The holidays are a wonderful time for family, friends, and partaking in age-old traditions. Whether you celebrate Hanukah, Christmas, or Kwanzaa, decorating your home for the holidays is considered mandatory for many households.
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As beautiful as those decorations are, they do come with risks. Lessen the chance of personal harm and damage to property. Keep your home and family safe throughout the season with these holiday safety tips:
Use The Right Lights For The Right Purpose
Don’t skimp on high-quality holiday lights and only use them as instructed. For example, never use indoor labeled lights outside as they are not designed to withstand the weather. Before you put up any lights check them for damage and broken lights. If damage is found, replace them.
Ideally, you should replace holiday lights every 6 years.
Keep Live Trees Away From Heat Sources
If you have a Christmas tree in your home, keep it away from heat sources such as the fireplace, heat vents, and stoves—especially if the tree is live. Heat sources dry live trees out faster (especially if they are not watered regularly) and can become a fire hazard.
Keep Decorations Away From Pets & Small Children
Children and pets are playful and curious. While they don’t necessarily mean harm, you should always keep decorations and lit candles out of their reach. This will help prevent accidents and injuries.
Take Care Of Your Window Treatments
It may look pretty to hang decorations from the rail of your window treatments or from the valance but avoid this. If too heavy, it can damage your window treatments. You should also keep any and all cords like those from a standard cordlock tied up and out of the way if you have older window treatments. You also want to avoid damaging the fabric of the shade when removing.
If you can, switch to a cordless lift system such as LiteRise®, motorized, and UltraGlide®. These options are easy to use, look amazing, and are safe for children and pets.
Use The Right Tools For The Job
Always use the right tools for the job when decorating for the holidays:
- Use a wooden or fiberglass—never metal—ladder for putting up lights and use a stable step ladder.
- Never staple lights to your home. This can damage the wiring. Instead, use zip ties.
- Always check extension cords for damage and age before use.
- Never daisy-chain extension cords together. This can overload the wiring and potentially start a fire.
Blow Out Candles
Blow out all candles and turn off the tree and lights before you leave your home or go to bed. This will give you peace of mind that your home and family will be safe while you are asleep or away.