Home Decorating News would like to welcome guest author Eric Stevenson, who was kind enough to offer these helpful tips and information on safety with home renovations and the possible hazards you need to watch out for.
Ensure Safety Before the Style
lighting fixture or a new color of paint. However, many of the biggest and most exhilarating home alterations can include committed changes, like removing walls, tearing out old fixtures and digging through layers of flooring. Some of the more mundane renovations you’ll likely need, especially with an older home, are the updates and removal of structural and internal dangers, like mold, inefficient insulation and wiring. While the installation of an impressive new oak door might look great, failing to modernize insulation around it will make those improvements purely aesthetic. Wiring, too, is especially important not just to your wallet, but to your safety as well. Older home wiring might not be able to withstand the increased power consumption of modern appliances, leading to electrical strain that can cause fire. In addition, many older homes contain outlets that are not grounded, which is again dangerous when families use appliances that require higher levels of electricity. These older, two-slotted outlets should first be replaced before homeowners take on any form of aesthetic improvement.
Chemical dangers, especially, are an important factor to consider when renovating your home and removing outdated materials. Because these dangerous chemicals are hard to spot, many families fail to take the
necessary defenses. One such dangerous chemical is lead. Since 1991, the United States has identified it as a huge health risk to children because it is easily absorbed into growing bodies. It’s widely known lead is present in older paints. However, it was also used in many other products as well, such as gasoline and pipes. Therefore, there are numerous ways homeowners, especially children, can risk exposure to this chemical if it is not properly removed. In addition to chipping paint, lead exposure can occur through the air, in the form of lead dust, in drinking water, in food or even in contaminated soil. Another common chemical in older homes is asbestos. A natural mineral once popular in the 20th century for many construction purposes, it also poses huge risks if exposure occur
s. Once popular because of its fireproof, heat resistant, and electrical-insulating nature, this material has since proven toxic. It poses a serious cancer threat when broken, jagged or shredded, allowing its release into the air and inhalation into the lungs. Although asbestos also received a lot of attention because of its dangerous nature, its commonness in past construction makes it an ongoing problem, especially as older homes are renovated and the aged mineral is exposed. Mesothelioma, the name of this disease, is a cancer that results from exposure to this chemical. If exposed, there are four different types of this disease, with the most common developing in the lining of your lungs. The worst part about mesothelioma symptoms is that they usually don’t show up until 20 to 50 years after your first exposure to asbestos.
Home renovation includes more than picking out paints, acquiring tools and freeing up several weekends to finish the project. It also includes collecting the knowledge to get the most from your improvements and keep your family safe as you dig through old walls and wiring. Only when you first plan for what you might encounter during these projects will improvements match expectations. It is then you will see your time, money and efforts were well spent and your excitement was justified.
Have fun with your next home renovation project, just make sure you keep safety in mind at all times. Nothing is more valuable than your well-being.
