Home Safety & Security Tips

Seven essential tips from a California native.

And it only takes a few seconds.

Here's how to dispose of it and get a refund.

If you have one in your home, read this.

This one item can save you a pretty penny in potential repairs.

The company asked customers to stop using all of their products immediately due to safety concerns.

It might not be worth the minimalist aesthetic.

These steps will give you peace of mind while you're away.

This handy tool ensures better dryer performance — not to mention fire safety.

Don't be fooled by its beauty.

Professionals share their tips for safeguarding life's most valuable documents, from marriage licenses to deeds.

Half of them are related to sweeping!

There are many stages in the lifecycle of a cleaning product, and each stage offers new opportunities to be good to the planet.

You might want to do laundry differently, depending on your household's health.

BKF can be put to work in kitchens, bathrooms, garages, and backyards. But there are certain surfaces in each of those spaces that the cleaner is not so friendly with.

Just because you’ve been doing something for years in the kitchen without problem doesn’t necessarily mean it's safe.

Knowing when to leave the room, try a new cleaning product, or seek professional medical assistance could be the difference between a pleasant cleaning experience and a crummy one.

Here are some tips for staying warm when both the temperature and the electricity drops off.

There are other ways to announce new homeownership that don’t put your safety at risk.

Mirrors show up as a plot device in everything from scary movies to carnival fun houses and sleepovers. And that unsettling, creepy feeling can work its way into your modern home.

If you had to leave home—right now—because of an emergency, what would you grab?

As powerful as bleach is, there’s a bit of a learning curve.

We’re here to remind you that there’s a super easy way to keep your beloved bathroom supplies up-to-date and your medicine cabinet less cluttered.

I never even knew this was a thing, but now there is seldom a time where I'm cutting vegetables or fruit and not using it.

There are currently 6 reported incidents of the glass jars shattering, causing fire damage to nearby items.

There are some proactive steps you can take to protect your packages.

Because if emergency equipment looks nicer, maybe more people will stock it at home.

“Traditional non-stick coatings are very thin—typically around 1 thousandth of an inch.”

Pack these 11 tools and you'll be ready for anything—even if you’re living in a studio apartment that barely has enough room for a twin bed.

Five minutes is all it takes to make sure you're better equipped to deal with a dilemma.

It may seem convenient, but it's a very bad idea.

Sometimes your "useful someday" items are, in fact, worse than merely not useful—it might be a risk to hang on to them at all.

If you’ve ever heard (or believed) that you shouldn’t mix bleach with hot water, then we have news for you. It's nothing more than modern-day housekeeping folklore.

Even if preparedness isn’t your strong suit, there are certain home staples that any successful household should possess.

Here's a short list of checks that home maintenance experts think you should run through before the first big chill hits where you live.

We asked a cybersecurity expert—and people like you—to outline the practical rules and legalities of password-sharing in the age of streaming ubiquity.

The most important part of plant care is actually quite easy to master, and it comes into play before you even purchase your plants at all.

Keep your valuables safe with these simple systems.

Check out these tried-and-true products that’ll make sure your bathroom is mold-free—for good.

Getting hacked is one of the most common and easiest ways someone can invade your privacy.

The worst time to discover you're out of cough medicine is when you wake up in the middle of the night hacking and barking.

If you think right now about what's in your wallet, could you list each card and important slip of paper?

The reason behind it is simpler than you might think, but it might make your skin crawl.

Because a wet towel under the door can only do so much.

A surface that appears “clean” (your toilet is the perfect example!) isn’t necessarily free from bacteria.

Given the environmental impact and the fact that switching to cold water also saves you money, why are we still stuck on the heat cycle? Here's the science behind turning up the heat.

Apartment Therapy Weekend Projects is a guided program designed to help you get the happy, healthy home you’ve always wanted, one weekend at a time. Sign up now for email updates so you never miss a lesson. Disaster preparedness is not a fun topic, but actualizing it rather than shoving the thought aside is a far better way to hush that nagging voice.

