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Winter Cleanup: Digital To-Do List to Start the Year Fresh

Posted on January 5, 2017 by LTD Commodities

We’re less than a week into the New Year, which means most of us haven’t yet given up on our resolutions. It’s the perfect time of year to pack things up and get organized for the winter months. Nothing really makes us feel more refreshed than a thorough home cleaning after the holiday season, but few of us remember to do the same with our devices. Computers, smartphones, and tablets can get pretty cluttered throughout the year. Given how much we use our devices on a daily basis, that clutter can cause some major headaches. Start the year off right and finish off your winter cleanup with a few reminders on this 2017 digital to-do list.

Purge Your Inbox

Even those of us with the most organized email accounts get cluttered from time to time. Allowing it to build up is only going to stress us out, so it’s important once every few months to delete anything we don’t need, update our folders and sort all of our old messages. Not only will it make finding information a lot easier on our email platforms, it will free up a ton of space and give us a chance to unsubscribe to annoying emails.

Contact List Cleanup

Our email accounts can get pretty cluttered, but even though we may go a few months without cleaning up our inboxes, eventually we get the job done. The same can’t always be said for our contact lists. Wherever you keep your contact lists, whether it’s in your email account, on your laptop, in your cell phone or synced up across all your devices, it’s a healthy idea to go through and delete all that information you don’t need.

Delete Unused Apps

With so many free apps available across all our devices, it’s pretty easy to build up a collection we just don’t use. If you haven’t checked how much space all your apps are taking up or how much data they’re eating up with unchecked notifications, you’ll be amazed at how many apps you downloaded during the year that you don’t need, happy with how much space you’ve cleared out and pleased to decrease your overall data use.

Change Passwords

Regularly changing your passwords is a crucial step that helps protect all that sensitive information you’ve built into your devices over the years. But if you’re going to change passwords on websites you frequently use, you’ll want to spend some time developing strong passwords. If you just go through the motions, you’ll likely be swapping out strong passwords for weaker ones, which is the opposite of what you intended to do.

Backup Files

We all know how important it is to back up files from our devices. But transferring information to an external hard drive has more benefits than making sure you don’t lose precious documents, images or videos. It also frees up a lot of space on all your devices. Many of us are hesitant to delete files, which leads to us keeping too much on our devices. If unsure, backup the files–it will give you more time to decide, and free up space.

Get Ready Before Spring Hits: 3 Steps for Homeowners to Keep Pool Areas Safe

Posted on February 4, 2014 by TerrySpradlinLTD

There are many safety precautions homeowners need to consider when they decide to install a pool in their yards. Following a few simple steps can help keep children, neighbors and guests safe around the swimming pool all year round.

1. Pool fence installation
Hiring a fence company to install a fence in the yard is one of the first steps homeowners should take to keep everyone safe. There are several styles of fences that homeowners can choose from, including aluminum, vinyl and wood.

Aluminum fences are often the most popular for pool fence installations because of the durability of these fences. