Child Safety Tips: Childproof Your Home HVAC, Plumbing and Electrical Systems 

As a parent, nothing is more essential than ensuring your child’s safety. As soon as your little ones start crawling, it seems like your entire home feels like one big hazard! The HVAC, plumbing and electrical systems are very concerning. With this guide from the Experts at Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing, you can ensure your home’s essential systems are adequately babyproofed—which is one less thing to worry about!

Hands Off Your HVAC Vents and Registers

HVAC registers that fit over the air vents throughout your home often prove to be irresistible areas for small children. Here are ways to keep them safe:

• Fasten registers: If your floor or wall registers fit loosely, screw them in place so they won’t come off.
• Install childproof vent covers: These use a thin screen to prevent small objects from falling inside without blocking airflow throughout your home.

Block Access to the Thermostat

Kids tend to zero right in on buttons and screens, which makes the thermostat a potentially fun and exciting plaything. Follow these tips to stop little family members from creating temperature control issues in your home:

• Move the thermostat away from children: The thermostat should be installed at a level high enough where kids can’t easily reach it. Avoid placing furniture near it that could invite kids to climb up for a closer look.
• Lock down the controls: Some thermostats feature child-lock functions to prevent anyone from fiddling with the settings. If yours doesn’t have this feature, consider investing in a thermostat cover that stops curious kids from adjusting the temperature.

Make Your Utility Room Safe

If your HVAC system is located in your home’s basement or utility closet, this is an extremely important place for babyproofing. These are no places for [babies|children|infants or toddlers|any child}, so use these tips to keep them safe:

• Install doorknob covers: If a home’s utility area is enclosed, you have an easy task. You can put a childproof cover on the doorknob to keep your kids from opening the door to the room.
• Add a safety gate: If your heating and cooling equipment is in an open area, put up a safety gate to block curious crawlers from getting too close to your furnace or water heater.
• Inspect the carbon monoxide detectors: Every home should have at least one carbon monoxide detector on each floor, especially if you have gas appliances. However, plug-in versions are simple for kids to reach. Consider placing combination CO/smoke detectors on the ceiling for better safety.

Ways to Prevent Hot Surface Burns for Children

In many homes, the threat of burn injuries isn’t limited to the utility room. Here are other ways to shield your child from the dangers of hot surfaces:

• Place heat guards: Use a baby gate or specially designed heat guard around radiators, baseboard heaters or fireplaces to build a barrier between toddlers and potentially dangerous hot surfaces.
• Avoid space heaters: A professionally adjusted and maintained heating system should comfortably heat every room in your home, and there should be no requirement to use a space heater to endanger curious kids.

How to Childproof Your Electric System

We all need electricity in our homes, but electricity also poses safety hazards for children. Here’s how to childproof your home’s electrical setup:

• Install outlet covers: Building code mandates that new receptacles be tamper resistant. If you have old outlets, you can retrofit them with outlet covers. Choose sliding covers instead of plug-in styles, because determined toddlers can sometimes take off the plug-in styles.
• Hide cords: Exposed cords are a pulling risk. Use cord concealers or tape them down along the baseboards. Power strip covers are also important for preventing little fingers from reaching the sockets.
• Keep the electrical panel secured: If your electrical panel is somewhat low to the ground, make sure it’s firmly closed and locked to stop inquisitive kids from accessing it.

Increase Plumbing Safety

Babies love playing in water. That’s why it’s so vital to make sure they stay safe around home plumbing fixtures like basins, tubs and toilets. Try these safety tips for plumbing systems:

• Set the water temperature: Set your water heater to 120 degrees F to prevent scalding at the tap. However, be careful not to turn the temperature down any colder than that, or you risk microbial growth in the tank.
• Add a faucet cover: Has your baby ever hit her or his head on the bathtub faucet? Soft covers are an easy way to avoid this sort of injury.
• Try using toilet locks: Babies are often intrigued by the toilet. A special lock keeps little ones from accessing unsanitary water or tossing toys inside, which can cause pipe clogs.

Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing: Your Trusted Partner for the U.S. HVAC, Plumbing and Electrical Services

With these babyproofing tips, you can easily create a safe environment in your home. At Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing, we’re honored to help parents protect their families with efficient HVAC, plumbing and electrical services in the U.S.. We are proud to follow our motto of making a meaningful difference in the lives of every family member we serve—even the little ones! Contact Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing at 866-397-3787 today for exceptional workmanship and customer service.