General indoor safety tips
Periodically, do a quick safety check around your home to make sure your appliances and wiring are in good shape. Here’s are some tips
Appliances
- Do not use electric appliances when you are taking a bath or standing near a sink.
- Never use any electric appliance on a wet surface, while wet or standing in water.
- Make sure your hands are dry when using an appliance.
- Use electrical appliances with three-pronged plugs.
- Use appliances with the Underwriters’ Laboratories (UL) symbol.
- Never hang clothes or place furniture near an electric heater or hot plate.
- Keep electric heaters at least four (4) feet from furniture and drapes.
- Keep electric heaters on a level non-flammable surface.
- Never go to sleep with a heating pad or space heater turned on.
- Never place appliance cords where they will come into contact with the stove or other heated surfaces.
- Unplug all electrical appliances when not in use.
- Unplug all electrical appliances before repairing or cleaning.
- Unplug an appliance that has fallen into water before attempting to retrieve it.
- Turn off a light before replacing the bulb.
- Never pull out an electrical plug by the cord.
- If your smoke detector runs on electricity, have a battery backup in case of a power failure.
- Do not touch an electrical appliance with a metal object.
Wires, Fuses and Outlets
Do not stick any object other than an electrical plug into an outlet.
Replace frayed or cracked electrical cords with new ones; you can purchase these at your local hardware store.
Keep electrical cords out of traffic areas in the home.
Keep electrical cords out from under rugs and heavy furniture.
Do not overload outlets with too many appliances; instead, make use of other outlets in the room.
Use extension cords minimally.
When outside, use only extension cords that are approved for outdoor use.
Use a long extension cord. It is better than using several shorter lengths.
When replacing circuit breakers and fuses, use the correct size device.
Protect outdoor outlets with protective, weatherproof covers.
Hire an electrician to install a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) in your bathroom and kitchen where appliances are used near water.
Hire an electrician to install GFCIs on all outdoor outlets.
Keep outdoor wiring on a separate circuit.
Know the location of the main electrical switch in the home.
Never force a plug into an outlet.