If your parents used dryer sheets in the laundry, chances are you do, too. But have you ever thought about why you're using them? Do you know how they work?

With Spring Cleaning for Your Mood, we’re helping you get your housekeeping done no matter what state of mind you’re in. For 20 weekdays in April, we’ll focus on cleaning a new area of your space, with three different ways to get it done—so it’s easy to stay on track even when you’re busy, tired, or away from home. Sign up with your email now and enjoy a better space by the end of the month.

With Spring Cleaning for Your Mood, we’re helping you get your housekeeping done no matter what state of mind you’re in. For 20 weekdays in April, we’ll focus on cleaning a new area of your space, with three different ways to get it done—so it’s easy to stay on track even when you’re busy, tired, or away from home. Sign up with your email now and enjoy a better space by the end of the month.

For all the talk around wood versus plastic, there’s very little talk about the SIZE of cutting boards. And this is one case where size really does matter. One of the biggest mistakes we see time and time again? People opting for cutting boards that are too small. A too-small cutting board is not only awkward to use, but it can also be unsafe! We’ve all done it before: You’ve pulled out a little guy, thinking you just have to mince some garlic.

Here’s the thing about knife blocks: We don’t really recommend them. They can dull the blades of your knives as you drag them in and out of their holders, they’re often sold as an expensive set with knives that you really don’t need, and they can harbor some serious mold (and maybe even bacteria) in those dark, hard-to-reach slots.

Move over, Tide Pod challenge, there’s a new laundry-related caution in town—but this time, it has to do with storage. Displaying laundry packets in jars may look pretty, but according to the American Cleaning Institute, decanting the pods can be dangerous with small children or elderly people in the home. In time for both spring cleaning and National Poison Prevention Week (March 17-24, 2019), the ACI launched its sixth annual Packets Up!

Rest easy in your new home.

Apartment Therapy Weekend Projects is a guided program designed to help you get the happy, healthy home you’ve always wanted, one weekend at a time. Sign up now for email updates so you never miss a lesson. Nothing makes you realize you are (or have to behave like) a responsible adult quite like good old tax day.

In the age of smart home devices, setting your thermostat and dimming the lights have never been easier. But these purchases have more long-term payoff than convenience alone. A one-time buy like a smart thermostat or home security system may feel pricy upfront, but by potentially lowering other monthly payments, they could pay for themselves over time—and have you feeling like a genius.

Tiny living has so many benefits—flexible lifestyle, lower expenses, less maintenance, reduced carbon footprint. But it turns out there’s one big drawback we didn’t expect: Your entire home is at risk of being burglarized. And we’re not just talking about a thief swiping your jewelry and your electronics—we’re talking about your whole home just up and vanishing. That’s what happened to St. Louis resident Meghan Panu’s 12-foot tiny home.

I keep a small plastic rectangular basket in my medicine cabinet. It holds the super essentials: toothbrush and toothpaste and contact lens case. I pull it out at least twice a day (if I’m good about putting it back). This past weekend, I noticed that not only did I have the aforementioned essentials in there, but I had a ridiculous number of “backup” contact cases. Like eight! I was victim to the bathroom black hole of clutter.

If you live in an apartment building without a doorman or have had a package stolen from your stoop, you know that getting your hands on your package isn’t always as easy as two-day shipping sounds. Enter Amazon Locker, an alternate delivery method that helps you get your order quickly, no matter where you are. Instead of having packages delivered to your home or office, you can choose to have many items shipped to a self-service Amazon Locker at the location of your choice.

For as awesome as having an electric space heater can be during the cold weather season, they often come with a lot of safety risks. We called on Jim Bullock, a retired FDNY Deputy Chief and President of New York Fire Consultants (NYFC) for advice on how to manage our space heaters properly at home. From when to turn yours off to places you should never put one, here are 10 expert tips for handling your space heater safely this winter.