Not only can a slip cause a painful injury, it can result in a costly medical trip. If you want to protect your bottom dollar—and simply your bottom—from a fall this winter, be sure to follow these important tips for inside and outside your home.
Indoor Slip Prevention Tips:
Keep Toys in Check
With winter coinciding with extra playtime indoors and more toys due to holiday gift giving, it may come as no surprise if your home feels overrun by toys. Remind children to keep their toys put away when not in-use and to avoid playing in high traffic or dangerous areas like hallways and stairwells. An errant toy could cause a nasty tumble for a distracted family member.
Clean Spills or Messes Promptly
Whether your hardwood or tile floor is covered in spilled food or muddy pawprints, wet messes on the floor do more than make the house untidy. Homes are particularly prone to these types of accidents during the winter season as holiday baking and wet winter storms come together to create more situations where messes can occur.
Outdoor Slip Prevention Tips:
Test Handrails
On your deck, balcony or stairwells, handrails are the unsung hero of slip prevention. However, they can only do their job if they are securely installed. Test your handrails to ensure they can support a falling adult and will not break or shift in the process.
Remove Overgrowth
Weeds, shrubs and other vegetation can slowly encroach on your paths and walkways. This can cause a problem any time of year, but when visibility is low on winter nights or during stormy days, a slip and fall is much more likely. Get rid of the problem by trimming vegetation and overgrowth before a problem occurs.
Preventing yourself, your family members or any visitors from tripping and falling may not be possible all the time, but a few easy maintenance tips can go a long way toward ensuring safety for everyone at your home this winter.