Home Safety Checklist For Corpus Christi
Keeping safe and secure in your home should be your largest responsibility. But are you forgetting a few key safety components? Take this home safety checklist for Corpus Christi and see where your home requires an update.
We give you some whole-home safety techniques, and then we delve down to specific room ideas. Then, call (361) 223-9020 or complete the form below for additional information.
Whole Home Safety Checklist for Corpus Christi
While you may want to employ a room-to-room approach to home safety, there are some methods that work for the entire house approach. These components can talk together through a wireless hub, and oftentimes respond to one another. You can also manage all your home safety equipment through a smartphone app, such as ADT Control:
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Monitored Security System: Each one of your doors and windows should employ a sensor that warns your family to intrusion. When an alarm triggers, your monitoring center picks up the call and immediately contacts the police or fire department.
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Smart Lighting For Every Major Room: Of course, you can schedule your smart lights to become more efficient. But smart lights can also allow you to remain safe throughout an emergency. Make your smart bulbs flash on when a security alarm trips to scare off intruders or illuminate a path to a secure place.
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Smart Thermostat: Like your smart lights, a smart thermostat in Corpus Christi could save you up to 15% in gas and electric costs. Also, it can turn on an exhaust fan during a fire.
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Monitored Fire Detectors: At the very least, you need to have a smoke detector on each level. You can increase your fire readiness by utilizing a monitored fire detector that looks for excessive smoke and heat, and notifies your 24/7 monitoring team when it thinks that there’s a fire.
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Smart Door Locks: Every door that uses a deadbolt can be made safer with a smart door lock. Now you may program key codes to friends and family and receive texts to your phone when they are activated. Your doors can even automatically unlock, letting you quickly flee the house during an emergency.
Living Room/Family Room Safety Checklist For Corpus Christi
You’ll spend a lot of time in your family room, so it’s the perfect room to kick off your home safety makeover. Highly sought after items, like a TV or video game console, probably are located in your living room, making it a popular area for thieves. Begin with placing a motion sensor or security camera by the doorway, then continue on with the following ideas:
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Motion Detectors: By installing motion sensors, you’ll hear a shrieking siren whenever they sense unexpected motion within your family room. You’ll want motion sensors that ignore a dog or cat or you’ll see an alert each time your dog comes in for a midnight stroll.
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Indoor Camera: An indoor security camera puts an eye on your family room. Get real-time streams of your room so you can know what’s going on without leaving your bed. Or talk with family members when they arrive home from school using the two-way talk feature.
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Surge Protector/Cord Maintenance: Make sure you protect all your electronics and stop overtaxing your outlets with a surge protector. For extra convenience, use a smart plug with a surge protector in the unit.
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Furniture Attached To The Wall: If you have babies or toddlers, you’ll need to secure your entertainment center or other heavy furniture to your wall. This is extra important if your family room has carpet that can make heavy objects extra wobbly.
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Enhanced Locks For Glass Doors: If your living room uses a glass door that opens to a deck, patio, or porch, you can see that the door lock is fairly worthless. Install an enhanced lock, like a bottom bar or locks that bolt to the bottom and top of the frame.
Kitchen Safety Checklist For Corpus Christi
Your kitchen has room for items that can bring safety to your house. Most of these items should be easy to add and should be bought from the grocery store:
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Fire Extinguisher: Fire can spring up from an unwatched pot or a towel that’s too close to a burner. Always keep a fire extinguisher at hand for any kitchen mishaps.
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GFCI Box On Each Outlet: A GFCI outlet should be used anywhere they’re by running water to prevent a deadly shock. That includes the outlets close to your kitchen counter and sink. Since 1987, it’s been standard to have one GFCI per dedicated circuit. But if you don’t want all your outlets to turn off when one outlet flips, try to use a single GFCI per outlet.
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Monitored Carbon Monoxide Detector: A carbon monoxide detector is advised for spaces that have gas for the oven and stove. If your gas lines leak, the carbon monoxide detector will play a loud noise and contact your monitoring agent.
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Clorox Wipes Or Spray: The most overlooked safety problem in the kitchen is the viruses, bacteria, and cross-contamination from blood from meat and dairy. Always store antiviral wipes or an antibacterial spray to clean your counters when preparing food.
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Freezer and Refrigerator Alarm: The items in the refrigerator should remain at a constant temperature to stay safe to use. If you accidently leave the freezer or refrigerator door open, then an alarm beep will let you know so you can shut it securely. Some fridges come with this installed, some do not, and you’ll have to get an external alarm from the store.
Bathroom Safety Checklist For Corpus Christi
Just because there’s not a bunch of square footage in your bathroom, you will still have safety issues. From flood detectors to anti-surge outlets, here are five safety improvements for your bathroom:
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Flood Detectors: A leaking sink or shower can cause extensive damage. Discover water problems early with a flood detector and save yourself from redoing the entire bathroom.
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Textured Bathroom Mats: A slip and fall in the bathroom can be painful, causing pulled muscles, bruises, or broken bones. Make sure you avoid these problems with a textured bath mat for while you towel off.
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Textured Bathtub Stickers: Another water hazard, a bathtub can be a slippery surface to stand in. It’s a good idea that every has some textured stickers so your feet and toes have a bumpy patch to grip.
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Medicine Door Latch: If you have curious kids or someone with memory difficulties, you should take additional care regarding prescription medicine. Secure your bottles by getting a medicine cabinet with a locking latch.
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GFCI Circuits: While installing better outlets in the kitchen, you will have to also put in a surge protecting GFCI outlet on each bathroom receptacle. These will stop the flow of the electric current if water splashes on them or there’s a harmful surge from a curling iron or hair dryer.
