House safety tips

For most of us, our house is a really important part of our daily lives, it’s the place we return to at the end of the day and call home, a place we take care of and want to keep safe. You would do an annual WOF on your car, so what do you do to keep your house safe too?

You’re probably already checking your smoke alarm to make sure it’s working? Or perhaps cleaning your gutters, so they don’t overflow and locking your doors when you leave home, right? But what else could you do?

Here are some handy tips to help keep your house safe*:

• Have your chimney swept each year by a qualified chimney sweep to keep it free of debris, and if you have a heat pump or dehumidifier check the filters regularly too¹.
• Get an expert in to help! If your hot water cylinder has leaking pipes or needs replacing, don’t attempt to DIY it, contact a registered plumber to get it fixed to avoid a leak ruining your day².
• Flickering or buzzing lights or scorch marks near power sockets may mean you have an electrical problem which could cause a fire if left unattended. Ring a registered electrician right away and get them to check it out³.
• Check that you don’t have a leak. Turn all your water off and then back on again a few hours later. If your water meter shows the reading has changed, you may have a leak that needs fixing⁴.
• A key one to watch is making sure that you aren’t plugging too many items in to one power socket at a time or relying on extension cords, as this could cause a fire. If you need more outlets, get them installed safely by a registered electrician⁵.

Important information:

*These tips are general in nature and should only be undertaken where it is safe to do so. The information provided is not professional or legal advice. Specific advice should be sought from qualified professionals in respect of your own situation. Tower does not accept any liability for the accuracy or content of information on this website that belongs to third parties or on any third-party website.

¹You can view the sources here and here.

²You can view the source here.

³You can view the source here.

⁴You can view the source here.

⁵You can view the source here.