There are few sounds on the planet more annoying than the beeping of a smoke alarm. The high pitched alert is meant to save lives in case of a fire. But believe it or not, many times children will sleep right through that alarm despite the sounds being echoed through the home.

It’s been proven time and time again that smoke detectors save lives. Firefighters recommend having several throughout the house. But after numerous studies, with the most recent being out of the University of Dundee in the United Kingdom, more than 80 percent of children between the ages of 2 and 13 did not wake up when the alarm sounded. That research is in line with similar studies conducted in the United States.

The numbers are a cause for alarm because the website Ready says a house can become fully engulfed in flames in less than five minutes. According to a report by ABC News, the American Red Cross says seven people die and 36 people are injured every day as a result of house fires in this country.

Kids Are Deeper Sleepers Than Adults

Sleep specialist Dr. Terry Brown of the Southern Illinois Healthcare Sleep Center says children spend more time in deep sleep than adults and that’s why it’s harder for them to wake up. This deeper sleeping pattern generally last through the teen years.

Cause of Alarm: Testing the Research

Television news stations around the country have conducted tests with sleeping children and various types of smoke alarms. I personally have been involved with two of these experiments. The children involved were between the ages of 3 and 9. We set up infrared cameras in their bedrooms and waited for them to nod off. After about an hour and with the help of the parents, we set off the smoke alarms. That’s about the time doctors estimate people are in stages three and four of sleep. It’s known as slow wave sleep and consumes the first third of the night.

“It may be that stage of sleep comes first because basically, we need it to replenish the brain. So we get that taken care of whether we get the other stages or not,” said Dr. Brown.

He added slow wave sleep is also when children start getting the growth hormones they need, and that may explain why they sleep so soundly. Research also suggests boys tend to sleep sounder than girls, so keep that in mind as well.

Eight Minutes of Fear

In both examples, done in two different states and about three years apart, the kids slept through the high pitched beeping. Both families had three sons. Kathy and Todd in Indiana watched on a monitor down the hall for eight minutes before any of their sons woke up. Even then the boys were groggy and did not react to the high pitch beeping of the alarm. None of the kids sprang into action and tried to escape their room.

Kathy knew her boys, ages 2, 4, and 8 were sound sleepers, but she never imagined they’d snooze through the smoke alarm, which was right outside their bedroom doors. At one point she even stood outside the closed door, clapping her hands and calling for the boys to wake up. It took several more minutes of her doing that before her oldest son finally opened his eyes and wondered what was happening.

This bothered Kathy and her husband Todd for several reasons. They live in a split level home. Since the master bedroom is on the other end of the house, they would be cut off from their boys if a fire happened in the center of their home.

Parents Think Their Kids Will Awaken

The other family in this experiment had a similar floor plan and response to what they’d seen. Brian and Lisa of Illinois had never given the situation much thought.

“I honestly thought that they would be up in a couple of minutes and coming out that door,” said Brian. His wife was equally surprised.  “I didn’t expect them to wake up right away, I thought it would take time. It was upsetting. I was trying not to cry. A fire could come through and they would still be in their rooms.”

Six minutes passed and the only movement came from Grant, 8, who pulled the covers over his head. After our test, Brian and Lisa decided it was time to invest in other equipment to help wake their boys in an emergency. Doctors and firefighters want parents and caregivers to be aware of this research and have a backup plan in place in case of a fire.

“It might be prudent for parents to put their children where they’re closer to the smoke alarms, but at the same time, it’s important to remember kids won’t wake up as readily as they will and they’ve got to make sure their kids are awake,” said Dr. Brown.

Alternatives to the Traditional Beeping Alarm

Some companies sell smoke alarms that interrupt a sleeping child by providing the option to record a voice. Other studies have shown that a female’s voice sounding in place of the alarm beeping was more effective in waking a slumbering child. There are plenty on the market to chose from on various sites, including Amazon, Target and First Alert.

Whether you have the voice alarm or not, there are other things that can be done to protect your family in case of fire. Make sure your home is equipped with more than one smoke alarm and load it with fresh batteries. It’s recommended batteries be changed the same weekend as Daylight Saving Time or when needed.

More Recommendations to Save Lives

Current recommendations include placing alarms in each bedroom of the home as well as outside each room and at least one on each level of the house. That’s because smoke rises through the stairwell. Have more than one escape route from the house in case other exits are blocked. Remind children to get low to the ground and touch the doorknob to see if it’s hot before opening the door.  Do not hide under the bed or in the closet. Firefighters in full gear can appear scary to children so let your kids know these men and women are there to help.

These tips along with remaining vigilant and mindful of the potential dangers can help eliminate the cause for alarm in your household.

Sprucing up your kitchen lighting features can be a sure way to refresh the looks of your kitchen in a trendy and modern manner. The good thing about doing this is that it can be cost-friendly, not to mention an enjoyable DIY project. Most kitchens have stuck to the old design where fluorescent bulbs were installed on the ceilings. This style is frowned on in kitchen light design circles where it’s described as being too bland. Modern kitchen lighting designs are seen to be cozier, particularly with proper bulb wattage. Read on:

1. Find out the lighting type to install

The type of lighting you want to install is important since there are various advantages to each. For example, when installing track lighting, you have three subgroups i.e. H, J, and L. The H category is recommended not only because it’s modern but also because you can juggle with many kitchen lighting designs.

