Hello! I am Colleen Driscoll. I am the owner of a childproofing company called Baby's Home Safe Home. Today we are talking about childproofing the kitchen. Right now I like to talk to you about electrical safety and the counter top. The first thing I like you to look at in your kitchen is all the cords. We want to make sure the children do not have access to any cords and we don't want children biting on cords, we also do not want children pulling a cord and pulling a dangerous item down on themselves.
I do recommend that you unplug all small appliances if you are not using and use cord wind-up devices so that you do not have cords dangling off the counter top. This is an example of a cord wind-up device. It allows you to hide cords. This is another electrical product that we use. If you have an outlet with something plugged in all the time, we prefer that you try to hide the plug. This is one way that you can do it. It is a cover that allows you to cover the plug so children can't see it.
If the plug is exposed children will want to crawl over and pull it out of the outlet. We want to remove their eyes from the plug by covering it with a small box cover. Larger versions are available for adapter plugs. Once again it is a great way to prevent children from pulling plugs out of the outlet. Remember the outlets are at their level. On the outlet we like to use sliding outlet covers. These are great devices instead of outlet caps. Sometimes children will pull outlet caps out of the wall. We don't want them putting them in their mouth.
The other thing with outlet caps is people often forget to put them back in the outlet when they are finished using it. With the sliding outlet cover, there is no small pieces to forget to put back in. Once you are finished using the outlet it will shut itself when you remove the plug. While we are talking about electrical safety I am sure child is exploring the outlets that are down at their level, they are probably going to find the vents on the floor. Sometimes they like to stick their fingers in; sometimes they like to remove the entire vent. We recommend taping them down with carpet tape. Remove your vent and place the tape on the underside on the vent and then re-secure.
Sometimes there are sharp edges inside and so it is important to make your vents are secure so your toddlers aren't playing with them. Other electrical products that you can use in the kitchen and around the house are surge protector or power strip covers. These are a couple of examples. We actually prefer you use these over extension cords. One problem with extension cords is that children may stick the extension part in their mouth when it is still plugged into the outlet that can be very serious. So avoid using extension cords in your home.
Now that we shared some electrical hazards, let's talk about some other hazards on the counter top. You might have sharp corners on your counter top, you can add corner cushions. Sometimes we add them on the top of the counter top; sometimes we add them on the bottom corner of the counter top. Other hazards on the counter top include dishtowels. If you have glassware or knives trying on a dishtowel your toddler may pull in that dishtowel and pull those dangerous items down on him or self.
Also sometimes parents will leave candles burning on the counter top. I do not recommend that you leave any candle burning in your home, especially with young children present. Sometimes you get distracted and you walk away and candles are a common cause of house fires. Also it is important for you to remember to keep matches a pie out of your toddlers reach. Once again I want to remind you to unplug the toaster oven and appliances. Also if you have a knife block on your counter top, try to hide it in a deep corner. You can turn it sideways or backwards to make it harder for children to reach the dangerous items.
Sometimes children like to imitate mom or dad. If they see you using scissors they might want to try to get this scissors off the counter top. Now that we are finished talking about electrical hazards and the counter top we are going to talk about door safety.
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