While most of us think that Halloween night poses the biggest safety risk, there is a reason that Window Covering Safety Month occurs in October. Taking place in October drives home the fact that window coverings pose a true threat, particularly to the young. This holiday was put on the calendar to encourage homeowners to use only cordless window coverings, especially if they have babies or young children.
Babies, toddlers, and children cannot help but be filled with curiosity and awe. They can’t help but reach into their surroundings. For many parents, this is the most delightful age but it also the most dangerous.
When looking at buying window coverings, be mindful that models highlight items such as cleats, tassels, and joiners, promoting them as safe. However, these components have been linked to strangulation or near-strangulation accidents.
In the past decade, most blinds, curtains, and window treatments companies offer safety features in the form of mounting brackets, hold-down clips, and continuous looping. While these help to a certain extent, the safety features on some blinds prevent cords from forming loops on one side of the blinds and the other side features a cord or tassels that dangle. There is a possibility that over time, they will intertwine and twist, as a result, forming a loop.
Keep in mind that it is still possible for a child or pet to insert their head through the intertwined loop and strangle. For this reason, safety experts highly encourage cordless window blinds in homes with children eight years old and younger. Cat and dog owners have also learned that cordless window blinds are the safest choice when pets are in the house.
Some additional safety tips for window coverings:
- If you do not have cordless blinds,
move all cribs, beds, toys, and furniture away from these cords, placing them against another wall or to the center of the room. - Examine the tasseled cords, making them as short as possible.
- Continuous-loop cords on draperies or blinds must be anchored to the floor.
- Be sure cord stops are correctly installed, properly positioned, limiting the movement of the cords.
At Madison Window Cleaning we take safety seriously, beginning with our ongoing professional in house training, with our technicians receiving training from Expert Safety Services, one of the best training resources available in the industry.
