The Best 15 Christmas Safety Tips To Remember This Year

Christmas Safety, along with fire safety is something that can easily be dismissed during the excitement of decorating and getting ready for the holidays. Our list of tips below will remind you of what you need to do to stay safe during the hectic Christmas season.

Did you start decorating for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving? Or do you wait until the first full week of December to get in the Christmas spirit? Regardless of which camp you fall into, we hope that you will look over our list of Christmas Safety Tips, to be sure that you are following safety guidelines when it comes to Christmas decorating.

Our thanks to NFPA.org and the National Safety Council for their help with this list.

It’s so easy to get caught up in the magic of decorating and the holiday spirit that we oftentimes forget about the hazards we may be creating…unfortunately this is also the season of home fires, because we do get careless with holiday decorating.

Read through our list of Christmas Safety Tips; then go and look around at the decorations you have put up for the season to see if there are any areas that might need a bit of tweaking to make certain that this is truly a happy and joyful Christmas season for you, your family and your friends.

Top 15 Christmas Safety Tips

· Choose decorations that are flame resistant or flame retardant. Also, while many of the old decorations are absolutely beautiful, make sure that none of them contain lead.

· When you are decorating the tree, avoid placing breakable ornaments or ornaments with small parts and pieces on lower branches where curious children or pets can reach them.

· If you are using “angel hair” to decorate your tree this year, please remember that this product is made from spun glass and can irritate your eyes and skin. If you are going to decorate with angel hair, please wear gloves. You can also use non-flammable cotton as a substitute.

FYI: Both angel hair and cotton snow are flame retardant when used alone. However, if artificial snow is sprayed onto them, the dried combination will burn rapidly.

· If you are going to be using artificial snow on your windows or doors this season, be sure you follow the directions carefully. These sprays can irritate your lungs if you inhale them.

· There is something magical about lit candles during the Christmas season, isn’t there? However, though beautiful and magical as they are, lit candles pose a major fire risk during the Christmas season. If you do use candles, please make certain they are in an open area far enough away from decorations or other items that can burn. For more information on candle safety, see our blog here.

· Be mindful of which lights you are using….some lights are for only outdoor use and some are for only indoor use. DON’T MIX THESE UP AND THINK IT DOESN’T MATTER WHERE YOU USE THE LIGHTS! IT DOES MATTER!

· Before putting lights on trees or bushes, check them to see if they work. Also replace any string of lights that has worn or broken cords. Be mindful of loose bulb connections as well. Read through the manufacturer’s instructions for the proper number of light strands you can connect together, usually not more than 3 connecting strands are recommended.

· Since most of us will be using extension cords during this time of the year, remember to make sure they are placed against a wall to avoid folks, (especially the kiddos) tripping over them. Also under no circumstances, should you run the extension cord under a rug….that is a MAJOR fire risk

· When decorating your windows, or mantle with lights, use clips, and not nails to hang the lights. Nails may damage the cord and will present a fire safety risk.

· Though it may be tempting to reach for a chair or stand on a table when trying to reach high places that you are decorating, don’t do it! Always use the right step stool or ladder to reach those high places. It may take a few minutes to go and dig out the ladder, but if you take a spill and get hurt, you will be wishing you had taken a few extra minutes to get the right ladder or step stool.

· If you are on a step stood or ladder and are decorating near a doorway, either lock the door or barricade it, so that someone doesn’t inadvertently open it and send you sprawling from the ladder.

· Be sure and use ladders that have slip resistant feet and make sure you are wearing dry and clean slip resistant shoes when you climb the ladder.

· If you are using the ladder to decorate outside, you must get off of it immediately if the winds start to pick up, or if it starts to rain or snow. Winds can easily blow you off the ladder and the snow and/or rain will make the rungs slippery.

· Before you host a party full of friends, test those smoke alarms to make sure they are all in working order. We have talked about this before, and even though it may seem a bit “over the top”, share your home fire escape plan with your guests.

· And lastly, before heading out for the evening or to bed, please make sure you blow out any lit candles and turn off all Christmas lights and other decorations.

Just a couple of quick facts on Christmas fire safety according to the NFPA.org

1. Two of every five home decoration fires are started by candles

2. Nearly half of the decoration fires happen because decorations are placed too close to a heat source.

If you have already decorated, now is the time to go check out your decorations to make sure you are following the above Christmas Safety tips. If you haven’t decorated yet, let the tips we have shared above be your guideline for making sure that as you decorate for the season, you are keeping Christmas decorating safety along with fire safety in the front of your mind.

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