Home Safety Checklist For Tampa

Staying safe in your home should be your number one concern. But are you overlooking some big safety components? Use this home safety checklist for Tampa and see where your living space requires an update.

We give you a few whole-home safety items, and then we whittle it down room-by-room. Then, contact (813) 355-0757 or send in the form below to get your house ready.

General Home Safety Checklist for Tampa

While you will want to take a room-by-room method for home safety in Tampa, there are a few methods that work for the whole-house approach. These components can talk together through a touchscreen hub, and can even react to other things. You might also manage every one of your home safety devices with a smartphone app, like ADT Control:

Monitored Security System: All your entryways should use a sensor that alerts you to intrusion. As your alarm triggers, your monitoring agent answers the call and contacts a first responder.

Smart Lights For Every Major Room: Sure, you can schedule your smart lighting to become more energy-efficient. But smart lights can also help you remain safe throughout an emergency. Have your lights flip on when a sensor triggers to frighten off intruders or illuminate your way to a secure location.

Smart Thermostat: Like your smart lights, a smart thermostat in Tampa could save you up to 15% in gas and electric spending. But it also can turn on the exhaust fan during a fire.

Monitored Fire Alarms: At the very least, you need to have a fire detector on every floor. You can increase your fire preparedness by installing a monitored fire detector that senses excessive smoke and heat, and pings your 24/7 monitoring experts when it thinks that there’s a fire.

Smart Lock For Every Door: Every doorway that uses a keyed lock can use a smart door lock. Now you can assign key codes to friends and family and receive texts to your phone when your locks are used. Your smart lock can even automatically open, allowing you to quickly flee the house during an emergency.

Family Room Safety Checklist For Tampa

You’ll spend most of your time in the family room, so it can be the best area to start making your house safer. Highly sought after items, like a TV or video game console, usually sit in your living room, making it an alluring space for burglars. Start with placing a motion sensor or indoor camera in there, then try the following suggestions:

Motion Detectors: By installing motion detectors, you’ll hear a loud alarm if they sense unexpected movement in your family room. Look for motion sensors that aren’t set off by pets or you’ll have an alert each time your pet passes through for a drink of water.
Security Camera: An indoor security camera gives you an eye on your living room. Watch real-time feeds of the area so you can see what’s happening from the mobile app. Or speak with your kids when they get home from playing with the two-way talk feature.
Surge Protector/Outlet Maintenance: Safeguard expensive electronics and quit overburdening your outlets with a surge protector. For additional energy-efficiency, set up a smart plug with surge protection included.
Entertainment Center Secured To The Wall: If you have any small children, you’ll want to secure your bookshelves and entertainment center to your wall. This is extra crucial if your living room uses carpeting that could make objects extra unstable.
Special Locks For Sliding Doors: If your family room has a sliding door that opens to a deck, patio, or screened-in porch, you know that the door lock is fairly worthless. Use a special lock, like a bottom bar or small locks that bolt to the top and bottom of the frame.

Kitchen Safety Checklist For Tampa

Your kitchen has many items that should add comfort and safety to your home. Many of these items should be easy to add and can be bought from the a retail store:

Fire Extinguisher: A fire can happen from an unwatched frying pan or a faulty burner. Always store a fire extinguisher at the ready for any kitchen mishaps.
Circuit Interrupter Box On Every Outlet: A circuit interrupter outlet should be used everywhere they’re by water to prevent electrocution. That means the plug outlets around your sink and kitchen counter. Since the late ‘80s, it’s been code to have one circuit interrupter outlet per dedicated circuit. But if you don’t want your whole kitchen to go dead when one outlet surges, you’ll want to have a separate GFCI on each outlet.

Monitored Carbon Monoxide Detector: A CO detector is recommended for spaces that employ gas for the stove and oven. If your gas lines malfunction, the carbon monoxide detector will play a loud, buzzing siren and ping your monitoring center.
Cleaning Wipes Or Spray: The biggest safety hazard in the kitchen is the viruses, bacteria, and contamination from raw meat and vegetables. Always keep antiviral wipes or an antibacterial spray to sanitize your surfaces when preparing food.
Freezer and Refrigerator Alarm: The milk, meat, and perishables in the refrigerator have to remain at a cold temperature to be safe to use. If you leave the fridge or freezer door open, then a small beep will remind you to close the door. Some fridges already have this installed, older models won’t, and you’ll have to pick up a fridge alarm from the hardware store.

Bathroom Safety Checklist For Tampa

Just because you may not have a bunch of space in your bathroom there’s still safety hazards. From flood prevention to medicine care, here are five safety improvements for your bathroom:

Flood Sensors: A leaking sink or shower can create extensive damage. Find a leaking pipe with a flood detector and save hundreds to thousands of dollars from water damage.
Non-slip Shower Mats: A slip and fall in the bathroom can be painful, causing bumps, gashed heads, or trips to the hospital. You can prevent these problems with a no-slip bath mat for your wet feet.

No-slip Bathtub Stickies: Likewise, a tub can be a slick area to move in. Make sure every bathtub has some non-slip strips so your feet have a rough patch to grip.

Medicine Door Latch: If you have young toddlers or a family member with memory difficulties, you should take additional precautions regarding prescribed medicine. Secure your prescriptions by getting a medicine cabinet with a latch that locks.

GFCI Circuits: Similarly to the kitchen, you should also use a safer circuit interrupter outlet on every bathroom outlet. These will shut off the electric current if water splashes on them or there’s a harmful jolt from a hair dryer or curling iron.

