You’ve likely acquainted your children with various aspects of safety around your home. But what about HVAC safety? You might think that since most of the HVAC system is out of sight, it is of no concern when it comes to your kids’ safety.
But when kids are home all summer without much to do, they can dream up some surprising ways to get into trouble–and those ways might involve damaging the HVAC system or even hurting themselves.
Here are some tips for securing your HVAC system.
1. Secure vents. Make sure that vent covers are nailed or screwed in place so children can’t move them. With floor vents, you may want to secure a screen over them to prevent children from dropping things into them.
2. Install thermostats out of reach. Children can damage the HVAC system by turning the thermostat up too high or down too low, or by messing with the controls. If your kids are prone to climbing on furniture to get at things they shouldn’t have access to, consider installing some kind of protective locking cabinet around the thermostat.
3. Block access to the HVAC. Your indoor HVAC, which contains the blower, the evaporator coils and condensate drain, should not be accessible to children. If it is, then find a way to lock the cabinet or otherwise block access.
4. Protect the outdoor unit as needed. Depending on the age of your children, you may need to design or find a way to prevent access to the outdoor condenser unit. You don’t want kids dropping objects inside the unit anytime, but particularly when it’s running. You most assuredly don’t want them pouring any substances, be it liquid or powder, into the condenser. What’s more they could either hurt themselves by climbing up on the unit and cutting themselves on metal or by falling off; or, they could bend the delicate fins that are important for the exhaust process.
For more HVAC safety, contact Arpi’s Industries. We’ve served Calgary and the surrounding area since 1963.
