“Safety shmafety” says the one-eyed home improvement expert. Who also has a wooden leg. And is missing three fingers. Yes, home improvement is fun, and yes it can be done both professionally and independently, but especially if you’re doing it on your own, you must keep your safety in mind! How many accident reports do you need to read before the light bulb comes on and you think ‘hey, I sure don’t want to end up on that list …’ And it doesn’t really matter what type of project you’re working on – there are risks everywhere, so it’s time to go through the reminders again, just to make sure …
Keep Your Ego In Check
Hearing protection, eye protection and gloves aren’t necessarily sexy, for either men or women. They can be cumbersome and feel like they get in the way of the speed of your project. But you should not let speed be a factor where there’s any safety risk involved. In fact, if you get the ugliest, worst-fitting (but still functional) gear that you can, no one will even look at you twice. They’ll just assume that you give safety gear an extremely high priority and don’t care what it looks like from an outsider’s perspective.
Read Twice, Perform Once
Everybody knows the adage ‘measure twice, cut once.’ Well, when it comes to home improvement projects, add ‘read twice, perform once’ to the mix. Read the directions. Watch the DIY video. Have someone show you the exact motions to perform. And then repeat. By reading or learning something twice, you’ll be able to pick up on anything you missed the first time around because your mind was busy storing data. Remember, people can multi-task, but not multi-focus, which means you need to keep your safety-minded brain on one thing at a time through all of the important parts.
In the Event of Injury
If you’re a home improvement contractor professionally, then your safety regulations are going to automatically be a part of your job. And it’s up to you to follow everything. However, if your employer does not provide the right equipment, or you hurt yourself doing something you’re supposed to be doing, then you’re probably entitled to worker’s comp, and you should contact a law firm about worker’s comp immediately to be sure you have all of the paperwork complete and your data organized accordingly. On the job accidents happen quite regularly, and as a contractor, you have guaranteed insurance when it comes to certain events, which is why there are a whole set of lawyers out there to protect you from situations where your employer can figure out ways not to pay you your due amount.