Home Safety Checklist For Albany

Staying safe and secure in your residence should be your largest concern. But are you overlooking some big safety components? Use this home safety checklist for Albany and find out where your house needs an update.

This guide starts with five whole-house safety ideas, and then we break it down to specific room ideas. Then, you can call (518) 303-3311 or send in the form below to get your home set up.

General Home Safety Checklist for Albany

While you will want to take a individual room approach to home safety, there are a few methods that work for the entire house approach. These components can link together through a wireless hub, and often can work off one another. You might also control all your home safety equipment with a smartphone app, such as ADT Control:

Monitored Security System: All your doors and windows should employ a sensor that notifies you to intrusion. When your alarm triggers, your monitoring team answers the call and quickly sends emergency personnel.

Smart Bulbs For Each Room: Sure, you can schedule your smart bulbs to become more energy-efficient. But they can also allow you to remain safe in an emergency. Make your lights come on when a security alarm trips to scare off intruders or brighten the way out to a safe area.

Smart Thermostat: Like your smart lights, a smart thermostat in Albany should save you 10%-15% in gas and electric spending. But it also can flip on an exhaust fan when your alarms senses a fire.

Monitored Fire Alarms: At the very least, you should have a fire detector on each level of your house. You can improve your fire preparedness by hanging a monitored fire alarm that detects excessive heat and smoke, and pings your 24/7 monitoring agents when it thinks that there’s a fire.

Smart Door Locks: Every doorway that uses a keyed lock can upgrade to a smart lock. Now you can program codes to friends and family and receive alerts to your phone when the locks are activated. Your smart lock can even automatically turn off, letting you quickly leave if you have a fire or other emergency.

Family Room/Living Room Safety Checklist For Albany

You’ll hang out most in the family room, so it may be the most reasonable area to start your home safety makeover. Popular items, like your TV or video games, usually sit in your family room, making it an alluring room for thieves. Begin with placing a motion detector or indoor camera by the doorway, then try all these safety protocols:

Motion Detectors: By installing motion sensors, you’ll hear a high-decibel siren anytime they sense unexpected movement in your living room. Look for motion sensors that aren’t set off by pets or you’ll have your sirens go off each time your pet comes in for a drink of water.
Security Camera: An indoor security camera offers an eye on your family room. Watch real-time feeds of your room so you can find out what’s downstairs without leaving your bed. Or talk with your family when they come home from playing by using the two-way talk feature.
Surge Protector/Cord Maintenance: Make sure you protect all your electronics and stop overburdening your electric system with a surge protector. For extra comfort, use a smart plug with anti-surge functionality in the unit.
Heavy Furniture Secured To The Wall: If you have babies or toddlers, you’ll need to bolt your entertainment center or other heavy furniture to your wall. This is especially crucial if your living room has carpeting that might make objects extra unstable.
Special Locks For Glass Doors: If your family room has a sliding door that opens to a patio, deck, or outside porch, you know that the lock is pretty flimsy. Put in an enhanced lock, like a cross bar or small locks that bolt to the bottom and top of the opening.

Kitchen Safety Checklist For Albany

The kitchen has room for items that can provide safety and security to your house. Some of these objects should be simple to add and should be purchased from the a retail store:

Fire Extinguisher: A fire can happen from a neglected frying pan or a towel that’s too close to a burner. Always store a fire extinguisher at hand for any stove or oven emergencies.
GFCI Box On Every Outlet: A GFCI outlet should be standard on outlets where there’s nearby water to ward off an electric shock. That includes the plug outlets by your kitchen counter and sink. Since 1987, it’s been standard to have one GFCI per dedicated circuit. But all your plugs will go dead if any outlet sees a surge, so you’re going to want to have a single GFCI on each outlet.

Monitored CO Detector: A carbon monoxide detector is handy in the kitchen if you have natural gas for the stove and oven. If your gas burners spring a leak, the CO detector will cause a loud noise and ping your monitoring professional.
Clorox Wipes Or Spray: The biggest safety problem in the kitchen is actually bacteria and cross-contamination from blood from meat and vegetables. Always store antiviral wipes or a bleach spray to sanitize your counters before and after preparing food.
Refrigerator/Freezer Alarm: The milk, meat, and perishables in the fridge need to remain at a chilly temperature to stay safe to consume. If you leave the freezer or refrigerator door open too long, then an alarm beep will let you know so you can close the door. Some refrigerators already have a pre-installed alarm, older models don’t, and you’ll have to get a fridge alarm from the hardware store.

Bathroom Safety Checklist For Albany

Just because there’s not a bunch of space in your bathroom doesn’t mean that there aren’t safety issues. From flood detectors to electric safety, here are some safety improvements for your bathroom:

Flood Detectors: A leaking toilet or tub can create extensive damage. Find pooling water early with a flood detector and save the time and money from damage.
Textured Bathroom Mats: A slip and fall in the bathroom can be devastating, causing bumps, sore joints, or trips to the hospital. You can prevent these hazards with a no-slip bathroom mat for after your bath or shower.

No-slip Bathtub Strips: Another water hazard, a tub can be a slick surface to move in. It’s a good idea that each bathtub has some non-slip stickers so your toes have a textured patch to gain traction.

Medicine Door Latch: If you have curious children or a family member with memory lapses, you should take additional attention regarding medicine. Safeguard your bottles by installing a medicine cabinet with a latch that locks.

Circuit Interrupter Outlet: While installing better outlets in the kitchen, you should also put in a safer circuit interrupter outlet on every bathroom receptacle. These will shut off the electricity if they ever get wet or there’s a harmful jolt from a curling iron or hair dryer.

