Home Safety Checklist For Duluth

Staying safe in your residence should be your largest priority. But are you forgetting a few useful safety components? Take this home safety checklist for Duluth and find out where your house can use some work.

We give you a few whole-house safety items, and then we whittle it down on a room level. Then, contact (218) 231-1734 or send in the form below to get your home ready.

Whole Home Safety Checklist for Duluth

While you will want to use a room-to-room process for home safety, there are some things that are good for your entire house. These components can sync to each other through a wireless hub, and oftentimes react to other things. You might also manage every one of your home safety equipment through a mobile app, like ADT Control:

Monitored Security System: Each one of your windows and doors should use a sensor that warns you and your family to intrusion. When your alarm triggers, your monitoring center picks up the alert and quickly calls the police or fire department.

Smart Lights For Every Major Room: Sure, you can schedule your smart lights to make your house more efficient. But smart lights can also allow you to stay safe in an emergency. Have your smart bulbs come on when a sensor goes off to scare off burglars or illuminate the way out to a outside area.

Smart Thermostat: Like your smart lights, a smart thermostat in Duluth should save you 10%-15% in gas and electric costs. But it also can flip on your exhaust fan during a fire.

Monitored Smoke Detectors: At the very least, you need to have a fire alarm on each level of your house. You can increase your fire game by hanging a monitored fire alarm that senses both smoke and heat, and pings your 24-hour monitoring team when it detects a fire.

Smart Door Locks: Every entryway that uses a keyed lock can use a smart lock. Now you may assign numbered codes to friends and family and get alerts to your smartphone when your locks are activated. Your smart lock can even automatically turn off, helping you to quickly get out during an emergency.

Family Room/Living Room Safety Checklist For Duluth

You’ll hang out most in the family room, so it can be the best room to start making your house a safer place. Highly sought after items, like a TV or stereo system, usually sit in your living room, making it a tempting room for burglars. Start with placing a motion sensor or indoor security camera by the doorway, then try some of these suggestions:

Motion Detectors: By putting in motion sensors, you’ll have a high-decibel noise if they detect unexpected motion in your living room. You’ll want motion sensors that aren’t set off by pets or you’ll get an alert every time your pet passes through for a bite of food.
Indoor Camera: An indoor security camera offers an eye on your living room. View constant streams of everything so you can find out what’s going on through the mobile app. Or chat with your kids in the room by using the two-way talk feature.
Surge Protector/Cord Maintenance: Make sure you protect all your electronics and quit overtaxing your outlets with a surge protector. For additional convenience, use a smart plug with surge protection in the unit.
Entertainment Center Secured To The Wall: If you have any small children, you’ll want to attach your heavy furniture and entertainment center to the wall. This is especially important if your family room uses carpeting that could make heavy objects extra unbalanced.
Enhanced Locks For Sliding Doors: If your living room uses a glass door that slides out to a deck, patio, or porch, you already get that the door lock is pretty flimsy. Install a custom lock, like a bottom bar or locks that secures the door to the bottom and top of the door frame.

Kitchen Safety Checklist For Duluth

The kitchen has plenty of items that should provide safety to your home. Some of these things should be simple to add and should be bought from the Target or Walmart:

Fire Extinguisher: Fire can spring up from a neglected frying pan or an errant grease splatter. Always keep a fire extinguisher in close reach for any kitchen mishaps.
Circuit Interrupter Box On Each Outlet: A GFCI outlet should be used anywhere they’re by running water to lessen the chance of an electric shock. That includes the plug outlets by your kitchen counter and sink. Since the late ‘80s, it’s been code to have one circuit interrupter outlet per dedicated circuit. But if you don’t want your whole kitchen to turn off when one outlet flips, you’re going to want to install an unchained GFCI per outlet.

Monitored Carbon Monoxide Detector: A CO detector is recommended for kitchens that use a gas stove and oven. If your gas appliances malfunction, the carbon monoxide detector will play a loud, buzzing siren and call your monitoring professional.
Clorox Wipes Or Spray: The biggest safety problem in the kitchen is actually bacteria and contamination from blood from meat and other foods. Always keep cleaning wipes or a bleach spray to scrub off your area after making a meal.
Freezer and Refrigerator Alarm: The food items in your fridge need to remain at a cold temperature to stay healthy to use. If you accidently leave the freezer or refrigerator door open, then an alarm beep will tell you to shut it securely. Some refrigerators come with this installed, some don’t, and you’ll have to buy a refrigerator alarm from online.

Bathroom Safety Checklist For Duluth

Just because you may not have a lot of square footage in your bathroom, you will still have safety concerns. From flood detectors to medicine care, here are a few safety tips for your bathroom:

Flood Detectors: A leaking sink or shower can create extensive destruction. Discover leaks early with a flood detector and save hundreds to thousands of dollars from renovations.
Non-slip Shower Mats: A fall in the bathroom can be a painful occurrence, causing pulled muscles, gashed heads, or sprained ankles. You can prevent these issues with a textured bath mat for while you towel off.

No-slip Bathtub Stickers: Likewise, a bathtub can be a slick place to move in. Make sure every has some textured strips so your feet and toes have a bumpy patch for stability.

Medicine Door Latch: If you have young toddlers or anyone with memory difficulties, you need to take additional care regarding medicine. Secure your bottles by getting a medicine cabinet with a locking latch.

Circuit Interrupter Outlet: While installing better outlets in the kitchen, you will have to also install a grounded circuit interrupter outlet on each bathroom outlet. These will stop the flow of the current if they ever get wet or you have an unusual surge from an electric razor or hair dryer.

