are not working properly, immediately notify your landlord or property manager to have them replaced. Next, you should ensure your air filters and dryer vents are clear. Without over-explanation, the extra heat can do some serious damage quickly to old dry dust and lint.
Childproof Your House
Every family has that one member that stalks the thermostat. That’s usually because there’s always someone playing with it! As the temperature drops, so will the amount of time your children spend outside; Their need for speed can be dangerous for them and your electronics. Always make sure your heat is on an appropriate temperature and not accidentally turned off during those freezing nights. Also, it’s a wise choice to make all cords and cables tucked away and all outlets covered.
Prevent Fires
Chilly days bring out the chefs in all of us but if a pan catches on fire you need to know the immediate steps to take. When cooking with grease, NEVER try to extinguish the fire with water and NEVER try to remove the pan from the burning surface. Baking soda will be your best friend in the kitchen and not just for cooking. [On average, there are roughly 1800 cooking fires on Thanksgiving Day alone]
Naturally, you should never leave candles or fireplaces unattended and if your home has a Christmas tree, keep it watered and lights off whenever you leave.
If your property has gas, be aware of any gas leaks that could be problematic. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, over 25,000 residential fires are caused by space heaters causing more than 300 deaths and 6,000 burn injuries annually. Make sure that your heater has an Underwriter’s Laboratory (UL) label and has a tip-over safety switch. Plug them directly into a wall outlet; do not use an extension cord.