Everyone makes mistakes and that is just a fact of life, but the reality is that a lot of the mistakes that you can make that are the most devastating to your home can be completely avoided simply by paying attention to what you are doing. Some of the worst accidents conceivable can happen while you are inside your own home and no matter how careful you are, accidents will always happen, but one of the most important things that you can do while you are working in your home is to pay attention.
For example, when you are cooking in the kitchen, the worst thing that you can do is put something on the stove and leave it unattended. Maybe you get occupied doing other chores around the house or you have to answer the phone or tend to the kids in another room, but if you can put that off until later, never leave anything unattended on the stove for more than a few seconds. Houses have been badly fire damaged and even completely burned to the ground by leaving things unattended on the stove, especially grease. You should never begin heating grease on the stove and leave it alone. A relative of mine did this and sat down on her couch, fell asleep, and her entire house burned to the ground. Never leave the kitchen when cooking with grease unless absolutely necessary and never let yourself get preoccupied with other chores. It is just not worth the risk.
Another less immediate threat to your home is water. Water does not do the devastating immediate damage that fire can do, but this could possibly make it even more of a risk simply because you do not realize any damage is being done. Whether you are filling up the kitchen sink to wash dishes or filling up your bathtub, this is another area where getting preoccupied with other activities can get you into trouble. Doing your best to keep the sinks and tubs in your home from overflowing should keep your kitchen and bathroom floor pretty safe from water damage and mold growth.
Even if you do slip up and let a container of water overflow, you can keep it from doing too much damage to your floor by making sure the floor is waterproofed. You can do this by making sure that there are no cracks in the flooring, whether it is tile, linoleum, or anything else, no missing areas of grout, and no missing areas of sealant around the base of the cabinets.
Showing posts with label water. Show all posts
Showing posts with label water. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Carelessness Concerning Electricity and Water
All homeowners have been careless at one time or another concerning water or electricity in their homes, but unfortunately negligence is one of the leading causes of damage to homes in the country. You should not fail to take care of your property and do maintenance whenever needed, but you should also make it a point not to take unnecessary risks when concerning water and electricity. While water does not do much immediate damage to a property, fire certainly does and carelessness with electronic items can cause fires much more quickly than anything in the natural world.
Most house fires are caused by either failing to make sure that an appliance used on a daily basis is not in danger of having electrical shorts or due to an electrical device being left unattended when it should not be. Space heaters are particularly dangerous in this regard and should not be left on overnight or used with an extension cord that is not a heavy duty gauge of at least 14. They should also not be left on overnight unless absolutely necessary, since most house fires tend to happen when people are sleeping.
This is also the case when you are cooking with grease or oil of any kind in the kitchen. Houses have caught on fire and burned completely to the ground due to leaving oil or shortening to heat in the kitchen unattended. You should never leave anything you are cooking unattended on the stove, especially if it is grease or solid shortening. It catches on fire much quicker than you would think, so no matter what reason you may find to leave the room, you should either stay in the kitchen or turn the stove off.
Water damage occurs mostly when there are leaks from the outside of the home or the plumbing, but sometimes damage occurs due to carelessness, too. This can happen when you are running a tub of bath water or filling up the kitchen sink to wash dishes, but the fact is that people often become preoccupied with other chores or phone calls and allow them to overflow onto the floor. Whenever you run a large quantity of water into a container, you should always watch it to make sure that it does not overflow, since allowing it to do so on a regular basis can cause damage to the floor, especially if it is not waterproof.
Most house fires are caused by either failing to make sure that an appliance used on a daily basis is not in danger of having electrical shorts or due to an electrical device being left unattended when it should not be. Space heaters are particularly dangerous in this regard and should not be left on overnight or used with an extension cord that is not a heavy duty gauge of at least 14. They should also not be left on overnight unless absolutely necessary, since most house fires tend to happen when people are sleeping.
This is also the case when you are cooking with grease or oil of any kind in the kitchen. Houses have caught on fire and burned completely to the ground due to leaving oil or shortening to heat in the kitchen unattended. You should never leave anything you are cooking unattended on the stove, especially if it is grease or solid shortening. It catches on fire much quicker than you would think, so no matter what reason you may find to leave the room, you should either stay in the kitchen or turn the stove off.
Water damage occurs mostly when there are leaks from the outside of the home or the plumbing, but sometimes damage occurs due to carelessness, too. This can happen when you are running a tub of bath water or filling up the kitchen sink to wash dishes, but the fact is that people often become preoccupied with other chores or phone calls and allow them to overflow onto the floor. Whenever you run a large quantity of water into a container, you should always watch it to make sure that it does not overflow, since allowing it to do so on a regular basis can cause damage to the floor, especially if it is not waterproof.
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