There are plenty of dangers that can happen on Halloween. Twice as many kids get killed while walking on Halloween than on any other day of the year. And insurance vandalism and theft claims are the highest of the year on Halloween and right after. So, this year, I want to cover four Halloween home safety tips.
4 Halloween Home Safety Tips to Practice This Year
Halloween exposes you and your home to more people than any other holiday of the year. So, you want to prepare yourself and minimize any potential hazards.
Halloween Home Safety Tip # 1 – Keep Walkways and Steps Clear
Pumpkins and Decorations
Move pumpkins and decorations to the side to make a clear path for them to walk up to your home.
Leaves
The closer we get to the winter, the more the leaves will fall, covering your walkway, steps, porch, driveway, and any other things that can get in the way and cause someone to stumble.
Leaves can also get wet, and if it rains on Halloween or close to Halloween, can cause your walkways and steps to be slippery (especially if the temperature drops).
What to Do with Your Leaves?
In areas of the United States, colorful leaves in the fall are a familiar sight, and although they look beautiful at the beginning of fall, towards the end, there are piles of them everywhere.
For some homeowners, this is a hassle to deal with, but instead of hiring a lawn company to clean and bag them up to be hauled to the landfill, there is a simple yet environmentally friendly thing you can do with them.
Mulching – Mulching is using a specifically designed lawnmower (mulching lawnmower) to shred leaves and spread them back into the lawn. Doing this results in the nitrogen-rich grass mixing with the carbon-rich leaves to be decomposed by microorganisms and turned into plant-usable organic matter.
Get rid of your leaves before Halloween in 3 steps:
- Rake the leaves from the walkway, porch, stairs, and driveway into your yard.
- Mulch them with a mulching lawnmower.
- If you have a garden or flower beds, spread the mulched leaves around them.
Bonus: Handrails
In addition to clearing the walkways and steps, make sure to tighten any loose handrails going up the walkway or stairs.
Halloween Home Safety Tip # 2 – Put Your Pets Away
When someone approaches your home, your pets can either try to show their affection by trying to jump on them (like ours) or bark like crazy, trying to protect you and your home.
Either way, they want to come in close contact with people, and this is going to scare them away. And if your dog is feeling threatened enough, they may even strike someone.
So take them to another area of your house or outside to a fenced-in backyard away from people.
Also, put away any indoor cats that may try to slip out the door when you are busy handing out the tricks or treats. Do this during the hours that trick-or-treaters will be stopping by your home.
Halloween Home Safety Tip # 3 – Protect Your Home
As mentioned earlier, theft and vandalism are almost commonplace during Halloween, so you prepare to protect your home.
Out of Sight, Out of Mind
Start by putting anything away and out of sight that is valuable around your home.
- If possible, park your car in the garage or away from where trick-or-treaters will be walking.
- Put away bikes and motorcycles.
- Make sure the children’s toys are picked up and put away.
- Don’t leave any lawn equipment out, including rakes or shovels.
Lock doors
When you are not opening the door to give the trick-or-treaters their candy, keep the front or storm door locked, including other outside doors.
Security
If you don’t have any security cameras on your home or property, look into purchasing a video security product like a Ring doorbell. They are affordable and work directly with your smartphone to alert you of what is going on around your home.
If the area you live in is prone to theft and vandalism, you can even take photos of your home and property the morning of Halloween to show how your home looks in case something does happen.
If you leave to take your own kids trick or treating, and you have an alarm, make sure to activate your alarm.
Halloween Home Safety Tip # 4 – Lighting and Electrical
Lighting
You don’t only want your walkway, steps, and driveway cleared of leaves and obstructions; you also want them lit.
Leave your porch light on and provide light for your walkway. Solar pathway LED lights are an affordable option for lighting the sidewalk or walkway to your front door.
If you are going to light your walkway with Jack O’ Lanterns, opt for LED light candles instead of an actual burning candle that is susceptible to causing fires.
Electrical
When it comes to Halloween, some people can go all out with the decorations. This is great to see, but it’s always important when setting up any electric decorations outside to make sure that you are following the National Electrical Code when setting them up.
A lot of older houses have electrical ground problems, and if you have an older home, this is something you want to check before setting up any of your holiday lights.
If it’s been a while since you had an electrical inspection on your house, check the electrical ground wiring.
Bonus Halloween Home Safety Tip
Although the pandemic ended a while back, it is still important to wash or sanitize your hands on Halloween.
Lots of trick-or-treaters reach into bowls of candy, spreading their germs. Washing your hands or using hand sanitizer can help stop the spread of germs.
For more information on how to disinfect or sanitize your home check out our post – The Fundamental Guide to Sanitize Your Home: Tips and Tricks
Conclusion
For some people, Halloween is the most fun day of the year. But it is also the most dangerous day for your kids and home.
So follow these Halloween home safety tips, and prepare yourself and your home for Halloween this year.
Are there any other Halloween home safety tips you can think of to add to this list? Let us know in the comments below.
Photos courtesy of Unsplash.
Hi Marigold and Ivy,
Well you’re certainly correct when you say that 2020 has been a crazy year, and I must admit the Holidays just won’t feel quite the same.
Here in the UK we have a Tier-system, which governs what type of activities are permissible.
We have been told that trick-or-treating can take place in Tier-1 and Tier-2 areas (I’m from London and we are considered a Tier-2 area), but unfortunately Tier-3 areas (which comprises approximately 15% of the UK population) will not be able to take part.
Effectively, Halloween is cancelled (outside the home environment) for Tier-3 areas.
With that said, even for the rest of us, common sense is a must, and as you’ve alluded to it’s important that everyone stays safe during this celebratory period.
I love your home safety tips and it’s definitely something that we should all adhere to during these difficult times.
Thanks
Partha
That’s definitely different than what we have in the United States but sounds like a good plan for reducing the contact between people. Thanks for your comment Partha and have a safe and healthy Halloween.
Hmm, if I would be a cynic I would say the safest thing to do is hang a note on your door that says ‘COVID patients in the house’. 😀
Just kidding.
Halloween is a strange day for me. I have never celebrated it back in the Netherlands. It just didn’t exist. I knew of course it was a happening in the States. In recent years it seems to have become a habit in the Netherlands too, but I was too busy selling my house and packing for the emigration to Spain to notice. I yet have to discover how big a thing it is over here.
It’s a pretty big holiday in the United States and like the post said it is also a big day for crime. Whether you end up celebrating Halloween or not this year, stay safe and healthy Hannie!
Hi Justin,
There are some really great tips here on how to have a spooktacular Halloween.
I really need to put our dog away, because he’s a jumper, and he goes crazy when kids are around.
Thanks for putting this together.
Thanks Michael. Have a safe Halloween this year!