Keep your home a happy welcoming place during the holidays

Today we have a few pointers on keeping your home warm and welcome through the holiday season.

Did you know that over 1000 people a year in the UK are hurt while putting up festive decorations in their homes? But a few simple steps from JustAnswer can prevent something nasty ruining the holiday period.

1) Always use a ladder or stepladder where necessary, and work as a team. Check your ladder carefully and make sure it is set up correctly before working from it. Have someone at the bottom of the ladder – and never hang decorations when you’re alone in the house. You’ll be preventing accident risks, and if something should happen, you’ll have someone there to help.

2) Christmas decorations and holiday lights need electricity!  Some lights run on LEDs these days, but many need to be plugged in. Plugging in lights or other decorations means lots of cords going to sockets, possibly in unfamiliar places. Trips and falls are a big cause of avoidable injuries.  Use masking tape to secure electrical cables close to the ground – this will prevent people from tripping over them.

3) More and more people are installing woodburners into their homes. A fireplace is a lovely thing – but beware burning paper or wrapping paper to get rid of it. What people don’t realise is that doing this can cause a serious chimney fire. Wrapping paper sometimes burns with a green or blue flame, likely caused by metallic pigments in the wrapping paper reacting with heat.  This can create airborne particles or toxic smoke that you wouldn’t want to breathe. The intense heat and lightness of paper can send burning fragments into the chimney and set it alight – and that’s one emergency you really don’t want this Christmas.

4) Don’t use nails or pins to hang lights. Do you know where your cables are in walls and floors? Not many people do – and yet every year some people use nails or tacks to pin up decorations and lights, risking breaking into a cable and causing electrical safety and fire hazards.  If your decorations are light – and you don’t want to cause too much damage to your walls – use Blu-tack or adhesive-backed hooks. Alternatively, use room features such as mantelpieces – and, of course, your tree – to set up lights for great effects.

Have more questions?  Get Expert tips and tricks on our blog or talk to a Home Improvement Expert to get specific answers about your home.