Window safety is a huge concern for any homeowner: especially one who has small children or pets in their home. A big impact window can provide a great view of the outdoors, let in cool breezes when the weather’s nice, and even stand strong against hurricane-force winds when hurricane season hits.
However, any large opening in your home can be a potential safety hazard for small children or pets who don’t know better than to play with them. To protect your family from accidental harm, there are a few basic window safety tips that every homeowner should know and follow whenever possible.
So, in honor of Window Safety Week, which the FGIA observes every April, here are some tips for homeowners to keep in mind concerning their windows:
Window Safety Tip #1: Keep Furniture Away from Windows
If you have small children or pets, furniture like chairs, ottomans, or stools can make easy stepping points for them to climb on. This can make it easier for them to climb up and access windows, reaching locks and other mechanisms that would normally be out of reach or even letting them climb through open windows more easily.
Keep furniture well away from openable windows to minimize the chances of children being able to climb up to where they can operate the window or climb through.
Window Safety Tip #2: Install Window Opening Control Devices (WOCDs)
A window opening control device is a safety mechanism installed on an operable window that limits how wide the window can open during normal use. These safety devices help prevent children and most mid-sized pets from being able to crawl through an open window, enhancing safety for all. They also have the secondary benefit of making it more difficult for someone to enter your home through an open window.
WOCDs are actually required by some building codes in some instances. As noted on the UpCodes page covering the General Services Administration (GSA) Residential Code Section R321:
“In dwelling units, where the bottom of the clear opening of an operable window opening is located less than 24 inches (610 mm) above the finished floor and greater than 72 inches (1829 mm) above the finished grade or other surface below on the exterior of the building, the operable shall comply with one of the following:
- Operable window openings will not allow a 4-inch-diameter (102 mm) sphere to pass through where the openings are in their largest opened position.
- Operable windows are provided with window opening control devices or fall prevention devices that comply with ASTM F2090.”
The idea is to leave enough of a gap to allow easy air flow, but to keep the opening too small for children to be able to fit their heads through the window opening.
While normally only required on windows that are on higher floors of a home, it can be a good idea to add these devices to any operable window a child might conceivably be able to reach in the home to limit risk.
Window Safety Tip #3: Keep All Operable Windows Shut and Locked
If you’re going to be away from a room or the entirety of your home while small children and pets remain present (even if you have a babysitter there to watch them), it’s prudent to verify that all the operable windows in your home are both shut and locked before you leave.
An open window is a potential escape hazard for a small child or pet, one that should be kept closed unless absolutely necessary.
In an ideal world, you’d never have to leave a child unattended in your home, but if you do, be sure to lock up the home thoroughly to minimize risk.
Window Safety Tip #4: Get Impact-Resistant Windows That Won’t Break if Struck
Children and pets alike can be curious and energetic. They may attempt to play with or even ingest things that are actively harmful to them—including things like broken glass from window spalls after a window gets broken.
According to a study by Kathleen McMahon, et al, there were “over 50,000 cases of foreign body ingestion in children younger than 5 years” reported to the National Poison Data System in 2022 alone. While glass was not the most common ingested foreign object, it is ingested enough that the study’s authors highlighted that “glass fragments appear on radiographs” when discussing the evaluation of foreign body ingestion injuries.
Even for older children who are less prone to ingesting shiny, reflective objects, spall from a broken window can be a health hazard as glass foreign bodies can become lodged in their feet when walking near a broken window.
Impact windows help to minimize the risk of glass foreign bodies by preventing spalling from impacts to the window. This is achieved using a semi-flexible laminate interlayer that adheres to the glass. When the glass breaks, it remains stuck to the flexible laminate, reducing glass spall.
Also, with multiple layers of impact-resistant glass, if an outside object impacts the window, it’s less likely for glass shards to penetrate to the interior of the home.
Compare this to a standard, non-impact window, where glass shards go flying whenever there’s a major break… and where breakage is much more likely with much less powerful impacts.
Window Safety Tip #5: Supervise Children Near Windows at All Times
In addition to keeping windows closed and locked when children and small pets are in the household, be sure to keep an eye on them as much as possible, especially around windows, doors, and any loose objects that can be pulled off of tables, shelves, or window sills.
If you notice a child attempting to operate or climb through the window, you have an opportunity to not only stop them from hurting themselves, but to educate them why messing with windows can be dangerous so they are less likely to repeat the behavior in the future.
Education is just as important for improving safety as taking physical precautions to limit opportunities for accidental harm.
Get Impact Resistant Windows to Protect Your Home with Window Safety Devices Included!
Thinking about getting new windows and doors for your home? Be sure to get expertly-installed impact windows with window safety devices pre-installed from the top team of installers in Tampa Bay!
Contact Karoly Windows & Doors for new windows with top-quality installation, strong safety features, and expert information and advice about how to use those safety features to protect your family!
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