Kid’s Bedroom Safety Checklist For Tampa

Your child’s bedroom should counterbalance safety with simplicity. If their window treatments or other things are safe but difficult to use, then your kids may try risky activities -- like climb a bookshelf -- to use them. Try these straightforward, and safe, ideas:

No Cord Window Coverings: Safety professionals have identified window treatment cords an unsuspecting problem for both children and pets. Use motorized blinds or shades that you can easily control through a remote. Or better yet, pair your motorized coverings to your security system so they rise on a schedule at dawn, and lower at bedtime for extra privacy.

Tableside Security Camera: A security camera placed on your child’s desk or dresser can behave as a baby monitor that you can view with your phone. And if they need your help, they can push the two-way talk button on the camera.

Outlet Covers: While every outlet should use covers on them for your small children, this is doubly needed in a child’s bedroom. It’s the one place in your house where your children will most likely hang out solo without consistent adult supervision.

Window Fire Ladder: If you have bedrooms on the second level, then you need to put in a window escape ladder. These will let a child leave the house in case the stairs or ground floor are blocked off with fire. Just remember to practice how to unfurl them a few times a year.

Toy Box Or Low Shelves: It’s weird to look at a toy chest as a safety component, but you’ll understand if you’ve ever stepped on a Lego in your stocking feet. A clutter-free floor gives your child a quick retreat when there’s a fire or break-in.

Master Bedroom Safety Checklist For Tampa

Your bedroom should be your calm space, so let your safety components make you more responsive if there's an emergency. After all, being jerked awake by a high-decibel alarm can be quite a shock.

Home Security Touchscreen: Having a smart hub on your dresser helps you know what’s what that noise was without leaving your bed. You could alternatively use your ADT phone app. However, the touchscreen is often easier to use to use when you’re coming out of sleep and finding your bearings.

Phone Charging Station: We depend on our cell phones for so many things now alarm clocks, web browsers, games, and sometimes even phones. However, an uncharged phone in the middle of the night cuts us off from communications if there’s a problem. So, a charging station or cord is should be used nightly.

Smart Lights Or Nightlights: A plug-in light can calm you when you’re jolted awake from an alarm or other sounds. If you won’t drift off to sleep with a nightlight, use smart bulbs in your bedroom. Then you can have light simply with a push of a button or vocal command.
Fireproof Lockbox: Store your vital paperwork like insurance cards, stock certificates, or banking information in a fireproof lockbox. This can be a large one that camps out in a corner or a slender handheld lockbox that you can grab when you leave during a fire or break-in.

Heat Sensor: The issue with most bedrooms is that they tend to be too warm or be cold because they sit across the house from the thermostat. A heat sensor will communicate to your smart thermostat so you should have a nice, peaceful sleep at a wonderful climate.

Basement/Garage Safety Checklist For Tampa

Most safety needs in the basement or garage have to do with your water or furnace. Seeing problems before they start can stave away larger problems later on. So, as you take a look around your garage or basement, pay attention to these critical items:

Flood Sensor Or Sump Pump Alarm: Placing a flood sensor by your water heater or sump pump can save you from wading into a pond when you go into your garage or basement. The last you need is to waste the weekend getting rid of standing water and salvaging all those soggy boxes.

CO Detector: It’s smart to install a CO alarm in a place where a CO leak can happen. If you use gas heat, you should hang a detector in the same area as your inbound pipes.
Wireless Water Shutoff Valve: If your water alarm finds a hot water heater leak or a broken pipe, then you will want to shut off the primary water pipe quickly. With a remote shutoff valve, you can turn off your water flow from any mobile device. That’s helpful when you’re on vacation and get a water leak text on your phone.
Garage Door Sensor: Leaving the garage door up leads to all types of problems. You can lose heat or air through that large opening, and rodents or lurkers can just saunder in. A sensor will text you about a neglected garage door and allow you to close it remotely.
Temperature Sensor: A heat sensor in your garage or basement is essential if you wonder about frozen pipes. The temperature in these rooms can be drastically different than the main part of the house, so you will need to maintain a close look on them through your mobile app.

Outside Perimeter Safety Checklist for Tampa

Your landscaping, drive, and front walk are just as crucial to make safe as the rest of your house. Try this checklist to defend your perimeter:

Doorbell Camera: See who’s at the the front step before you open it and talk to guests. Get a visual on packages and look at video clips if they are stolen.

Outdoor Security Camera: You can place outdoor cameras to guard against suspicious activity in your back yard. These cameras are especially useful in areas where you may not have a window installed -- like around a cellar or by the driveway.

Window Height Shrubbery: Overgrown shrubs can create some serenity, but they also obscure you seeing into the yard. Don’t give potential thieves an area to hide. Plus, high shrubs or foliage too close to your house can obstruct gutters and summon pests.
ADT Signs And Decals: One of the largest disincentives for a thief is advertising to potential intruders that you use a state-of-the-art security system. An ADT sign by the front door and a window cling will alert ne'er-do-wells that they ought to keep walking to an easier score.

Motion Activated Flood Lights: Light is the best deterrent to those who sneak around in the dark. Motion-triggered flood lights on your deck, patio, or garage can help scare lurkers away. Lights also help you get inside when you get to the house on those dark, winter nights.

Use Secure24 Alarm Systems To Help You With Your Home Safety Checklist for Tampa

While Secure24 Alarm Systems can’t help you with each household item on your Tampa home safety checklist, we can bring you a customized home security system. With easy-to-use devices and ADT monitoring, we can install the best system for your family’s needs. Just phone (813) 355-0757 to get started or fill out the form below. Or customize your own solution with our Security System Designer.