Five Smart Ways to Test Your House for Security and Safety

After all October is home security and safety month too... Malone Home Center asks; What are you waiting for? A fire? A burglar? Check your home now!

Malone Home Center wants to discuss some areas in the home where you may not constantly check and maybe should.

1. Analyze Your Wood Stove or Fireplace

 

Fireplaces and wood-burning stoves can clearly help keep us warmer in the winter! Please DO NOT forget or dismiss to maintenance your wood stove or fireplace before you use them each year. If you have a fireplace, regular inspection or maintenance before you start it back up for the season may rule out an undesirable house fire. If you use your fireplace often – it may need cleaned more often. A few areas to peek at are the top vents, you might want to change them if they are old, damaged, or rusted, etc. Prove and test to see that there are no blockages in the chimney, by lighting very miniature pieces of wood and observe if the smoke rises and is not hindered by anything. Also, do not forget to inspect the outer part of the chimney for cracks and damaged masonry. If these are not fixed, these can leak combustion gasses inside, constructing a fire hazard.

If you are unsure of these things, have a professional maintenance your chimney. CSL (Creosote Sweeping Log) logs available at Malone Home Center do benefit and help improve your fireplace performance as it helps get rid of the buildup of deposits, which are both a fire hazard and a hindrance to effectiveness. Creosote is a dark colored residue that can be flaky and tar-like, all varieties of it are highly combustible and can create a fire. Always blaze seasoned firewood, no trash, no driftwood, treated wood, or artificial logs, for the best results and safety of your fireplace or woodstove.

Your wood stove safety is important too! Your wood stove should have a stack thermometer to aid in helping monitor the gases leaving the stove. This is necessary when checking efficiency and pollution control. Also, smaller fires as a matter of fact helps alleviate pollution and quality air control. Try to remind yourself to keep the ash cleared out, it helps oxygen better get to the fire to fuel it. The more insignifigant the smoke, the cleaner the burning will go. So go now and get your fireplace and/or wood stove in readiness for the bitter cold by buying helpful items at Malone Home Center today.

2. Secure Your TV To Avert An Accident

With slender televisions, they can lean and fall over easier, specially with children and animals running around. According Consumer Reports, 340 people have been killed from a television falling on them from the years 2000 – 2017. (https://www.consumerreports.org/product-safety/tv-tipovers-still-pose-danger-despite-lighter-flat-screens/)

It’s easy to prevent an accident. Install the specific Anti-tip hardware to your television soon with a few of these options:

• Wall mounting
• Anchoring furniture with anti-tip brackets
• Installing anti-tip straps on the back in non-mounted

Most local hardware stores should have a variety of brackets and fasteners if you plan to mount by a custom design.

3. Inspect Your Sidewalks

 

This may seem like an easy thing to do, but how many times do you consider that you have Inspected and then a person stumbles on an unequal part or there is nasty weather that showed up overnight and there is a disaster on the driveway?? After a while the cement can settle or buckle due to tree roots or other causes. If you detect some uneven or cracked areas, have them repaired by doing it yourself, or call a pro in the concrete business. If you are in a cold area, during winter be sure to have a snow shovel and/or ice melt ready to go. Our store is your place for cold season help. Just ask a friendly associate in the store for help with cement crack filler to repair your sidewalk or ice melt for bitter cold days.

  

4. Switch Your Locks & Door Knobs

If your locks are worn, old, or you have lost all the keys, it could be the day to upgrade your locks and door knobs. With the inflow of an assortment of smart locks on the market, finding the correct way to guard your home will depend on what is best for your family. Malone Home Center features smart locks with keypads, smart locks with touch screens, smart locks to use with your smart phone, and smart locks with hidden key options in an assortment of colors and styles. Do a little bit of exploration for which design is best for you. Few are special order only. But just ask an associate to aid you when at the store.

  

You can save money by re-keying your lock, instead of buying new. You could need to change out your lock due to a new renter, you lost your keys, or you need to change your keys for the lock. You might need to re-key your lock instead of buying a new one to save money. You will have to safely remove it from the door and bring it into the store, being the cost of doing this is far less than a new lock. Inquire with our hardware store in Greenville to see if they have this service.

 

5. Monitor Your Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors