Don’t overload those outlets with too many plugs!
Holiday Safety
It’s the holiday season again, and that means snow, family gatherings, and plenty of decorations around the neighborhood. But it also means cold weather; increased electricity use in your home, and lighting up your fireplace can cause potential trouble for you and your home. With that in mind, here are some holiday safety tips to keep you and your family safe, from whatever old man winter throws your way this year.
Don’t overload plugs
If you’re like most people who celebrate Christmas, you have plenty of decorations hanging up around your home. Including ever-popular Christmas lights. So when you’re lighting everything in, don’t have all the electricity coming from one outlet. You’re likely to blow a fuse that way. If you have a lot of plugs, make sure you use a power strip. And use multiple outlets as well.
Open up the flue of your fireplace
Forgetting to open the flue fully puts your whole family at risk for carbon monoxide poisoning. Not to mention it’s just unpleasant having smoke fill up a room of your home. It only takes a second to look up the chimney to see if the way is blocked. If it is, simply turn the knob to open the flue up. Remember your chimney and fireplace need a good cleaning before lighting any fires.
Icicles may look pretty, but they can cause serious injury if not cleared away.
Icicles
It’s well-known how dangerous a falling icicle can be. They can cause unsuspecting injury or even death falling from the roof with enough force. The number of deaths from falling icicles are already low, with only about 15 happening nationwide each year. But it never hurt to use a ladder and safely remove the icicles hanging on the roof’s edge.
Anything in your home that ends up frozen
Mainly worry about frozen pipes. Water expands as it freezes, which puts great pressure against any surface it comes up against. If the frozen pipes explode, they’ll flood whatever area they’re in and you’re stuck having to make repairs. To avoid this, make sure any pipes leading outside are completely drained, and that your basement is adequately heated to avoid bursting pipes.
Keep plenty of emergency supplies in case the power goes out
This includes fuel, batteries, flashlights, a first aid kit, and plenty of non-perishable food and water bottles.
Don’t let the unexpected catch you off-guard this winter season. To find out more about environmental control or how you can keep your home safe this holiday season, call our security experts today at (716) 632-4600.
