Florida Summer Safety Tips

Driving Safety:

As traffic on the roads increases during the summer months, keep in mind the safety tips below.

• Refrain from using your cell phone while driving
• Put your cell phone on silent or in the glove box to avoid temptation
• Safely pull over and put the vehicle in Park to take or make a call
• Always wear a safety belt – every trip, every time
• Make sure every passenger is wearing his or her safety belt before you begin your drive
• Children should sit in the back and use the proper child safety seat or booster seat
• Never leave a child or pet unattended in a vehicle, especially during hot weather
• If you plan to drink, designate a non-drinking driver
• If there is a young driver in your family, strictly enforce a zero tolerance policy with alcohol – all states have a 21-year-old drinking age law
• Never get in the car with an intoxicated driver
• Avoid aggressive driving by keeping your emotions in check and focusing on your own driving
• Don’t tailgate or flash your lights at another driver
• Listen to this podcast for tips on driving safely in the dark

Drowning:

In 2010, unintentional drowning claimed the lives of 3,600 people.

• When visiting a pool, water park or body of 
  water this weekend, pay close attention to children at all times – a lifeguard may be present, but they should not be considered a babysitter
• Teach your children to never swim alone or dive into unknown bodies of water and to always use approved flotation devices
• Avoid using alcohol in and around the water – according to CDC, among adolescents and adults, alcohol use is involved in up to 70% of deaths associated with water recreation, almost a quarter of ED visits for drowning and about one in five reported boating deaths

Hot Weather:

• Nice weather is ideal for celebrations 
  but can present serious hazards, especially to children and the elderly.
• Heatstroke and heat exhaustion are serious, life-threatening illnesses characterized by an extreme rise in body temperature
• If you are concerned that someone is suffering from overheating, move them to the shade and call for emergency assistance, if necessary

Shared from:  http://ffinsbr.com/Blog/resources-links/summer-safety-tips/

TEN WINTER FIRE SAFETY TIPS

Most home fires are preventable, but sometimes common sense isn't so common. According to the National Fire Protection Association, it's not too early to protect your loved ones and your home from fire damage, by simply following sensible suggestions.

1. Have your furnace checked. It's worth the money to hire a professional to inspect and service your furnace once a year. If it's going to conk out, it's better to know trouble is coming.

2. Have your chimneys and vents checked. Fireplaces produce creosote which can ignite. If you light fires frequently, you need a chimney sweep service once a year. When you burn wood, make sure it's dry and seasoned so that it produces more flame and less smoke.

3. Test smoke alarms. Make sure batteries are fresh. Place smoke alarms in the kitchen, laundry room and in bedrooms.

4. Cover the fireplace with a screen. Tempered glass or a metal screen helps protect sparks from leaving the fireplace. Even so, make sure that children and pets sit at least three feet away when you light a fire in the fireplace.

5. Beware of lit candles. Candles can set the mood for relaxation, and that's how they get forgotten or knocked over by kids or pets. Light candles only when you're around to watch them and blow them out when you're ready to leave the room. Ditto for cigarettes, pipes, etc. If you're going to smoke, try to do it outside.

6. Beware of space heaters. The name should give you a clue -- space heaters need space. Like fireplaces, people and pets should not be allowed to sit any closer than three feet. Don't put space heaters near curtains, tablecloths or other fluttering fabrics. Make sure the space heaters you buy have automatic shut-offs before reaching dangerous temperatures.

7. Know how to put out kitchen fires quickly. Water doesn't help a greasefire, which can get out of control. Keep salt and baking soda on hand to sprinkle liberally on pan fires. Keep lids handy to put on top of pots and pans that get too hot.

8. Practice an escape route. Businesses have fire drills, your family should, too. Teach your family to crawl to the nearest exit from every room. Show them how to drop and roll if their clothes were ever to catch on fire.

9. Fire extinguishers can be life-savers. Store one under the kitchen sink, and in the hall closet near the bedrooms. Make sure you use the correct setting -- A for paper, wood and trash; B for grease and flammable liquids; C for small electrical fires.

10. All household members should know 911. You've heard the stories -- the four-year old who saved his grandmother's life with a 911 call. In a fire, every person in the home can be a potential hero if they know what to do.

Reposted from:  http://realtytimes.com/consumeradvice/homeownersadvice1/item/32355-20150109-ten-winter-fire-safety-tips

Home Security

While it's difficult to protect your home from professional thieves, most home burglaries are done by amateurs. These thieves are more easily thwarted if you employ some of these simple security precautions:

• Plan to "burglarize" yourself. You'll discover any weaknesses in your security system that may have previously escaped your notice.
  
