Home Safety Checklist For Boise

Being safe in your home should be your largest concern. But are you missing one or two key safety components? Take this home safety checklist for Boise and see where your home can use greater attention.

This guide starts with a few whole-house safety ideas, and then we break it down to specific room ideas. Then, call (208) 242-4791 or send in the form below to speak to a security agent.

Whole Home Safety Checklist for Boise

While you will want to take a room-to-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 wireless hub, and can even react to other things. You can also manage every one of your home safety components using a smartphone app, such as ADT Control:

Monitored Security System: All your doors and windows should use a sensor that alerts your family to a break-in. After an alarm goes off, your monitoring expert responds to the call and quickly contacts a first responder.

Smart Lights For Each Room: Of course, you can program your smart lights to become more efficient. But smart lights can also help you keep safe during an emergency. Make your lights come on when an alarm goes off to frighten off robbers or brighten a path to a outside place.

Smart Thermostat: Like your smart lights, a smart thermostat in Boise can save you up to 15% in energy spending. But it also can flip on the exhaust fan when your alarms senses a fire.

Monitored Fire Detectors: It’s code that you will have a fire alarm on each level of your house. You can improve your fire readiness by installing a monitored fire detector that senses excessive heat and smoke, and pings your round-the-clock monitoring experts when it detects a fire.

Smart Door Locks: Every door that uses a deadbolt can upgrade to a smart lock. Now you can program codes to family and friends and get texts to your phone when they are activated. Your locks can even automatically unlock, allowing you to quickly flee the house during an emergency.

Living Room/Family Room Safety Checklist For Boise

You’ll spend a lot of time in your living room, so it may be the most reasonable place to optimize your home safety. Electronics, like your TV or stereo system, usually are located in your family room, making it an alluring area for burglars. Begin with installing a motion detector or indoor camera in your room, then take a look at the following safety protocols:

Motion Detectors: By hanging motion detectors, you’ll hear a high-decibel alarm whenever they sense unusual motion in your living room. Look for motion detectors that aren’t set off by a dog or cat or you’ll get an alert each time your pet comes in for a bite of food.
Security Camera: An indoor security camera puts a constant watch on your family room. Watch constant feeds of the area so you can know what’s going on from the mobile app. Or speak with your family in the family room by using the two-way talk feature.
Surge Protector/Cord Maintenance: Protect expensive electronics and quit overtaxing your electric system with a surge protector. For added energy-efficiency, install a smart plug with anti-surge functionality included.
Heavy Furniture Secured To The Wall: If you have curious kids, you’ll need to secure your bookshelves and entertainment center to your wall. This is especially important if your family room has carpeting that might make objects extra wobbly.
Enhanced Locks For Sliding Glass Doors: If your family room uses a sliding glass door that opens to a backyard, deck, or outside porch, you probably get that the door lock is usually worthless. Install a special lock, like a cross bar or small locks that secures the door to the bottom and top of the frame.

Kitchen Safety Checklist For Boise

Your kitchen has room for items that can bring comfort and safety to your house. Many of these items should be a snap to add and should be found in the Target or Walmart:

Fire Extinguisher: A fire can come from from a neglected frying pan or an errant grease splatter. Always store a fire extinguisher in close reach for any stove or oven emergencies.
Circuit Interrupter Box On Each Outlet: A circuit interrupter outlet should be used everywhere they’re by running water to lessen the chance of an electric shock. That includes the plugs around your sink and kitchen counter. For 30 years, it’s been code to have one GFCI per dedicated circuit. But if you don’t want your whole kitchen to go dead when one outlet trips, you’re going to want to install a single GFCI for every outlet.

Monitored CO Detector: A carbon monoxide detector is advised for the kitchen if you have gas for the oven and range. If your gas appliances spring a leak, the carbon monoxide detector will emit a loud, buzzing noise and call your monitoring professional.
Clorox Wipes Or Spray: The largest safety hazard in the kitchen is the invisible bacteria and contamination from uncooked meat and other foods. Always keep antiviral wipes or an antibacterial spray to scrub off your surfaces after preparing food.
Freezer and Refrigerator Alarm: The food items in your fridge need to remain at a cold temperature to stay safe to use. If you accidently leave the fridge or freezer door open too long, then a small beep will let you know so you can close the door. Some refrigerators come with a pre-installed alarm, some don’t, and you’ll have to pick up a refrigerator alarm from online.

Bathroom Safety Checklist For Boise

Just because you may not have a lot of square footage in your bathroom doesn’t mean that there aren’t safety hazards. From flood detectors to medicine care, here are a few safety ideas for your bathroom:

Flood Detectors: A leaking toilet or tub can lead to extensive water damage. Discover a leak with a flood detector before they cause hundreds to thousands of dollars in renovations.
Textured Shower Mats: A fall in the bathroom can be devastating, causing cuts, bruises, or trips to the hospital. Or steer clear from these issues with a no-slip bathroom mat for after your bath or shower.

Textured Bathtub Stickies: Likewise, a tub can be a slick area to be on. It’s a good idea that each has some non-slip stickies so your feet have a bumpy patch to gain traction.

Medicine Door Lock: If you have young children or anyone with memory lapses, you need to take extra precautions regarding prescribed medicine. Secure your pills and syrups by installing a medicine cabinet with a latch that locks.

GFCI Circuits: While installing better outlets in the kitchen, you should also use a surge protecting circuit interrupter outlet on every bathroom outlet. This will cut the electricity if they ever get wet or there’s a sudden jolt from a curling iron or hair dryer.

