Moving into your new home is one of the most exciting days of your life; this is even truer if it is your first home.
However, in all the excitement it is important to take a moment to look at your new home before you settle in and do some basic safety checks. This will ensure you and your family stay healthy and happy in your new home.
Here are some of the safety checks you should perform as soon as possible:
Electrical Check
It is possible that you will have had the electrics checked between making your offer and completing your house purchase. However, it is still worth visually checking all the sockets and getting a professional in to verify any areas that concern you.
You can click here to locate a great electrician in the area and get your inspection done.
Smoke Detectors
Your new home should be fitted with smoke detectors; if there aren’t any then you need to get them fitted straight away. The simple fact is that smoke detectors save lives; they give you the opportunity to get out of your home or maybe even to put a fire out.
Test the smoke detectors in your home as soon as you move in.
Carbon Monoxide
In many ways this is more important than your smoke detector. You can see fire and its smoke but you can’t see or smell carbon monoxide.
Exposure to this gas will leave you feeling groggy, dizzy and tired. Ultimately it can even kill you. Check the carbon monoxide detector straight away!
Fire Extinguishers
If your new home has fire extinguishers then you should verify that they have been inspected recently and the pressure is right.
This will ensure they can be used if you do have a fire.
Dryer Vent
If your dryer vents through a pipe to the outside world then you need to check the vent built into the wall. It is possible there is a buildup of lint; which is highly flammable.
Check and clean it when you first move in and a couple of times every year to reduce the risk of fire.
Plan A Way Out
If disaster does strike you need to know how to get out of your house fast. This fact is often overlooked but it is especially important if you have children; they are unlikely to know their way out when the house is full of smoke and they are disorientated.
Sit down together and work out the best way of getting out of the home and then practice the escape route.
Visual Inspection
As a final safety check you should walk round your new home looking for any signs of issues; this could be damp rising from the floor, a soft floorboard or even a door that sticks.
Identifying them straight away means that you can resolve the issue before it becomes a problem.
