1. Take Inventory
The first step to poison proofing a home is doing an inventory of every corner of your home and making a list of all the products you have. Include medication in your medicine cabinet and anything you may be storing in the garage. You should also include any plants which you have both inside your house and in your yard. Double-check each one and find out if any of them are poisonous.
2. Clear Out the Kitchen
Cleansers and soap products are often kept in the kitchen beneath the sink or in a similar out-of-the-way location. Make sure that you never use any of them while you have food out and that you always store them far away from any food.
3. Package It Up
All poisonous products should stay in their original packages. If the package becomes damaged, then throw it all away rather than transferring the product to another container. Always keep the caps on when you aren't using them and replace the caps promptly when you're done. If possible, make sure the caps are child-proof, especially in the case of medicine. Maintain original labels--they contain important safety information--and mark them as poisonous if you don't feel that the warning is visible enough.
4. Use Locked or Tamper-Proof Cabinets
Ideally, you should store all of your dangerous products in high cabinets where children can't easily reach them. Even if you take this precautionary step, you should always place them in locked or tamper-proof cabinets as well. Make sure they are secure every time you use them and make sure they hold all of your poisonous products properly.
5. Know the Right Numbers
Most phone books have a poison hotline number somewhere in the first few pages. The national poison hotline is (800) 222-1222. Write it down and post it on every phone in your house so you can call quickly.
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