Children’s Bedroom Safety Checklist For Boise

A child’s bedroom should pair safety with accessibility. If their window shades or other things are safe but difficult to manage, then your child may perform risky activities -- like scale a chest of drawers -- to open them. Here are some straightforward, yet safe, ideas:

Cord-Free Window Treatments: Safety professionals have long called cords from shades and blinds a secret problem for both children and pets. Put in motorized blinds or shades that your child can easily control via remote. Or even better, link your motorized treatments to your ADT security system so they rise without anyone’s help when it’s time to get up, and go down at bedtime for added darkness.

Tableside Security Camera: A security camera sitting on your kid’s dresser can act as a baby monitor that you can see with your phone. And when they want something, they can push the intercom talk button included on the camera.

Outlet Covers: While every outlet should use covers on them to protect your young children, this is doubly needed in their bedroom. It’s the one place in your home where your children will most likely play solo without consistent adult supervision.

Window Escape Ladder: If you use bedrooms on an upper level, then you need to install a window fire ladder. These can help your children escape in case the hallway or lower levels are engulfed in smoke and fire. Just remember to practice how to unfurl them one or two times a year.

Toy Chest Or Low Shelves: It’s weird to look at a toy chest as a safety device, but you’ll get it if you’ve ever stepped on an action figure in your bare feet. A clutter-free floor let your child have a quick retreat when there’s a safety or security event.

Main Bedroom Safety Checklist For Boise

Your main bedroom should be your calm space, so let your safety devices make life easier if you experience an emergency. After all, being jerked awake by a loud siren can be confusing.

Security System Touchscreen: Having a smart hub on your nightstand lets you see what’s what that noise was without leaving your bed. You could always turn on your ADT mobile app. However, the touchscreen can be faster to use when you’re bleary-eyed and finding your bearings.

Phone Charging Station: We rely on our smartphones for so many things now alarms, internet searches, games, and sometimes even phones. The only problem is that an uncharged phone in the middle of the night cuts us off from the outside world if there’s a problem. To make sure your phone always works, a charging cord or station is an important part of your nightstand.

Nightlights Or Voice Activated Smart Lights: A small light can calm you when you’re startled awake from a siren or other noises. If you can’t fall asleep with an outlet light, use a smart bulb in your bedroom and hall. Then you can control light anytime with a push of a button or vocal command.
Fireproof Lockbox: Store your vital documents like insurance cards, medical information, or banking information in a fireproof lockbox. Your lockbox can be a large one that sits in a corner or a smaller handheld safe that you can grab when you leave during a fire or other emergency.

Heat Sensor: The issue with bedrooms is that they might be too stuffy or be frigid since they are far away from the thermostat. A temperature sensor will communicate to your smart thermostat so you should have a pleasant, relaxing sleep at just the right climate.

Basement/Garage Safety Checklist For Boise

Most safety issues in the basement or garage are with your pipes or HVAC system. Discovering issues at the source can prevent bigger emergencies in the future. So, as you walk around your garage or basement, check over these critical items:

Flood Sensor Or Sump Pump Alarm: Installing a flood sensor by your water heater and sump pump drain can save you from wading into a mess when you step into your garage or basement. Do you really want to spend your weekend bailing out water?

CO Detector: It’s beneficial to have a CO detector in a place where a gas leak can spring up. If you use gas heat, try to put a detector in the same room as your unit.
WiFi Water Shutoff Valve: If your water detector finds a hot water heater leak or a broken pipe, then you will have to shut off the primary water pipe immediately. With a remote shutoff valve, you can block water flow from your phone. That’s nice when you’re visiting relatives and get a water leak text on your mobile device.
Garage Door Sensor: Leaving the garage door open leads to all types of issues. You can waste heat through that gaping hole, and critters or lurkers can just saunder in. A remote sensor will alert you to an open garage door and lets you close it through the app.
Temperature Sensor: A heat sensor in your basement or garage is essential if you worry about freezing pipes. The heat in these rooms can be surprisingly different than the rest of the home, so you will want to maintain a constant look on the temp through your security mobile app.

Outside Safety Checklist for Boise

Your yard, driveway, and front porch are just as imperative to make safe as the rest of your house. Try the items on this checklist to defend your perimeter:

Doorbell Security Camera: See who’s knocking on the the front step before you answer it and chat with guests. Get a visual on package deliveries and look at video clips if they are stolen.

Outdoor Camera: You can install outdoor security cameras to alert you to suspicious lurkers in your yard. These security cameras are especially useful in areas where you might not have a window -- like around a cellar or by the driveway.

Window Height Shrubbery: High foliage can create some privacy, but they also hinder your view of the outside. Don’t give potential intruders a dark shadow to hide. Plus, large shrubs or trees around your structure can clog gutters and bring in ants and termites.
ADT Signs And Decals: One of the largest deterrents for home intrusion is telling aspiring burglars that you have a monitored security system. An ADT sign by the front door and a window cling will tell lurkers that they might want to keep walking to an easier score.

Motion Controlled Porch Light Fixtures: Light is the largest obstacle to people who skulk in the unlit places. Motion-triggered flood lights on your deck, patio, or garage can shoo lurkers away. Lights also help you work the locks when you come back home on those dark, winter nights.

Contact Secure24 Alarm Systems To Help You Finish Your Home Safety Checklist for Boise

While Secure24 Alarm Systems can’t help you with every item on your Boise home safety checklist, we can bring you a customized home security system. With everything from alarms to thermostats, we can install the best system for your house’s needs. Simply phone (208) 242-4791 to get started or send in the form below. Or customize your own solution with our Security System Designer.