Child’s Bedroom Safety Checklist For Duluth

A child’s bedroom should pair safety with accessibility. If their window treatments or other things are safe but hard to use, then your children may get around the device with risky activities -- like shimmying up a bookshelf -- to open them. Here are 5 simple, and safe, ideas:

No Cord Window Coverings: Safety professionals have long called corded window treatments a hidden danger for children and animals. Use motorized shades that your child can easily open and close via remote control. Or even better, pair your motorized coverings to your ADT security system so they rise automatically when the sun comes up, and go down at night for extra privacy.

Indoor Security Camera: A security camera sitting on your child’s desk or dresser can act like a baby monitor that you can see from your phone. And when they need you, they can use the intercom talk button included on the camera.

Outlet Covers: While each outlet should use covers on them for your small children, this is especially needed in a child’s bedroom. It’s the main place in your house where your children will most likely play by themselves without additional supervision.

Window Escape Ladder: If you use bedrooms on the second level, then you need to have a window escape ladder. These will let your children leave the house in case the hallway or downstairs are blocked off with fire. Remember to go over how to use the ladder at least twice a year.

Toy Box Or Low Shelves: It’s weird to view a toy chest as a safety device, but you’ll see the light if you’ve ever stepped on a building block in your bare feet. A clutter-free floor let your child have a quick escape when there’s a fire or break-in.

Main Bedroom Safety Checklist For Duluth

Your main bedroom should be your calm space, so let your safety items make you more responsive when you experience an emergency event. After all, being startled awake by a wailing siren can be confusing.

Security System Touchscreen: Having a touchscreen on your nightstand gives you a sense of what’s going on without getting out of bed. You could also log into your ADT smartphone app but, the HD touchscreen can be easier to control to use when you’re bleary-eyed and disoriented.

Personal Charging Area: We rely on our smartphones for almost everything now alarm clocks, web browsers, games, and maybe even phones. The only problem is that a dead phone can cut us off from communications if something goes wrong. So, a charging station or cord becomes should be used nightly.

Nightlights Or Voice Activated Smart Lights: A plug-in light can be a beacon when you’re jolted awake from a siren or unexpected noises. If you can’t fall asleep with an outlet light, install a smart bulb in your fixtures. Then you can get light anytime with a push of a button or voice direction.
Fireproof Safe: Keep your vital papers like birth certificates, passports, or a bankbook in a fireproof lockbox. This can be a bigger one that camps out out of the way or a slender portable safe that you can snatch on your way out during an emergency event.

Heat Sensor: The problem with most bedrooms is that they might run too stuffy or be cold because they are located across the house from the thermostat. A heat sensor will communicate to your smart thermostat so you should have a comfortable, relaxing sleep at just the right temperature.

Garage/Basement Safety Checklist For Duluth

Most safety needs in the garage or basement deal with your water heater or HVAC system. Seeing problems before they start can stave away bigger emergencies later on. So, as you walk around your storage areas, check over these safety items:

Flood Detector Or Sump Pump Alarm: Putting a flood alarm by your water heater and sump pump can stop you from finding a pond when you step into your garage or basement. Do you really want to lose your night bailing out water?

Carbon Monoxide Alarm: It’s smart to have a carbon monoxide detector in areas where a CO leak can spring up. If you employ gas heat, try to put an alarm in the same room as your HVAC unit.
Remote Water Shutoff Valve: If your flood sensor detects a hot water heater leak or a busted pipe, then you will want to cut off the main water pipe at once. With a wireless shutoff valve, you can block water flow from your phone. That’s perfect when you’re on vacation and get a flood sensor text on your phone.
Garage Door Sensor: Leaving the garage up leads to all types of problems. You can waste heat through that open door, and critters or thieves can just saunder in. A sensor will notify you about a forgotten garage door and lets you close it remotely.
Heat Sensor: A heat alarm in your basement or garage is handy if you wonder about frozen pipes. The heat in these rooms can be wildly different than the rest of the home, so you will want to have a closer eye on them by using the ADT mobile app.

Outside Perimeter Safety Checklist for Duluth

Your landscaping, drive, and front step are just as crucial to make safe as the interior of your house. Try this checklist to create a safe outside:

Doorbell Camera: See who’s knocking on the front door before you answer it and talk to visitors. See deliveries and review video clips if they vanish off the step.

Outdoor Security Camera: You can hang outdoor security cameras to alert you to unusual movement in your back yard. These cameras are nice in areas where you may not have a window -- like around a cellar or by the garage door.

Low Shrubbery: Overgrown bushes can create some serenity, but they also block your line of sight of the yard and curb. Don’t give potential intruders a place to hide. Plus, large bushes, shrubs or greenery against your structure can obstruct gutters and invite bugs.
ADT Yard Signs: One of the biggest discouragements for a break-in is advertising to would-be burglars that you use an updated home security system. An ADT yard sign by the main walk and a window cling will alert lurkers that they ought to shove off to an unprotected target.

Motion Activated Flood Light Fixtures: Light is the largest obstacle to people who lurk in the unlit places. Motion-triggered lights on your deck, porch, or garage can shoo lurkers away. They also help you see the walk when you come to the house late at night.

Use Secure24 Alarm Systems To Help You Finish Your Home Safety Checklist for Duluth

While Secure24 Alarm Systems can’t help you with every item on your Duluth home safety checklist, we can discuss a state-of-the-art security system. With alarms, security cameras, and home automation, we can install the perfect system for your house’s needs. Just contact (218) 231-1734 for more information or fill out the form below. Or personalize your own ADT system with our Security System Designer.