Common Problems Home Owners Encounter

When we’re at home, we want to relax and unwind. The last thing any homeowner wants is for their house to become a burden or a hassle. There are common home concerns to look out for, such as mold, pests, and more. This article covers ten common household worries and how to handle them.

Mold is One of the Common Home Concerns

If you have a mold problem in your home, call a mold remediation specialist to help. The best way to find out if this is an issue in your home is by checking for common signs. Do any of your rooms smell musty? Have you noticed that people are frequently experiencing colds and allergies when they’re at your home? Is there visible mold on walls or surfaces? If the answer to any of these questions was yes, then you need to take action soon.

Insects Invading Your Home

This is one of the most common home concerns. If you’re seeing insects in your home, it’s important to act fast. Insects are unsanitary and can cause a great deal of damage to your home. Get rid of them early before things get out of hand.

If the problem is small, you should be able to resolve it yourself using store-bought solutions. However, if there’s a large infestation or the bugs are cockroaches or termites, call pest control. Termites will cause damage to the structure of your home, making it unsafe and reducing your home’s value.

Odors

If you’re noticing a strange odor in your home, then it’s time to take action. Here are some common odors and what causes them.

  • Pet odors: pets can damage furniture and flooring if accidents aren’t addressed quickly and properly.
  • Mold and mildew odors: If you have a mold problem, call an air quality specialist. Mold is dangerous to your health and will cause respiratory symptoms, especially in the elderly and those with asthma.
  • Cigarettes: Smoking is a health risk that also impacts your indoor air quality and damages textiles like furniture, rugs, and curtains.

Leaks and Structural Problems

Leaks and structural problems are major concerns that need immediate attention. Here are situations where you would want to call a professional.

  • You notice water stains on your ceilings, walls, or floors.
  • There is visible mold or mildew growing on the walls and/or surfaces of your home.
  • You see cracks in your foundation or notice missing, curling, or buckling shingles on your roof.

Other Common Home Concerns

  • Peeling paint or wall damage
  • Electrical hazards
  • Roof damage
  • Heating systems
  • Structurally Related Problems

If you’re noticing any of these common home concerns, take action before things get any worse.

Premier Home Inspection Services offers home inspection services, including mold inspections, to Northern New Jersey. Contact us to request an appointment.

A safe home is well prepared for emergency situations. While events such as a house fire are frightening, proper planning will help you protect your home and loved ones from danger. Fire can move quickly through your living spaces, so you’ll have very little time to respond. Be prepared for fire safety in the home by creating an emergency plan.

Fire Safety in the Home: How to Prepare

Be ready for a fire emergency by creating an escape plan with your family. Find at least two routes to exit each room in case one becomes blocked. If a fire breaks out, every second counts. Practice your fire escape plan with family members so everyone knows how to leave the home quickly and safely.

Double-check that the windows are easy to open, no exits are blocked, and that screens can be easily removed. Being able to find your way out of your house in low or no vision situations is also key. Teach your children to exit the house as fast as possible and help them understand that firefighters are there to help.

Make sure that smoke alarms are up to date and have working batteries. Install at least one smoke alarm on every level of your home and replace the devices every ten years or per the manufacturer’s instructions. Smoke alarms for people with visual and auditory impairments are available, as well as alarms that trigger an exterior strobe light that alerts neighbors and emergency crew to a fire your home.

For extra security, install a fire suppression system in your home and keep fire extinguishers on hand in the kitchen, laundry room, and garage. Make digital copies of all of your important documents and records, such as birth certificates and social security cards, in case they are destroyed.

Staying Safe During a Fire

If a fire breaks out, exit quickly. Stay low to the ground. Heat and smoke rise, so crawling makes your escape easier. Look for smoke around doorways and check doorknobs for signs of heat before opening a door.

If you are unable to reach people or pets who need assistance, exit the building and contact emergency services. Give them the exact location of the trapped person or pet. Emergency services will be better equipped to rescue people or pets from the home. If you become trapped, block all vents and spaces under the doors as best you can and call for help.

Being prepared for an emergency situation helps family members stay calm in the moment. A fire escape plan will teach everyone how to exit the home quickly. Choose a meeting place a safe distance from the house to check in with your family if a fire breaks out.

Premier Home Inspection Services offers inspections in Northern New Jersey. Contact us to request our services.

Parents expecting their first baby can be overwhelmed by trying to figure out how to make their home safer. They may not know what requires changing, or they may go overboard by adding things in their home that they don’t need. Use common sense and intuition to find things in your home that are obvious hazards. Here are five tips for babyproofing your home:

Setting Up a Crib

Newborns will be spending a lot of their time sleeping, so having a safe place to sleep should be an immediate priority. Do not place any objects in the crib with the baby, including pillows and blankets. Pillows and blankets can be hazardous because the baby can get tangled up. If you want to keep your baby warm, swaddle them instead.

Make sure that the height of the crib rail is appropriate for the age and size of your baby as they grow and develop. As your baby starts to learn how to pull themselves up, you don’t want to risk them falling over the edge of the crib.

Start Babyproofing Your Home by Putting Away Small Objects

Babies love to put things in their mouths. Start babyproofing your home by placing small items out of the reach of your child. Even items you think are safe should be secured as they could fall on the floor giving your baby easy access to them.

If you’re not sure whether objects are small enough to cause a choking hazard, see if the object can fit inside an empty toilet paper roll. If it falls right through the tube, it’s small enough to potentially choke your child and should be placed far out of reach.

Set Up a Baby Play Area

Have a designated area for your baby to play while you tend to chores. For a newborn, this might be a baby swing or bouncer. Older babies will be crawling around more, so set up a playpen nearby that you can supervise. The older the child is, the more independent they will be. Should an emergency happen, you need to be able to get to them as soon as possible.

Use Baby Gates

Using baby gates for babyproofing your home is great because they have multiple uses. They can be used to section off part of the house to keep your child out of trouble, such as keeping them from tumbling down a set of stairs. You can also use gates to keep them inside a specific area. Set up gates to keep them from wandering off and out of sight.

Cover Corners When Babyproofing Your Home

Make sure all of the sharp corners in your house are covered by soft corner protectors. You don’t want to risk your baby hitting their head on anything while crawling around on the floor. Get down to a baby’s eye level and look around your house. There are likely corners that you’ve not noticed because they’re so low to the ground.

These are just a few important tips that will help when babyproofing your home.

Premier Home Inspection Services provides home inspections to customers in Northern New Jersey. Contact us to schedule an appointment.