June Is Home Safety Month

June is home safety month and as your local electric cooperative, safety is deeply ingrained in everything we do. Electricity is all around us and it has become so commonplace that people often forget the importance of using electricity safely. To help keep your household safe around electricity, be sure to follow these tips.

Be Aware Of Wiring Dangers

According to the US Fire Administration, faulty home electrical wiring causes more than 24,000 residential fires a year. Keep an eye out for areas in your home where you’re frequently tripping breakers, as this could be a sign the circuit is overloaded or an appliance is faulty.

Extension cords can also be a culprit of electrical issues, so remember when using an extension cord, be sure to:

• Avoid kinked, twisted, and crushed cords.
• Place the cord in low-traffic areas, not where it could be walked on, tripped over, or damaged. This includes running a cord under a rug.
• Do not pull the cord, pull the cord’s plug directly.
• Avoid water and heat near cords.
• Use heavy-duty rated cords for power tools.
• Use a weather-resistant cord for outdoor use.
• If an appliance requires grounding, use a three-wire cord with a three-prong plug.

Educate Your Youngsters About Electricity

Whether indoors or outside, electricity can cause a shock to us all, so it’s important to ensure all ages know how to identify electrical hazards and understand energy basics. Make sure that kids know to never put anything into an outlet, including fingers, toys, or other objects. If you have young children, outlet covers can help reduce the chances of accidental shocks. Outside, be sure that kids know the dangers of both above ground and underground powerlines. Check out our Kids Corner for electrical safety activities for kids and to learn more about our electrical safety demonstrations.

Pet Proof Your Home

Pets can be just as curious as young children and don’t always listen. Some things you can do around your home to help keep animals safe from electrical shocks or other electrical hazards include:

• Keep combustibles away from heating appliances — things such as candles, spaces heaters, and more can be knocked over by a curious animal and cause a safety hazard.
• Unplug appliances when not in use — playing animals can accidentally pull cords, knocking the appliance over, or even chew on exposed wires, leading to an electrical shock.
• Treat animals like small children — if you would remove a hazard for a small child, do the same for your pets!

Use Appliances Safely

There are a variety of appliances in our homes that help make our lives easier. When using these appliances, be sure to help keep yourself safe by considering the following:

• Use a ground fault circuit interruptor (GFCI) to automatically shut off power to an outlet. Install these outlets near water, like in outdoor areas or in your bathroom, kitchen, and laundry room.
• Clean appliances to ensure no foreign debris causes issues and that appliances operate correctly. Make sure you unplug appliances before cleaning them.
• Keep electrical cords out of high-traffic areas including walkways and doors.
• Replace fuses and light bulbs with correctly sized fuses, amperage, and watts.
• If you rent and the use of an appliance causes it to feel hot or the power to trip off, report it to your landlord immediately.

Check out more electrical safety tips here.