Fall Proofing Your Home Should Have Started Trending Years Ago

There is an entire list of things that caregivers obsess over from getting organic ingredients for the food they will prepare to ensuring the hygiene around the house so that the household members don’t get sick. What people often omit is taking precautions so that people don’t trip on wires and other accessories in the house. Making sure that the house is fall proof is an extensive task.

Here is how you assess your house to ensure there is nothing that would easily make an elderly or a child trip over.

Around the Entrances and Walkways

Start with checking the evenness of driveway surfaces and the front hallway. If there are handrails in the house, make sure that they are in good condition. Also, make sure you install light fixtures around the driveways and walkways.

The Interior Doors and Stairs

The carpeting that you have used for your staircase should not be in a pattern that confuses the onlooker. People should be able to see the change in steps and not be distracted by the optical illusion. If you have wires running around these areas, make sure you install protective cases and covers on them from a quality and endorsed brand like Tripsafe.

The Bathroom

This is one area of the house you have to give special attention to. You must make sure that the shower controls, drain plugs, and all the faucets are workable and not stiff as it can make a person exert more pressure and put themselves at risk of losing their grip on the tiles. Identify the hot water pipes and make sure you cover these. You also have to ensure that the mirror height is appropriate, and that the occupants don’t have to stand on their toes to view themselves or crouch. Consider installing a bath bench and grab bars for shower and tub access. Or as an alternative, you can browse these walk in bathtubs that might be more of a help to an elderly family member, especially if they are suffering from a disability. And lastly, you must ensure is that there is proper lighting in the bathroom.

The Kitchen

You must ensure that the kitchen is lit adequately. The best thing about the kitchen area is that you can play with task lighting here, which means you save money that you would have otherwise blown away on light fixtures. Other things you have to ensure to avoid anyone tripping in the kitchen is if the storage shelves, counter tops and other surfaces that anyone would have to reach frequently are within reach. Prioritize the most used items to be right in front of the person and not stored somewhere on the top shelves where they have to stretch themselves and reach out.

The Living Room, and the Bedroom

Make sure that if you have elderly people in the house, all the chairs in the rooms have arms, or at least most chairs do so that they have something to support them as they get up. You also may want to invest in a non-slip pad and a rug tape to ensure that no one trips here.