Bath Safety Tips

Bath safety should be your number one concern when you are remodeling a bathroom.

I was startled by a recent study I came across that revealed that one of the sorely ignored aspects of safety around the house was bath safety. Come to think of it, it is pretty obvious. Consider this... you have a substance like water from the shower, bath tub, toilet and sink.  Then, add to that...slippery tiles galore and lots of fixtures and bath fittings that can give you a knock in all the wrong places.

Now you can add to that equation electrical outlets for hairdryers and other appliances used in the bathroom and you can easily see how all of these factors together in one, usually small room, can lead to accidents and injury. 

The result is one of the most probable places for an accident at home.

Studies conducted in a cross section of American homes reveal that bath safety or the lack of it thereof is the most prominent cause of accidents at home. And the situation is unlikely to change unless there is a radical change in the way our bathrooms are engineered.

First and foremost, a bathroom needs to be dry in order to promise bath safety. Water... being a lubricant, removes the friction that we're used to when walking on dry floors. Almost all of us, despite the existence of items like ‘bathroom slippers’ prefer to go into the bath areas with our bare feet. The result is that there is less traction and more slippage, resulting in nasty falls which can sometimes be fatal.

Bathroom Fixtures

The next area where there needs to be a re-design is in the fixtures and fitting in the bathrooms.

More often than not, these are customized to cater more to the aesthetic than the functional and thus create probable death traps for unsuspecting users. Have you ever noticed how bathroom fittings keep getting more and more ornate? They come in a variety of materials, have sharp edges, and, in the case of some of the more contemporary design houses, come with sleek lines that are visually attractive, but can also cause unnecessary injury or even kill!  Fixtures are responsible for many head injuries and are a major contributor to the lack of bath safety.

Tiles

I am of the firm belief that the tiles are another aspect of the lack of bath safety. I am still to find a tile, porous, natural or even vitrified, that does not succumb to the lubricating properties of plain old water. In addition, since I'm discussing tiles...white or sheer black tiles create an additional problem in that it's difficult for a person to see if there has been any water logging. Surely not something you want to be caught on the wrong foot on!

Bath Safety For Children's Bathrooms

What good is having a cool looking kid's bathroom with primary colors, clown motifs and other things normally associated with children's bathrooms only to create an unsafe environment for your child?

When decorating and furnishing a child's bathroom safety has to be your first concern.  Here are some things to consider:

• Install hot stop valves.  This will prevent a child from turning the water to the hottest temperature.
• Skid-proof the tub and floors. Special bath tub decals add friction to the tub surface.  Trow out slippery area rugs and get rugs with a non-slip rubber bottom.
• Get shatter proof glass.  This is for tub a shower doors.  if you have kids you know how they can't help but bang into things.
• Lock cabinets.  Every bathroom contain items that need to be there but are dangerous for little children who love to explore.  Locking these items up solves that problem.
• Locking the bathroom door.  Make sure your child can't get locked in by palcing an external lock on the bathroom door.
• Remove electric appliances.  For a kid's bathroom, or any bathroom, it's much better to go with battery operated appliances.
• Round corners on countertops.  This prevents a child from seriously injuring his or her head on a sharp edged countertop corner.

Bath Safety Should Always Be Your First Consideration

I hope I've given you some helpful information on bath safety.  It really is important to make your home a safe and happy place to be.

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