You’ve just put down your deposit and you are excited to move into your new place. And you should be! It’s your first place on your own or you and your family are excited to start fresh. But before you get too comfortable in your new home, you need to ask yourself a very important question: Are you safe in your new home?
Here are a few tips to help you make your new home safe and secure.
Smoke Alarms
You might never need a smoke alarm or even experience a fire within your home. Smoke alarms tend to be more of a nuisance reminding you what a terrible cook you are, or it beeps endlessly for a battery charge. But three out of five home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes without working smoke alarms. The risk of dying in reported home structure fires is cut in half in homes with working smoke alarms. Conclusion: Smoke alarms save lives, So make sure you have one and make sure it has batteries.
Carbon Monoxide Detector
On average, 150 people die every year from unintentional carbon monoxide poisoning. It’s called the Invisible Killer” because it’s a colorless, odorless, poisonous gas. Avoid being part of the statistic, and buy a detector. If you have one, make sure it works and has batteries!
Deadbolt
Of all burglaries, 60.5 percent involved forcible entry
In the movies when the cop kicks down the door and they all swarm into the apartment, it’s exciting. It’s also an example of a door without a deadbolt. Most burglars don’t know how to pick a lock; they just kick in the door. Of all burglaries, 60.5 percent involved forcible entry, if you have a sturdy door that can’t be kicked in very easily, they’re more likely to just move on to the next house. And don’t forget about your back door and the garage door.
Windows
With window, you want to be extra careful if you live on the first floor of your building. You first need to make sure that all windows lock. If you have sliding windows or doors, use a rod on the tracks. you can also install an alarm on your windows, The Doberman security system is a very inexpensive alarm that you can stick on your windows and it will notify you of a potential break by detecting window vibrations but won’t go off in rain, wind, etc.
These tips are ideal for renters, because they don’t require much maintenance, and you won’t be making any drastic changes to the rental itself. The fact in the matter here is that life is full of risk, whether you want to acknowledge it or not. Take a little extra time when you are moving in, or right now, to make sure you are safe in your home.
We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. See Equal Housing Opportunity Statement for more information.
