Plug into Safety asks Electrical Safety Council
Once you become a parent it’s a good time to start thinking about the safety of your home and keeping you and your family safe. Now is really the time to stop fishing about in the toaster with the knife, turn off the bathroom light with wet hands or ignore the smoke coming out through the taped up vacuum cleaner.
The Electrical Safety Council (ELC) is urging families to Plug into Safety in light of Government statistics revealing how many incidents are caused by electricity. Every year, 70 people die and 1.2m are injured in electrical accidents in the home. The main cause of house fires in the UK is also due to electrical products.
Now the ELC is recommending that every home be fitted with a residual current device (RCD). Costing as little as ten pounds, the plug-in device switches the electricity off when it detects any potential danger.
The ELC aslo has the following tips for parents looking to keep on top of electrical safety in the home.
DO: Check you have RCD protection – An RCD is a safety cut-out device which will protect you from electrical shocks and fires. They are particularly important when using mains powered tools or electrical equipment outdoors. You can check to see if you have protection in your consumer unit (another word for fusebox) by looking for a red test or ‘T’ button. Plug-in RCD protection is available for under £10 from your local hardware store. For more information about RCD protection click here.
Check electrical items around your home – especially ones that are used near water or in the garden such as hedge trimmers. Make sure they are unplugged first and check:
All leads, flexes and plugs for imperfections, such as cracks and splits
There are no exposed wires coming out of the plug, and that the plug is not loose.
If you suspect something is unsafe, stop using it immediately. Weigh up the price of any repairs against the price of a new item.
Turn off electric games and appliances when they’re not in use – or when you go to bed. It is not only safer, but will save you money and is kinder to the environment.
Keep appliance cords out of the reach of children – especially those connected to hot items such as kettles, irons or hair straighteners
Leave it to the experts – Items such as washing machines and microwaves are particularly dangerous as they contain high voltage pieces of equipment. Washing machines should ideally be checked once a year by a service engineer.
DON’T: Wind leads around heated electrical items – such as hair straighteners and irons, until they have cooled down. Heat can damage the flex and increases the risk of a serious or fatal electric shock.
Stretch leads too far. Leads/flexes attached to personal vanity products can become damaged easily as people often stretch them to reach their mirror – so move your mirror or take extra care to check leads on these items regularly.
Attempt to clean electrical items whilst they’re plugged in. Whether it be your blender, toaster or a power tool, make sure it’s switched off before going near it with a damp cloth!
Mix water and electricity. Make sure children are dried off thoroughly after a bath or shower before going near any electrical appliances, keep drinks away from electrical items, and don’t let the kids go straight from the paddling pool into the house without getting them dried first.
Leave an unconnected appliance cord plugged in and switched on. For example, a mobile phone charger – young children may be tempted to put the end of the cord in their mouths.
Use an electrical item before checking that it is safe. Make sure it is unplugged first and check:
All leads, flexes and plugs for imperfections, such as cracks and splits.
There are no exposed wires coming out of the plug, and that the plug is not loose.
For more help and advice on electrical safety, visit: www.esc.org.uk/plugintosafety/index.html