Seven Lighting Ideas and Safety Tips for a Kid (or Pet) Friendly Backyard
When it comes to creating a pet-friendly or kid-friendly backyard at your San Diego home, your lighting is a crucial component that will help keep your loved ones safe.
Whether you’re looking to enhance your current backyard or you’re planning to move to a new home, there are plenty of great backyard ideas for kids to make this space safe and welcoming.
Here’s a list of seven lighting ideas and safety tips that will ensure you have a kid and pet friendly backyard.
Use Motion-Activated Floodlights for Nighttime Safety
When the sun goes down your backyard can become a dangerous place. Trip hazards, and the inability to see what’s around you, can pose a safety risk to kids and pets.
Enhance your kid-friendly backyard by installing bright floodlights that turn on whenever they sense motion. They’re great energy savers, since the lights have an automatic shutoff feature that prevents them from staying on all night long.
These outdoor lights are perfect for when Fido needs to go outside to use the bathroom. They’re also great if your child decides they need to run to the backyard to retrieve a toy or run outdoors at night for some other reason.
Bury Wires for Safety
Unless you have overhead lights, solar lighting, or wireless lights, it’s best to bury any lighting wire to prevent kids from tripping and falling. The loose wires can be a serious safety hazard, where not only your kids can trip, but also your guests.
If you hire an electrician to install your outdoor lights, ask them to bury the wire if possible. It’s your best line of defense against people accidentally tripping and hurting themselves.
Another reason to bury any outdoor electrical wires is to prevent your dog or other animals from chewing on them. Animals can wreak havoc on wiring, which could end up posing a threat to them and costing you a pretty penny on re-installation.
Keep Equipment Under Lock and Key
Whether it’s a transformer or your outdoor electrical panel, all of your lighting and electrical equipment should be under lock and key. Curious kids may want to press buttons or flip switches, which can cause some issues for them and for your lighting setup.
If someone switches a breaker without your knowledge, you’ll end up frustrated and in the dark. Kids can touch or damage a transformer and potentially get electrocuted or injured.
Use a locking transformer box and add a lock to the door of your electrical panel. This will make it impossible for little hands to access these crucial parts of your outdoor lighting.
Try Electric and Battery-Powered Candles for a Kid-Friendly Backyard
Candles are one of the leading causes of house fires. You can avoid this potential disaster by switching out traditional candles with electric or battery powered alternatives.
These candles are fun to use and they’re easy to enjoy in an outdoor space. Place them on several of your outdoor tables and enjoy a nice warm glow on those lovely San Diego summer nights, without worrying about the fire hazard.
A candle that gets knocked over can cause serious damage in a matter of minutes. Besides, electric candles last much longer and you can enjoy them for many nights to come.
Add Illumination to Walkways
If you have pavers, or you’ve already created a nice path in your backyard, consider adding some lights to illuminate the path. These lights will make it much easier to stay on course and clearly see how to get from the backyard to the house.
A well-lit walkway makes things much safer for kids and adults alike. You can use something as simple as a few solar lights with stakes to create a lighted boundary along the path.
Another option is to install a few outdoor torch lights. These will add a nice, bright glow that makes it easier to see and safer to walk whenever night falls.
Set Some Safety Ground Rules
One of the best ways to keep your children safe is to lay down some safety-related ground rules. These rules should be enforced and changed as you need, to make sure everyone is abiding by them.
Encourage your kids to learn more about how to play safely outside. Explain to them that certain areas like a work shed are off limits unless they’re under adult supervision.
When you set boundaries up front, it will be much easier to know your kids are aware of the safety rules. Explain that each rule is designed to keep them safe and to prevent the possibility of them or their friends getting injured.
Stay Vigilant
As a parent, you must stay vigilant when it comes to children and backyard safety. Never leave kids unsupervised for long periods of time.
If you have a fire pit in the backyard, only keep it going if at least one adult stays near it at all times. Use the proper fencing around pools to prevent children from falling in without your knowledge. When you stay on top of your kids’ outdoor activities, you’ll feel much better about letting them play outside.
Make Your Backyard Safe for Everyone
With these simple lighting and safety tips, it’s easy to create a kid-friendly backyard for your children and pets. Use some or all these ideas to help make your outdoor space a safer place to relax and play.
Whether you add lighting that’s motion-activated or you just light up an outdoor path, anything you can do to make things brighter will increase the safety of your yard.
From the indoors and the outdoors, to your San Diego landscaping needs, visit our website and contact us today for a consultation so we can help.