The Room-by-Room Home Safety Audit

Print this, take a tape measure, and walk the house once. Tick what is already fine; write the numbers in the gaps. Thirty minutes now saves most of the wrong-size returns later.

Five numbers to write down first

• Bathroom doorway clear width (door open, face of door to opposite stop):
• Toilet bowl shape (round ~16.5″, elongated ~18.5″) and floor-to-seat height:
• Tub wall width:
• Entrance: number of steps and total rise, ground to threshold:
• Stud locations around tub and toilet:

Entrance

• Handrails on both sides of the steps
• Threshold under ½”, or ramped
• Motion light covering steps and keyhole
• Somewhere to set shopping down while unlocking

Bathroom

• Somewhere to sit in the shower, rated for their weight
• Grab bar at 33–36″, anchored to hold 250 lbf
• No suction-cup bar being used as a grab bar
• Non-slip surface in the tub or shower pan
• Toilet seat height 17–19″, or a riser fitted to the right bowl shape
• Handheld shower head
• Water heater set to 120°F

Bedroom and the night route

• Feet flat on the floor when sitting on the edge of the bed
• Something firm to push up from beside the bed
• Phone and light within reach of the pillow
• Motion lighting all the way to the bathroom
• No loose rugs or cords on that route

Stairs

• Handrail on both sides, 34–38″ above the nosing
• Light switches at top and bottom
• Step edges visible — contrast on the nosing
• Nothing stored on the treads

Kitchen and living areas

• Everyday items between hip and shoulder height
• A firm chair with arms they can rise from
• Clear route from chair to bathroom
• Smoke and CO alarms tested