2. Shift the focus away from the ceiling

This does not mean that the ceiling isn’t proper as an installation space – it’s simply not stylish. There are lots of different kitchen lighting ideas that you can experiment with. The list includes options like track lighting, shelve backlighting, drop down pendulum lighting, recessed can lights etc.

Not only are these modern kitchen lighting styles easy to install, they do not require much maintenance.

While artificial lighting can be pretty impressive, it simply does not match up to natural lighting. Finances allowing you can install skylights that will also look great at night. Alternatively, you can just stick to blinds and shades ensuring that they are pulled open in the daytime.

3. Save energy

Many modern kitchen lighting fixtures are made to fit the latest designs of energy-saving bulbs. These bulbs produce superior white light which is more efficient than the traditional yellow lighting from incandescent bulbs. You will also be able to save good money as these bulbs have very lower power consumption.

4. The choice of kitchen lighting should complement the hardware

The lighting effect in your kitchen is not only a function of the bulb wattage but also has to do with the nature of your kitchen hardware. Here we are talking about items like the countertops and shelving. The golden rule here is that dark surfaces will always tone down even the brightest of bulbs. As such, modern kitchen lighting fixtures are seen to go well with lightly finished cabinetry and equally shiny countertops made of laminate and granite. Additionally, you can complement the lighting with shiny pulls and knobs on the cabinetry. It’s really a matter of personal tastes though.

5. The accessories also matter a great deal

In addition to the hardware, you should also take care of the kitchen accessories, making them more complementary of your new kitchen lighting fixtures. Fortunately, this does not have to involve lots of money. Ensure that your blinds and curtains are bright. Also, try hanging shiny accessories including tin and copper pans such that they disperse the light more.

Perhaps the best accessory in your kitchen will be an opposite pair of mirrors that will add an infinite feel to your kitchen.

Owning a home is everybody’s dream. Some may already have achieved this and others may be sweating it out to at one time own a home. Once you have succeeded with owning a home, there are other things that automatically comes into play. For example, there will be a need for you to improve your home, its design and do proper gardening care after the builders have left. These are only things that you can do on your own as it is only you who knows how you want your home to look like. In this article, we will be giving your ideas on how you can improve your home together with its design and how you can also improve how your garden will look.

How do you improve your interior home design?

There are various ways to which this can be achieved and some of them are discussed below:

Your home’s Color Scheme

Color is the first thing that you should start with. The overall makeover will do your home some good. The most important thing is that you should choose your basic color scheme then use it to paint from room to room. You can try using paler blue, royal blue, soft orange and grass orange for best results.

Proper Use of Investment Pieces

You obviously have those things that you treasure. You can use them to your advantage by putting them on display front and center of your house. These can be your unique finds and antiques.

Coloring Window Trims

Window trims are places that are mostly overlooked but paying keen attention to them can leave your house looking lovelier. You can also color them black so that it matches the landscape.

Clean Your Sofas

Merely because your sofas will get dirty again maybe due to the presence of children should not discourage you from making your home look nice. The sofas are part of your house and for your whole home to look neat so should they.

Implementation of the 50/150 Rule

This rule dictates that you mix a batch of paint 50% scanter than the base and the remaining 150% darker. This ensures that you get the good color family apart from obviously being a good method of using color in an architectural manner.

Amplifying Neutrals Using Texture

By including variety of materials, you can create an interesting neutral décor. To achieve this, you can try using open weave line, fine gauge, distressed velvet and also cotton velvet. They guarantee best results for your house.

How Can You Improve Your Home Garden by Yourself?

A good home does not only have good interior designs but also consist of proper looking gardens and patios. Below are some of the ways that you can improve how your outdooor or indoor garden looks without anybody’s help;

Improving the Looks of Your Boundaries

A good garden has good boundaries and even if they were first done well, there is always need for repair or total replacement. You can improve how your boundaries look by using bundles of high hazels rods that are strongly tied together using a manila paper. Another idea is to use deep graphite to paint your fence leaving it looking nice.

Planting Flowers

Flowers are always nice to look at and can always be used to enhance how your garden looks. The type of flowers you plant will, however, depend highly on your taste. For instance, if you like insects, you can plant flowers that are attractive to bees and butterflies. If you value your security, you can plant tall flowers around your garden and boundaries so that they will cover you from the roaming eyes of passersby.

Proper Pruning

If you have planted trees around your compound, it is always wise that you prune them regularly to allow them to grow well and give your garden a beautiful sight. If you have planted the trees in pots, you should make the pots as big as possible as the trees require their roots to freely grow with minimal limitations.

Proper Surfacing

You can always employ other ideas other than the regular use of pavements. For your home to stand out, you can try ideas such as decking or use of reclaimed timber. Using encaustic tiles is also another idea that you can deploy for the purposes of surfacing your compound’s floor.

Owning a home is usually the first step that you can take. It is then upon you to make it the home that you want. There are various ways to which you can use home improvement to re-think both the interior and the outside of your house some of which are discussed above. Those are ideas that you may want to take into consideration if you want to improve your home.