Child’s Bedroom Safety Checklist For Corpus Christi
A child’s bedroom should pair safety with manageability. If their window shades or other items are safe but hard to use, then your children may get around the device with risky activities -- like climb a dresser -- to open them. Try these straightforward, yet safe, ideas:
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No Cord Window Coverings: Safety professionals have identified cords from shades and blinds an unsuspecting hazard for children and animals. Use motorized treatments that kids can easily control with a remote. Or better yet, pair your motorized treatments to your ADT security system so they rise automatically when the sun comes up, and lower at night for extra privacy.
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Tableside Security Camera: A camera sitting on your kid’s dresser can behave as an HD baby monitor that you can view with a mobile device. And if they need your help, they can hit the intercom talk button included on the camera.
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Outlet Covers: While each outlet should use protective covers on them to protect your little children, this is doubly needed in a child’s bedroom. It’s the one room in your house where your children will most likely be alone without constant additional supervision.
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Window Safety Ladder: If you have bedrooms on above the first floor, then you need to have a window safety ladder. These should let your children escape even if the stairs or ground floor are blocked off with fire. Remember to practice how to use them one or two times a year.
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Toy Box Or Low Shelves: It’s strange to think about a toy box as a safety component, but you’ll get it if you’ve ever walked on a Lego in your stocking feet. A clean floor means a quick way out if there’s a fire or break-in.
Main Bedroom Safety Checklist For Corpus Christi
The main bedroom should be a refuge, so let your safety components give you peace of mind if you have an emergency. After all, being jerked awake by a loud alarm can be confusing.
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Home Security Touchscreen: Having a smart hub on your dresser helps you know what’s what that noise was without getting out of bed. You could also log into your ADT smartphone app. However, the large touchscreen may be better to use when you’re coming out of sleep and finding your bearings.
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Phone Charging Area: We rely on our phones for so much now alarm clocks, news readers, social media, and sometimes even phones. However, an uncharged phone can cut us off from communications if during an emergency. To keep it nice and ready, a charging cord or station becomes an essential.
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Smart Lights Or Nightlights: A small light can be a beacon when you’re jolted awake from a fire alarm or other loud sounds. If you can’t fall asleep with an outlet light, use smart bulbs in your fixtures. Then you can have light on-demand with a push of a button or voice command.
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Fireproof Safe: Keep your vital paperwork like birth certificates, passports, or a bankbook in a fireproof safe. This can be a bigger one that camps out in your closet or a small portable safe that you can carry as you escape during a fire or break-in.
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Heat Sensor: The issue with bedrooms is that they tend to run too stuffy or be chilly since they sit far from the thermostat. A temperature sensor can communicate to your smart thermostat so you should have a comfortable, relaxing sleep at a wonderful climate.
Basement/Garage Safety Checklist For Corpus Christi
Most safety problems in the garage or basement have to do with your water or HVAC system. Finding problems before they start can prevent more devastating emergencies later on. So, as you walk around your storage areas, check over these safety items:
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Water Detector Or Sump Pump Alarm: Putting a flood alarm next to your water heater and sump pump drain can stop you from wading into a pond when you step into your garage or basement. The last you need is to spend the weekend drying your floor and sorting through all those soggy boxes.
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Carbon Monoxide Alarm: It’s nice to have a carbon monoxide detector in areas where a natural gas leak can occur. If you have a gas furnace, you should hang a detector in the same area as your unit.
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WiFi Water Shutoff Valve: If your water alarm senses a plumbing leak or a busted pipe, then you will have to cut off the main water line immediately. With a wireless shutoff valve, you can block water flow from any mobile device. That’s helpful when you’re visiting relatives and get a flood sensor text on your mobile device.
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Garage Door Sensor: Leaving the garage open leads to all types of headaches. You can lose HVAC energy through that open door, and critters or intruders can just walk in. A remote sensor will text you about a neglected garage door and lets you lower it remotely.
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Temperature Sensor: A temperature sensor in your garage or basement is essential if you fret about frozen pipes. The temperature in these areas can be surprisingly different than the rest of the house, so you will want to keep a constant look on the temperature with your mobile app.
Home Perimeter Safety Checklist for Corpus Christi
Your yard, driveway, and front porch are just as imperative to secure as the inside of your house. Try this checklist to create a safe outside:
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Doorbell Camera: See who’s knocking on the front door before you open it and welcome guests. Get a visual on deliveries and record video clips if they are taken.
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Outdoor Security Camera: You can hang outdoor security cameras to alert you to unusual activity in your back yard. These devices come in handy in areas where you may not have a view -- like around a cellar or by the garage.
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Low Shrubs: Overgrown bushes can create some solitude, but they also obscure you seeing into the yard and curb. Don’t give potential intruders an area to hide. Plus, tall shrubs or greenery too close to your home can obstruct gutters and invite ants and termites.
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ADT Signs And Decals: One of the most popular discouragements for a break-in is advertising to aspiring intruders that you own a monitored ADT security system. An ADT sign by the stoop and a window cling will alert ne'er-do-wells that they ought to shove off to an easier house.
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Motion Triggered Porch Light Fixtures: Light is the greatest deterrent to people who skulk in the dark. Motion-triggered lighting on your porch, garage, or deck can help scare lurkers away. Flood lights also help you work the locks when you come to the house on those dark, winter nights.
Use Secure24 Alarm Systems To Help You Finish Your Home Safety Checklist for Corpus Christi
While Secure24 Alarm Systems can’t deliver each household item on your Corpus Christi home safety checklist, we can install a state-of-the-art security system. With alarms, security cameras, and home automation, we can customize the best system for your home’s needs. Simply contact (361) 223-9020 for more information or fill out the form below. Or personalize your own ADT system with our Security System Designer.