Home Safety Checklist For Sandy Springs
Keeping safe in your house should be your number one responsibility. But are you forgetting some big safety items? Use this home safety checklist for Sandy Springs and see where your home needs greater attention.
We give you a few whole-house safety ideas, and then we whittle it down room-by-room. Then, call (770) 628-5897 or send in the form below to get your home safe and secure.
Essential Home Safety Checklist for Sandy Springs
While you should take a room-by-room approach to home safety, there are a few items that are useful for your entire house. These items can sync with one another through a touchscreen hub, and oftentimes work off other components. You might also control every one of your home safety devices through a smartphone app, like ADT Control:
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Monitored Security System: All your entryways should have a sensor that alerts you to forced entry. As an alarm trips, your monitoring agent answers the call and immediately sends emergency personnel.
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Smart Bulbs For Every Major Room: Sure, you can schedule your smart lighting to make your home more eco-conscience. But they can also help you stay safe throughout an emergency. Make your downstairs lights come on when an alarm trips to scare off robbers or brighten a path to a secure location.
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Smart Thermostat: Like your smart lights, a smart thermostat in Sandy Springs should save you between 10%-15% in energy spending. Also, it can turn on an exhaust fan when your alarms senses a fire.
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Monitored Smoke Detectors: It’s code that you have a smoke detector on each floor. You can improve your fire game by utilizing a monitored fire alarm that detects excessive smoke and heat, and alerts your 24-hour monitoring experts when it senses a fire.
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Smart Door Locks: Every door that utilizes a deadbolt can upgrade to a smart lock. Now you may assign key codes to family and friends and receive alerts to your mobile device when your locks are used. Your smart lock can even automatically unlock, allowing you to quickly leave if you have a fire or other emergency.
Family Room/Living Room Safety Checklist For Sandy Springs
You’ll spend a lot of time in the family room, so it may be the most reasonable place to start making your home more secure. Highly sought after items, like your TV or video game console, typically reside in your family room, making it a tempting space for burglars. Begin with installing a motion sensor or security camera by the doorway, then continue on with some of these suggestions:
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Motion Sensors: By installing motion detectors, you’ll hear a shrieking noise if they sense suspicious movement in your living room. The best devices are motion detectors that ignore a dog or cat or you’ll have a tripped alarm every time your cat comes in for a midnight stroll.
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Indoor Camera: An indoor security camera puts an eye on your living room. Watch constant streams of everything so you can find out what’s going on without leaving your bed. Or speak with your family in the room by using the two-way talk feature.
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Surge Protector/Outlet Maintenance: Make sure you protect those electronics and stop overburdening your circuits with a surge protector. For extra convenience, set up a smart plug with surge protection included.
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Furniture Bolted To The Wall: If you have any small children, you’ll want to bolt your entertainment center or other heavy furniture to the wall. This is extra crucial if your living room uses carpet that could make furniture extra unstable.
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Special Locks For Glass Doors: If your living room has a sliding glass door that slides out to a backyard, deck, or outside porch, you already know that the door lock is pretty thin. Put in an enhanced lock, like a cross bar or small locks that are located on the bottom and top of the door frame.
Kitchen Safety Checklist For Sandy Springs
The kitchen has plenty of items that can provide safety to your house. Many of these things are also simple to add and can be found in the grocery store:
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Fire Extinguisher: Fire can happen from an unwatched frying pan or a towel that’s too close to a burner. Always store a fire extinguisher at hand for any kitchen mishaps.
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Circuit Interrupter Box On Each Outlet: A circuit interrupter outlet should be installed anywhere they’re by running water to lessen the chance of a deadly shock. That includes the plug outlets close to your sink and kitchen counter. Since 1987, it’s been standard to have one circuit interrupter outlet per circuit. But for simplicity’s sake, you’ll want to use an unchained GFCI for every outlet.
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Monitored Carbon Monoxide Detector: A carbon monoxide detector is recommended for spaces that have gas for the oven and stove. If your gas appliances leak, the CO detector will cause a loud, buzzing sound and ping your monitoring center.
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Cleaning Wipes Or Spray: The largest safety issue in the kitchen is actually bacteria and cross-contamination from uncooked meat and vegetables. Always store antiviral wipes or spray to sanitize your counters after making a meal.
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Refrigerator Alarm: The milk, meat, and perishables in the fridge should remain at a cold temperature to stay ready to consume. If you accidently leave the fridge or freezer door open, then a small beep will tell you to check the seal. Some refrigerators already have a pre-installed alarm, others don’t, and you’ll have to get a fridge alarm from online.
Bathroom Safety Checklist For Sandy Springs
Just because you may not have a lot of space in your bathroom doesn’t mean that there aren’t safety concerns. From water problems to medicine care, here are a few safety ideas for your bathroom:
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Flood Detectors: A leaking toilet or tub can lead to an expensive amount of destruction. Deal with a leaking pipe with a flood detector and save yourself from redoing the whole bathroom.
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Non-slip Bath Mats: A fall in the bathroom can be a painful occurrence, causing bumps, gashed heads, or trips to the hospital. Or steer clear from these hazards with a textured bath mat for after your bath or shower.
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Textured Bathtub Stickies: Like a tiled floor, a bathtub can be a slick area to move in. It’s a good idea that each bathtub has some no-slip stickies so your feet have a rough patch for stability.
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Medicine Door Lock: If you have young toddlers or a family member with memory complications, you have to take extra precautions regarding prescribed medicine. Hide away your bottles by installing a medicine cabinet with a locking latch.
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Circuit Interrupter Outlet: Just like the kitchen, you should also use a surge protecting GFCI outlet on each bathroom circuit. This will cut the electric current if they ever get wet or you have an unusual spike from a hair dryer or curling iron.
