Kitchen safety is important, whether you’re cooking at home or in a commercial kitchen. It’s easy to get distracted while chopping vegetables or flipping burgers, which can lead to serious accidents. If you take the time to implement these 8 kitchen safety tips. You can keep yourself and your employees’ safe while preparing food.
Kitchen Knives
Whether you’re a professional chef or preparing dinner at home, it’s important to remember that knives are potentially dangerous tools. In fact, there are around 200,000 injuries each year caused by kitchen blades in America. To avoid an accident and keep kitchen safety, keep your knives stored away after use. Never put them in drawers or leave them on countertops. The more visible they are, the less likely someone is to grab one without thinking twice. It’s also worth investing in a set of sharpening steels. You can get manual ones or electrical versions.
So you can touch up your blades before every use. Otherwise, dull edges can make accidents happen even faster. You should also consider using plastic utensils as another way to reduce risk when cooking at home. And lastly, if something does happen and someone gets hurt with a knife: try not to panic!
Microwaves and Ovens
Microwaves and ovens are used for more than just your dishes. They can actually be very dangerous in your home if not used properly. Teach children how to use these kitchen appliances safely by following a few simple rules. First, they should always ask an adult to use either appliance on their own. Second, they should never open or operate an oven or microwave while it’s in use because of potential fire hazards. To avoid accidents with these appliances, give your kids basic safety training on each one and make sure they know not to leave them unattended while they’re running.
Water Heaters
If you have a gas stove, be careful when cooking near your water heater. Gas water heaters typically sit on a small stand in an enclosed space under your kitchen sink. Flammable vapors from your stove may ignite those vapors, which can result in a fire. Always keep a safe distance between where you’re standing and your hot water heater. If you need to stand close to it while working on it, turn off all nearby gas burners. If you smell anything that could be burning plastic or natural gas (think rotten eggs), turn off everything and leave the area immediately; don’t use a flame or any other source of heat until someone can come out and check things out with you.
Electrical Equipment
When you’re cooking, never leave any electrical equipment. Electrical equipment heats up extremely quickly and could cause food to burn or start a fire. The same is true for any other electrical equipment that heats up your food quickly; as soon as you turn it off, unplug it from its power source to be safe. When using an oven or stove, be sure to place all pots on trivets; if any liquid spills out of your pot, it won’t make contact with your heating element and ignite. Don’t overload electrical outlets with too many appliances at once; if you have more than one appliance plugged into an outlet, they may begin to overheat due to being overcrowded and pose fire hazards.
Hard Floors
A lot of kitchens have wood or tile floors, which makes them easy to clean and look great. But they can be a major hazard. And while using non-slip mats on hard surfaces is always a good idea, installing cushioned mats underneath any heavy appliances is also crucial. This will protect against floor damage as well as help prevent accidents from happening in your kitchen. When you’re shopping for new kitchen appliances and other home products, it pays to check product reviews to ensure you’re buying safe and quality items that won’t cause problems in your home (or end up breaking). This can save you time and money down the road because high-quality products tend to have fewer issues than low-quality ones.
Cleaning Chemicals
In addition to using kitchen safety products to clean your home, it’s also important to make sure you’re following safe cleaning practices. One study found that inhaling toxic cleaning chemicals, like those found in bleach and ammonia, was linked with an increased risk of Parkinson’s disease. To avoid inhaling these chemicals while doing housework, make sure your work area is well-ventilated. Some folks will even open a window or turn on a fan if they can do so without letting insects into their home! Additionally, pay attention to labels on cleaning products and follow any instructions; some require you to mix cleaners with water before use.
Cooking Fumes
While you’re preparing your next gourmet feast, you might not think about all of those intense cooking fumes going into your nose and lungs. It’s important to take precautions while you cook in order to prevent serious illness and injury. In fact, in 2014, there were over 47,000 reported home fires related to cooking equipment and another 1,460 home fire injuries related to that same equipment. Keep these tips in mind when planning your next meal.
Smoke Detectors
An obvious safety feature in homes, smoke detectors are incredibly important—and often overlooked. A study from 1999-2010 found that nearly half of all fire deaths were related to fires that started in the kitchen. While you can’t eliminate risk entirely, installing working smoke detectors and following proper fire safety rules will reduce your chance of having a tragedy at home. If you don’t have a working smoke detector already, it’s time to install one and be sure everyone is familiar with what to do if there’s an emergency at home.