Home Safety: How to Make Your Stairs and Staircase Safer
Home Safety: How to Make Your Stairs and Staircase Safer
Carpet
Stairway carpet can detract from home safety in more ways than one. Stairway carpet, more than any other carpet in your home, gets the most traffic when you have a busy family that is constantly going up and down the stairs.
After years of use, a stairway carpet can become home to dust and allergens. A stairway carpet is more difficult to clean and keep clean than other carpets in your home.
1. Old Carpets and Respiratory Safety
The old carpet can be a hidden source of pet dander, mold, and years or even decades of dust and dust mites. When considering home safety and the stairway also consider your family’s respiratory health and allergies.
For these reasons old carpet should be removed.
2. Replace Worn or Threadbare Carpet
Worn carpet can be come slippery. When carpet is worn down, shoes and feet can easily lose their grip. Even if the carpet is only worn on the bottom steps or the top steps, it’s best to replace the entire carpet on the stairway.
Wood Stairs
Wood stairs can be safer in the sense that the wood will not collect dust and allergen like carpet does. Wood stairs do pose their own unique home safety hazard, as they can be slippery if not treated properly.
Wood stairways can be made safer in a number of ways.
1. Use Non-Skid Tape
Non-skid tape is a safe and easy way to make any home stairway safer. The downside is that the non-skid tape will detract from the beauty of wood stairs. Non-skid tape is narrow and can be applied to cleans stairs.
2. Attach Non-Skid Pads
Non-skid pads provide more skid protection than non-skid tape.
3. Stair Treads
For full stair coverage, consider installing stair treads. Each stair treads covers the step the corner of the step and the top vertical portion of the stair. Stair treads come in different styles and colors. Some stairs tread have a curved nose and others have a square nose covering the outer angle of the step.
More Stairway Safety Features
Making stairways in homes safe goes beyond the actual steps. You may also need to consider installing gates, railings and additional lighting to make the stairways in your home safer.
Gates
When small dogs or small children live in house, it’s important to install gates both at the top of the stairs and at the bottom of the stairs. A gate at the bottom of the stairs will keep small children and curious dogs from climbing the stairs on their own.
A gate at the top of the stairs further enhances stairway safety in your home. Opt for a gate which actually screws into the wall.
Railings
Ensure all railings are affixed tightly and securely on all stairways, for the best home safety. Replace or repair broken railings. Add an additional railing to both sides of the stairwell, if only one side has a railing.
Lighting
Install additional lighting if the stairways in your home are too dark.
Replace light bulbs with a higher wattage if needed
These are easy DIY home projects that anyone can use to make the stairs in their home safer.