Child’s Bedroom Safety Checklist For Albany

Your child’s bedroom should balance safety with simplicity. If their window coverings or other things are safe but difficult to use, then your children may perform risky methods -- like shimmying up a chest of drawers -- to open them. Here are some simple, and safe, ideas:

Cord-Free Window Treatments: Safety agencies have long called corded window treatments a secret problem for children and animals. Install motorized treatments that your child can easily open and close through a remote control. Or even better, link your motorized coverings to your security system so they open without anyone’s help when it’s time to get up, and go down at night for added darkness.

Indoor Security Camera: An indoor security camera placed on your child’s desk can double as a high tech baby monitor that you can see with a mobile device. And when they want your help, they can hit the two-way talk button on the camera.

Plug Covers: While every outlet should have covers on them to protect your little children, this is especially important in their bedroom. It’s the one room in your home where your children will most likely be alone without parental supervision.

Window Fire Ladder: If you have bedrooms on an upper level, then you need to install a window fire ladder. These will help a child escape when the hallway or downstairs are engulfed in smoke and fire. Make sure to rehearse how to employ the ladder one or two times a year.

Toy Chest Or Low Bookshelves: It’s weird to look at a toy box as a safety device, but you’ll see the light if you’ve ever tramped on an action figure in your bare feet. A clean floor gives your child a quick escape if there’s a safety or security event.

Master Bedroom Safety Checklist For Albany

Your master bedroom should be a refuge, so let your safety components give you peace of mind when there's an emergency event. After all, being wrenched awake by a wailing buzzer can be disorienting.

Security System Touchscreen: Having a touchscreen on your bedside table helps you know what’s going on without leaving your bed. You could also use your ADT mobile app. However, the touchscreen may be easier to manage to use when you’re yawning and disoriented.

Device Charging Stand: We rely on our cell phones for almost everything now alarms, web browsers, games, and --legend has it-- even phones. The only problem is that a depleted cell can cut us off from reaching help if something goes wrong. So, a charging station or cord is an important part of your nightstand.

Smart Lights Or Nightlights: A plug-in light helps ground you when you’re bolted awake from an alarm or unexpected noises. If you won’t drift off to sleep with an outlet light, use smart bulbs in your fixtures. Then you can get light simply with a push of a button or vocal command.
Fireproof Safe: Keep your vital papers like birth certificates, stock certificates, or a spare checkbook in a fireproof lockbox. Your safe can be a bigger one that camps out in your closet or a smaller portable lockbox that you can grab on your way out during a fire or break-in.

Heat Sensor: The issue with bedrooms is that they can be too warm or be cold because they are located across the house from the thermostat. A heat sensor can talk to your smart thermostat so you will have a nice, peaceful sleep at just the right climate.

Basement/Garage Safety Checklist For Albany

Most safety issues in the garage or basement are with your water heater or heating system. Seeing issues before they start can prevent bigger disasters in the future. So, as you take a look around your basement or garage, pay attention to these crucial items:

Water Sensor Or Sump Pump Alarm: Installing a flood sensor in back of your water heater or sump pump can save you from finding a lake when you step into your garage or basement. The last you need is to lose the weekend getting rid of standing water and going through all those soggy boxes.

Carbon Monoxide Detector: It’s beneficial to hang a CO detector in an area where a CO leak can occur. If you use gas heat, you should install an alarm in the same area as your unit.
Remote Water Shutoff Valve: If your flood alarm senses a hot water heater leak or a busted pipe, then you will want to shut off the primary water line at once. With a wireless shutoff valve, you can turn off your water flow from anywhere in the world. That’s nice when you’re visiting relatives and see an emergency leak notification on your mobile device.
Garage Door Sensor: Leaving the garage open causes all sorts of problems. You can lose heat through that large opening, and all sorts of animals or lurkers can just saunder in. A remote sensor will notify you about a forgotten garage door and allow you to close it through the app.
Temperature Sensor: A heat alarm in your garage or basement is handy if you wonder about your pipes freezing. The temperature in these rooms can be drastically different than the rest of the home, so you may need to keep a closer eye on the temp by using your mobile app.

Outside Perimeter Safety Checklist for Albany

Your front yard, driveway, and front porch are just as important to secure as the rest of your home. Try the items on this checklist to create a safe outside:

Doorbell Security Camera: See who’s arrived at the door before you answer it and welcome guests. Get a visual on deliveries and look at video clips if they are taken.

Outdoor Security Camera: You can hang outdoor security cameras to guard against late night movement in your yard. These security cameras come in handy in places where you might not have a window -- like around a cellar or by the garage.

Window Height Shrubs: Tall foliage can offer some serenity, but they also hinder your line of sight of the yard and curb. Don’t provide potential thieves an area to hide. Plus, tall bushes, shrubs or trees around your house can clog gutters and invite pests.
ADT Yard Signs: One of the largest discouragements for a thief is advertising to would-be intruders that you use a state-of-the-art ADT security system. An ADT yard sign by the front door and a window decal will alert people that they should keep walking to an easier target.

Motion Controlled Porch Light Fixtures: Light is the greatest deterrent to people who sneak around in the dark. Motion-controlled lighting on your porch, garage, or deck can shoo lurkers away. Lights also help you work the locks when you get home late at night.

Use Secure24 Alarm Systems To Help Complete Your Home Safety Checklist for Albany

While Secure24 Alarm Systems can’t help you with every item on your Albany home safety checklist, we can install a customized home security system. With easy-to-use devices and ADT monitoring, we can install the perfect system for your home’s needs. Just phone (518) 303-3311 to get started or send in the form below. Or customize your own system with our Security System Designer.