How to Keep Your Yard Safe for Trick or Treaters At Halloween

How to Keep Your Yard Safe for Trick or Treaters At Halloween - wikiHow/**/

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All children look forward to Halloween because of the candy and being able to dress up as anything they want to for one night. Throughout Halloween week, parents and schools teach kids the importance of safety. If you have a yard space that the children will walk through or have access to, you can play a key role in keeping the surroundings safe for them as well.

edit Steps1Clean up any toys, trash, or animal droppings. The last thing you want a kid in a costume to step in is dog poo. Take a few minutes to rake leaves or sticks and be sure that the yard is safe to walk through. Place any small flower pots next to your door or in the carport, away from foot traffic areas.If you've had renovation or cleaning work occurring in the yard, either put the items away or rope them off clearly. Put away ladders, buckets, garden tools, etc.Remove any lawn decorations, chairs, etc. that might be in the way.Tape down cords that cannot be moved from ground areas. Use duct tape or other strong tape.2Roll up garden hoses onto racks and be sure that your automatic sprinkler system is completed before dusk. Some systems are kept at ground level when not in use and not a hazard, as opposed to those that stick up a few inches. If you have a system that sticks up and could be walked on, consider making the spot obvious such as placing an upturned planter over it with an LED light placed on top.3Use glow sticks, LED lights, and other safe lights to illuminate your yard. Be creative with the yard appearance. If you have stepping stones, consider creating a parallel glow stick path on the outside of the steps as a guide. Mini yard spot lights, overhead garage lights, and other eye-safe lights can be of assistance. Don't use automotive lights because they can blind kids while walking to your door.Turn on the porch light. This will help trick or treaters find their way.Invest in a small battery-operated light to insert in Jack O' Lanterns instead of candles. If you do use Jack O' Lanterns with real candles, keep them well out of the reach of kids, their blowing costumes, and any flammable decorations.Ensure that any decorations, cords, etc., are well lit if they can't be tucked or placed out of the way.4Keep pets inside the house, the backyard, or in a safe location away from the area. Dogs can be territorial of their surroundings and bark or even snap in defense. If a child is unfamiliar with animals or unexpected loud noises, they can get frightened as well and it may ruin their night. Scared pets, especially cats, can inadvertently dart across the street to avoid loud people or noise.Keeping pets out of the way is also for their own benefit; all of the noise and activity can cause anxiety for pets and might cause them to run away.5Consider giving out treats in your driveway instead of at the door if your yard is unsafe. This can be useful if any part of your yard leading to your door could create a bottleneck if a crowd of kids turns up. If you see kids going around or playing with fences, gates, or other potentially sharp objects, inform the parents to steer them away. Driveway trick or treating can be fun in a few ways since you can play Halloween music next to you, create a haunted house, or even feel comfortable that you won't be bothered out of your TV chair every second.6Turn everything off when you call it "quits" or don't want to participate. Lit porch lights are the most known "signal" to kids that tell them someone is home with candy. If you're home, but don't have candy nor want visitors, turn off any outdoor lights. With this, you can still join in the festivities with a lit Jack O' Lantern by the window or doorstep. When going to bed or out for the night, be sure to lock and secure windows and doors, as well as turning off anything that might attract people.

edit TipsIf you're not participating in Halloween but you're going out, turn on all your security systems.If you're not participating and don't want people to enter your property, don't turn on the porch light. If you have a gate, shut it and don't have any decorations out in the yard that might encourage people to enter. Depending on where you live, it might also be helpful to make it obvious that you are home even if you're not visiting, just in case tricksters seek to toilet paper your house or try any other tricks.Consider leaving a bucket of treats at the front gate if you don't want trick or treaters bothering you by coming on to your property.If you need to back out of or turn into your driveway during Halloween, take extreme care. Signal and use your horn if it will help alert trick and treaters to your vehicle movements.If you're leaving the house, be sure everything is off, so they don't think its a haunted house or put a sign by your drive-way saying, "Sorry, no candy," so they don't have to go on your doorstep & wait for a long time.

edit WarningsCheck that your homeowner's insurance is up to date and covers personal liability and property in case of injury or damage.If you're not going to be home for Halloween, take all security precautions to protect your home.

edit Things You'll NeedSafety lightsTape for taping down cordsStorage space for removed items

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Last edited:
October 29, 2010 by Magakoopa_and_Boo_are_from_Mario

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