Pool and Spa Safety for You and Your Home

Everybody wants to have a pool or a spa in their backyard. Having one could lead to hours and hours of fun family time and parties. But owning a swimming pool or a tub requires you to be responsible. Pools and spa needs a lot of maintenance to keep them properly working as well as keeping the users safe from accidents and from bacteria and molds that can thrive in wet conditions.

For those who want to keep their pool and spa safe, hiring a certified home inspector that is also an expert in Pool and Spa inspection is a must. A certified home inspector can easily give you some advice on how to make improvements so that your pools will be safe especially if you have kids at home. They can ask you to build a wall or a fence around the pool so that kids would not wander around the pool especially if they are not attended to.

Certified home inspectors can also help you determine if your pools are safe to use in terms of water quality. This is very important for there are a lot of water borne diseases that you can get from poorly maintained pools and spa. These diseases can be either caused by bacteria, viruses and molds.

Diseases from water born microbes can be anywhere from sore eyes and skin irritations, diarrhea and even dysentery. Microbes can come from anywhere, from outside sources like fallen leaves to the pool toys like swimming pool balls and boats.

Common pathogens or disease causing microbes in your pool are:

• Bacteria

Bacteria such as E. Coli, shigella, salmonella can cause gastrointestinal diseases such as diarrhea and dysentery. Bacteria can be eliminated from the water by proper pool maintenance and adding the right amount of chlorine disinfectant. The E. Coli bacteria can be eradicated in minutes if exposed to pool disinfectants.

• Protozoa

Protozoa like Cryptosporidium and Giardia can also cause gastrointestinal problems like diarrhea. Protozoa are harder to kill and most of the times chlorine is not enough to kill them all. Protozoa can even live in chlorinated waters for days and can infect lots of swimmers.

• Viruses

Viruses from the simple cold virus to the more serious ones like the flu and hepatitis virus can be transmitted trough water in the pool. These viruses can be carried by mucus, saliva and blood from a swimmer and can be contracted by another by swallowing pool water.

To prevent disease causing microbes from your pool water, it is best to apply water disinfectants at least an hour before using the pool. This will allow the disinfectant to go to work and kill most of the bacteria in the water.

It is also best to take a bath before and after using the pool. Children should also be taught good manners while inside the pool like not swallowing pool water or peeing inside the swimming pool.

For more information on how to properly maintain the safety of your pool area and spa, it is best to consult your local certified home inspector.

For those living in the South Bay area in California, you can call South Bay Home Inspections.

South Bay Home Inspections specializes in Pool and Spa Inspections as well as General Home inspections and Mold and Air Sampling for your black mold problems.

Earthquake Preparedness for Homeowners

Every year we read about news of calamities here in the US as well as on other parts of the world. No one knows when calamities will strike but its best that we be prepared.

Earthquakes are natural calamities that can bring about massive destruction to properties and may cause a lot of injuries and even loss of lives. Unlike hurricanes, there is no way to detect when or where an earthquake may hit.

There are hundreds of earthquakes every day. Most of them are so weak, we don’t even feel them. But that being said, it is always good to be prepared especially if your living in an earthquake prone area such as in California and nearby areas.

Earthquakes are unpredictable so it’s better to be prepared if ever one will occur. It is better to start your preparation inside your home. People unaware of earthquake preparedness are the ones usually got hurt.

People can generally get hurt from an earthquake either by running and bumping into furniture or by getting dropped on by loose items such as books, lamps and others.

Though there are no such thing as earthquake home inspections, hiring your local certified home inspectors can help you out in your in willingness to prevent accidents specially in times of natural disasters.

Your certified home inspectors can check out these following areas and check if it needs repair:

• Appliances that runs on gas and natural fuels
• Water and gas pipe conditions to prevent leaks
• The condition of your cement foundation and if they have cracks and other form of damage
• Checking out for large appliances and other loose items that needs some bracing or needs to be fixed on walls to prevent them from moving.
• Columns and walls that supports your homes especially if your place is located on a hill side.
• Chemicals that needs to be stored away from the house.
• Mirrors and other furniture with glass panels that can cause injuries especially inside the bedroom

Your certified home inspector can give you helpful advice in terms of your safety and protection inside your home. They can help you not only in natural disaster preparedness but in so many other ways such as checking out for Black Molds and looking into your Pool and Spa.

For those living in the state of California, especially those in the South Bay and Los Angeles area, you can call us at South Bay Home Inspections for all your home inspection needs. We offer home inspections services and more.

For more information please contact us at www.southbayhomeinspections.com

Thank you and onward to a good year!

Sincerely,

Tel: (310) 265-0833              

Fax: (310) 544-4806             

Cell: (310) 995-4965

Ways to Prevent Burglary in Your Homes

Your home should be the safest place for you and your family. It should be the one that can shelter you from the elements. It should also protect you from lawless elements. But your house needs your help in order to keep these people away especially burglars and robbers.

Robbery is probably one of the top crimes in the US. In the past few years, burglary and robbery has an annual average of 2 million reports coming from different law enforcement agencies. It is said that these crimes compose two thirds of all crimes committed in the country.

There are a number of ways for homeowners to do to keep their homes safe.  Burglar-proofing your homes should be made not only to save you from losing your valuables. It also should be placed for the safety and well being of your family.

The first thing that you should know about burglar proofing is to determine the most possible areas where a break-in can occur. In most of the times, thieves enter through the first floor either via the front door, back door, first floor windows, garage, and pet doors.

Here are some few tips to help you prevent burglars from entering your homes:

Front Doors and other External Doors

Front and other external doors such as your back door and doors leading to the garage or yard should be made from heavy and durable materials such as hard woods or metal. It is also best to replace old and worn doors with new ones. It is also best to install more than one door lock per door, to make burglars less interested in picking your doors. Adding deadbolt locks and chain locks are also good addition to your door locks.

If your doors are installed with glass panels, your locks should be placed far from it. Burglars can easily reach your locks by breaking the glass and reaching out for the locks. Peepholes are good alternatives for glass panels for they can give you access to the people outside your door.

It is also best to keep your spare keys in safe locations. Do not keep your spare keys under doormats, rocks or flower pots. It is best to keep a spare key inside your office table or give a spare key for safekeeping to your relatives or a trusted neighbor.

Pet doors are also not safe from burglars. They may use small children to break in and open the doors for them. It is best to place some locks to your pet doors, especially if you are away or during night time.

Windows

Glass windows should be made from durable materials such as tinted glass. They can be placed with bars and grills to prevent forcible entry

Yard

Keep your yard well maintained. Regularly trim your trees so that they would not block the windows or glass panels. It is also best to install fences and gates to your yard.

Get a Pet Dog

Burglars avoid houses with pets. Dogs can alarm you of unwanted people especially during night time. Some larger breeds of dogs are also good watchdogs and protectors of their owners and houses.

Regular Home Inspector Visits

Your friendly home inspectors can help you a lot in terms of burglar proofing your homes. They can point out where burglars can force entry or make suggestions regarding your locks and other security measures. Certified home inspectors can also help you in locating the best places to place your burglar alarms as well as giving you some important tips in keeping your homes much safer.

For your Certified Home Inspector needs in the South Bay and Los Angeles City, you can call South Bay Home Inspections at (424) 210-7244 or visit us at www.SouthBayhomeInspections.com