Tips for a child-safe home

By the time your baby takes their first steps, nothing is safe from them anymore. ;) Wasn't the keyring just there a moment ago? Instead of on the table, you find it in the hands of your little explorer, who is examining it thoroughly – and of course, also putting it in their mouth. Climbing up on objects and daring climbing adventures are certainly already among their favorite activities. In this way, your child trains their coordination and motor skills. To ensure that exploring their environment doesn't become a dangerous undertaking for your baby, we give you tips on how to childproof your home.

A good starting point is to try to look at all rooms through a child's eyes. Which objects are within reach and could be dangerous for your baby? Which items are interesting to your child but out of their reach, potentially encouraging climbing? Once you have identified the hazards, you can eliminate them; often just a few simple steps are enough. Below, we have compiled the most important safety measures for your home.

In all rooms

• Secure outlets: Power outlets are a great fascination for children. Perhaps because they are right at their eye level and the recess almost invites them to insert their fingers. It becomes dangerous especially if your little explorer inserts metallic objects into the holes. You can prevent this with special socket covers. Those with a twist mechanism are particularly practical, allowing you to continue using the socket.

• Fix or hide loose cables: From its perspective, your baby cannot yet see where a hanging cable leads. If it then tries to pull itself up on it, this can not only end badly for the device involved. It’s best to hide the cables behind a piece of furniture or secure them with cable clips. The same applies to loose cables to prevent them from becoming a tripping hazard.

• Pad edges with padding: Your baby's first steps will still be a bit awkward, as they need to train their sense of balance first. To prevent sharp-edged furniture from getting in their way, you can pad them with a special edge protector.

• Attach door latch protection: Pinched fingers are painful, we know this from personal experience. a pinch protection, which can usually be attached to the door without drilling or screws, spares your baby this realization.

• Secure drawers: Drawer safety locks are equally threefold practical: they ensure that the contents remain inaccessible to your curious explorer, protect against pinched fingers, and prevent the drawer from falling out, which your child could get caught in. These safety locks can also be easily installed afterwards.

• Secure stairs with protective railings: If you live in a house or a multi-story apartment, a protects your baby from falling down the stairs. It is usually simply wedged between the wall and the stair railing. Most models can also be used for if you want to prevent your baby from going on an exploration tour. ;) When purchasing, make sure that the have an appropriate distance so that your child cannot get their head stuck between them.

• Eliminate potential climbing aids: Sometimes you are amazed at how inventive children can be: a chair in front of the window or a flowerpot on the balcony quickly becomes a makeshift ladder, and a harmless climb can become quite dangerous.
  Place stools, chairs, and other furniture in spots where they cannot be used as a step.
  Of course, you should also not leave your baby alone with the window or balcony door open.

• Remove gift plants: Babies explore their environment with their mouth. You probably know this all too well. Unfortunately, they do not stop at things that you would rather not put in their mouth. The best place for toxic houseplants is therefore on top of cabinets or shelves, so that your child cannot reach them under any circumstances.

• Remove potentially dangerous items: Tools, scissors, sewing and knitting supplies, plastic bags, matches, lighters, alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, batteries, light bulbs, cords, vases, and other heavy or fragile items: what may be everyday objects for you can be dangerous for your baby. Therefore, store these items immediately after use in a cabinet where they are safe from curious little fingers.

• Clear pathways: The building blocks your baby was playing with this morning can quickly become a tripping hazard later – for both of you. Even if we know it's not always easy to implement: tidiness is actually good accident prevention!

• Make carpets non-slip: Carpets make your apartment cozy and ensure that your little explorer doesn't have to sit on the cold floor while playing. However, unsecured, they can quickly turn into a slipping hazard during the next chase around the house. With an anti-slip mat that secures the carpet in place, you're prepared.

In the kitchen and dining room

• Secure the stove and oven: When cooking, you can take various simple precautions to prevent burns and other accidents: use the back burners, which your child cannot reach. If you also turn the pan handles and pot grips to the back, they cannot be pulled down. If you want to be extra sure, you can install a stove guard, which also prevents your child from accidentally turning on an induction cooktop. For older stove models and ovens, there are also special covers that prevent the knobs from being turned. Of course, special caution is required when the oven is turned on, as the glass of some models becomes very hot. It is best to keep your baby in the next room under supervision until the oven has cooled down. ;)

• Unplug electrical devices from the socket and store them out of reach: Kettle , You can unplug the toaster and coffee machine after use, and it is best to place them in a location where your child cannot pull them down by the cord.

• Keep cleaning products out of reach: Not for nothing does every cleaner carry the note "Keep out of reach of children." So, rather than keeping the bottles in the lower cabinets, place them somewhere your baby cannot reach, or secure the cabinet with a latch.

• Secure the refrigerator and freezer: This tip is of course only relevant if the devices are at your child's height. To prevent them from emptying the fridge and injuring themselves with falling glasses or similar, you can secure the fridge with a special latch. Unfortunately, it doesn't protect you from late-night snack cravings. ;)

• Remove hängende Tischdecken: If your baby tries to pull itself up on a tablecloth corner, it can unintentionally knock over the entire table quickly. This is not only a shame for the beautiful coffee table setting, but it can also be quite dangerous for your child. Therefore, it is better to avoid tablecloths or hanging table runners.

In the bathroom

• Remove the shower key: To prevent your child from accidentally locking themselves in, it’s best to remove the bathroom key and hang it on a hook at a sufficient height.

• Secure the washing machine: Many washing machines have a built-in child lock that prevents the machine from being accidentally started or the program from being changed while the machine is running. To prevent your toddler from climbing into the drum (older children can get stuck there), you can also secure the door with an adjustable latch that is simply glued onto the appliance.

• Keep sharp and toxic bath accessories out of reach: With nail scissors, a file, and razors, there are quite a few items in the bathroom that your child should not get into. Also, cosmetics and plugged-in electrical devices like a hairdryer pose a certain danger. To prevent this, store these items in a cabinet that your baby cannot reach and make sure to put them back there after use.

• Store medications in a lockable cabinet: The best storage for tablets, juices, and the like is in a lockable cabinet or at least out of your child's reach. Also, make sure not to leave currently needed medications lying around openly.

In the children's room

Our general safety tips are of course also relevant in the children's room. What else you should consider when designing has been summarized in our magazine article "".

After this long list, you might get the impression that your apartment is a single danger zone. But don't worry! Feel free to give your baby space to explore, because only then can it develop its motor skills. You will quickly get a sense of which things your child currently finds particularly interesting and what you should therefore pay special attention to at the moment. Additionally, explain to your little one where they need to be careful and why something might be dangerous for them. Nonetheless, you should of course not leave your curious explorer unattended. With these precautions, nothing will stand in the way of their exploration! :)