Child’s Bedroom Safety Checklist For Sandy Springs
Your kid’s bedroom should pair safety with manageability. If their window treatments or other things are safe but hard to operate, then your children may get around the device with dangerous activities -- like climb a bookshelf -- to open them. Here are 5 easy, yet safe, ideas:
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Cord-Free Window Treatments: Safety experts have designated window treatment cords an unsuspecting danger for children and animals. Install motorized treatments that you can easily manage through a remote. Or go state-of-the-art and pair your shades to your ADT smart hub so they can raise without anyone’s help at dawn, and go down at bedtime for added darkness.
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Tableside Security Camera: An indoor security camera perched on your kid’s dresser can behave as an HD baby monitor that you can view with a mobile device. And when they want you, they can hit the two-way talk button that comes with the camera.
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Outlet Plug Covers: While every outlet should use covers on them when you have young children, this is especially important in a child’s bedroom. It’s the main place in your house where your child will most likely be solo without additional supervision.
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Window Safety Ladder: If you have bedrooms on the second level, then you will want to install a window fire ladder. These should help a young one escape in case the hallway or downstairs are on fire. Remember to rehearse how to unfurl them one or two times a year.
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Toy Chest Or Low Shelves: It’s strange to think about a toy chest as a safety device, but you’ll see the light if you’ve ever walked on a building block in your socked feet. A clutter-free floor gives your child a quick retreat when there’s a safety or security event.
Master Bedroom Safety Checklist For Sandy Springs
Your main bedroom should be a refuge, so let your safety components make life easier when you experience an emergency event. After all, being jerked awake by a high-decibel siren can be disorienting.
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Home Security Touchscreen: Having a touchscreen on your bedside table gives you a sense of what’s what that noise was without leaving your bed. You could also turn on your ADT phone app. However, the large touchscreen can be faster to use when you’re bleary-eyed and disoriented.
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Phone Charging Stand: We depend on our phones for so many things now alarm clocks, news readers, games, and sometimes even phones. However, a depleted device can cut us off from communications if during an emergency. To make sure your phone always works, a charging cord or station is an essential.
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Nightlights Or Voice Activated Smart Lights: A small light can calm you when you’re jolted awake from a fire alarm or other loud noises. If you can’t fall asleep with an outlet light, install a smart bulb in your bedroom. Then you can control light anytime with a button push or voice command.
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Fireproof Lockbox: Store your important documents like insurance cards, passports, or a bankbook in a fireproof safe. Your safe can be a large one that camps out out of the way or a smaller portable safe that you can snatch when you leave during an emergency event.
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Heat Sensor: The issue with bedrooms is that they might feel too stuffy or be chilly because they are located across the house from the thermostat. A temperature sensor will communicate to your smart thermostat so you can have a pleasant, relaxing sleep at a wonderful temperature.
Basement/Garage Safety Checklist For Sandy Springs
Most safety problems in the basement or garage are with your pipes or furnace. Discovering problems at the source can stop larger disasters later on. So, as you look around your garage or basement, take note of these crucial items:
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Flood Sensor Or Sump Pump Alarm: Installing a flood sensor by your water heater and sump pump can prevent you from wading into a lake when you go into your basement or garage. The last you need is to waste the weekend bailing out water and sorting through all those storage boxes.
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Carbon Monoxide Alarm: It’s smart to hang a CO alarm in an area where a natural gas leak can spring up. If you employ gas heat, try to hang a detector in the same area as your inbound pipes.
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Remote Water Shutoff Valve: If your water alarm finds a plumbing leak or a burst pipe, then you will have to cut off the main water valve at once. With a remote shutoff valve, you can block water flow from anywhere in the world. That’s perfect when you’re out of town and get a flood sensor notification on your mobile device.
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Garage Door Sensor: Leaving the garage door open brings about all sorts of issues. You can waste heat or air through that gaping hole, and all sorts of animals or lurkers can just wander in. A remote sensor will text you about a neglected garage door and lets you lower it with your phone.
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Heat Sensor: A heat sensor in your basement or garage is a definite if you fret about freezing pipes. The temperature in these areas can be surprisingly different than your main rooms of the home, so you may need to keep a closer eye on the temp through the ADT mobile app.
Home Perimeter Safety Checklist for Sandy Springs
Your yard, driveway, and front walk are just as important to make safe as the inside of your home. Try this checklist to make your outside safe:
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Doorbell Security Camera: See who’s arrived at the door before you answer it and talk to visitors. View deliveries and look at video clips if they are stolen.
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Outdoor Camera: You can place outdoor security cameras to notify you about unusual lurkers in your back yard. These devices are nice in areas where you may not have a window installed -- like a side yard or by the driveway.
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Window Height Shrubbery: Tall foliage can create some privacy, but they also obscure you seeing into the yard and curb. Don’t give potential intruders a dark shadow to hide. Plus, high bushes or greenery against your structure can clog gutters and summon bugs.
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ADT Yard Signs: One of the most popular discouragements for home intrusion is alerting potential burglars that you use an updated ADT security system. An ADT yard sign by the front door and a window cling will alert ne'er-do-wells that they ought to keep walking to an less prepared target.
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Motion Controlled Outside Lights: Light is the best deterrent to those who lurk in the unlit places. Motion-activated lights on your deck, patio, or garage can help scare lurkers away. They also help you see the walk when you come to the house late after work.
Use Secure24 Alarm Systems To Help Complete Your Home Safety Checklist for Sandy Springs
While Secure24 Alarm Systems can’t deliver every item on your Sandy Springs home safety checklist, we can discuss a powerful security system. With everything from alarms to thermostats, we can personalize the perfect system for your home’s needs. Simply call (770) 628-5897 and talk to a professional or fill out the form below. Or personalize your own ADT system with our Security System Designer.