• Lock up your home, even if you go out only for a short time. Many burglars just walk in through an unlocked door or window.
  
• Change all the locks and tumblers when you move into a new house.
  
• For the most effective alarm system, conceal all wiring. A professional burglar looks for places where he or she can disconnect the security system.
  
• Your house should appear occupied at all times. Use timers to switch lights and radios on and off when you're not at home.
  
• If you have a faulty alarm that frequently goes off, get it fixed immediately and tell your neighbors that it's been repaired. Many people ignore an alarm that goes off periodically.
  
• A spring-latch lock is easy prey for burglars who are "loiding" experts. Loiding is the method of slipping a plastic credit card against the latch tongue to depress it and unlock the door. A deadbolt defies any such attack. It is only vulnerable when there is enough space between the door and its frame to allow an intruder to use power tools or a hacksaw.
  
• If you lose your keys, change the locks immediately.
  
• Before turning your house key over to a professional house cleaner for several hours, make sure the person is honest and reputable as well as hardworking. Check all references thoroughly. If the house cleaner is from a firm, call your local Better Business Bureau to check on the firm's reputation.
  
• Instead of keeping a spare key in a mailbox, under the doormat, or on a nail behind the garage, wrap the key in foil -- or put it in a 35mm film can -- and bury it where you can easily find it if you need it.
  
• Don't leave notes for service people or family members on the door. These act as a welcome mat for a burglar.
  
• If the entrances to your home are dark, consider installing lighting with an infrared detector. Most thieves don't want to be observed trying to get in a door.
  
• Talk to your neighbors about any suspicious people or strange cars you notice lurking about.
• To keep your tools from being stolen, paint the handles. Thieves avoid items that are easy to identify.
  
• Trees located near windows or shrubbery that might shield a burglar from view can be major flaws in your home-protection plan. Consider your landscaping plan in light of your protection needs.
  
• Ask for credentials from any sales-person who requests entry to your home. Ask that their ID be pushed under the door. Many professional burglars use this cover to check out homes. If you're doubtful, check with the person's office before letting him or her in.
  
• Do not list your full name on your mailbox or your entry in the telephone book. Use only your initial and your last name.
  
• If someone comes to your door asking to use the phone to call a mechanic or the police, keep the door locked and make the call yourself.
  
• Dogs are good deterrents to burglars. Even a small, noisy dog can be effective -- burglars do not like to have attention drawn to their presence. Be aware, however, that trained guard dogs do not make good pets. Obedience training and attack training are entirely different, and only the former is appropriate for a house pet.

Securing Doors

• To help burglar-proof your home, install 1-inch throw deadbolt locks on all exterior doors.
  
• A door with too much space between the door and the frame is an invitation for the burglar to use a jimmy. Reinforce the door with a panel of 3/4-inch plywood or a piece of sheet metal.
  
• If there are door hinges on the outside of your house, take down the door and reset the hinges inside. Otherwise all a thief has to do to gain entry to your home is knock out the hinge pin.
  
• You can burglar-proof your glass patio doors by setting a pipe or metal bar in the middle bottom track of the door slide. The pipe should be the same length as the track.

• It's easy for a burglar to pry through rot. Replace rotted door frames with new, solid wood.
  
• It's simple for a thief to break glass panels and then reach in and open a doorknob from the inside. A door with glass panels should be either fortified, replaced, or secured with deadbolts that can only be opened with a key.

Securing Windows

• Protect your windows with one or more good locks, an alarm system, burglar-resistant glass, or many small panes instead of one large area of glass.
  
• When installing a window lock, drip some solder on the screw heads. It will stop a burglar from unscrewing the lock after cutting a small hole in the windowpane.

In the next section, we'll focus on the special steps to take to keep your home secure while you're away.

Garage Security Garages present special challenges for security. Here are some tips for keeping your garage secure.

• If you frost or cover your garage windows, burglars won't be able to tell if your car is gone.
  
• Keep your garage door closed and locked even when your car is not in the garage.
  
• Install a peephole in the door separating the house from the garage. If you hear suspicious sounds, you can check without opening the door.
  
• Are you worried about someone entering your house through your attached garage? If the garage door lifts on a track, a C-clamp can provide extra security since the door cannot be opened if you tighten the C-clamp on the track next to the roller.