Walk through the house. Leave with a fix list.
Pick the rooms, then answer each question with Yes, No or Not sure as you stand in that room. Anything that is not a clear Yes goes on a short fix list, most urgent first, that you can copy or print.
A list on paper gets lost. A fix that slips back gets missed.
This page is from the team behind RoomMend: Safer Home Plans for iPhone and iPad. This checklist gives you today's list. According to its App Store listing, RoomMend keeps track of it afterwards:
- Three taps to note a problem: choose the room, tap the issue, pick This week, This month or Someday
- Take a photo and mark the exact spot with a numbered marker
- Guided walk-throughs for bathrooms, hallways, bedrooms, stairs, kitchens and more, each question showing why it is asked and where it comes from
- Tick a fix as done and get a reminder to look again in 30 days
- Before and after photos side by side
Answers on this page are not stored and do not transfer to the app.
How to do the walk-through well
Stand in the room. Answering from memory is how the loose rug you stopped noticing stays where it is.
Do it at the time of day that matters. Check the hallway and stairs after dark, with only the lights that are normally on.
Walk it with the person who lives there. They know which cupboard they actually use and which step they already avoid.
"Not sure" is a useful answer. It goes on the list. Testing a smoke alarm or tugging a handrail takes a minute and turns a guess into a fact.
Fix three things, not thirty. A short list that gets done beats a full audit that sits in a drawer.
Where these questions come from
The questions follow widely published home fall-prevention and fire-safety guidance for households, of the kind issued by public health and fire-safety bodies such as the CDC, the National Institute on Aging and the NFPA. This page is a prompt to look carefully. It is not a professional assessment. If someone has already fallen or is unsteady, speak to their doctor, who can arrange a proper home assessment.
Questions
How long does a home safety walk-through take?
About ten to fifteen minutes for four rooms if you stand in each one and answer honestly. Allow a little longer if you stop to test alarms and handrails as you go.
What are the most common hazards in a home?
Loose rugs, cords across walkways, poor lighting on stairs and in hallways, things stored on steps, and bathrooms without anything solid to hold are the ones that come up most often in published guidance.
Is my checklist saved?
No. Your answers stay in the page while it is open and are not stored or sent anywhere. Copy or print the fix list before you close the tab.
More from this site
- Hippo Home alternativeHippo Home helps homeowners with maintenance and insurance. Want a simple, private fix list for your home or a parent's? Compare it with RoomMend.
- Gutter length calculatorEstimate gutter sections, downspouts, hangers and end caps from your roof edge lengths. A quick rough-count calculator with waste built in.
- How old is my smoke alarm? CheckerRead the date on the back of each smoke alarm, enter it, and see which need replacing now. Battery rules by alarm type, a coverage check and a monthly test reminder for your calendar.
- Spot the trip hazards gameTap the six things in this living room that could cause a fall or get missed. Each one shows the simple fix. A two-minute home safety game.
- Tile Calculator: How Many Tiles and Boxes Do I Need?Enter the room size and tile size to get the number of tiles, boxes and square footage to buy, with waste allowance and a live preview of the layout. Feet or metres, free.
- 27 Home Project Planning ChallengesPractise room-project decisions, clear observations, scope checks and household handoffs through fictional scenarios.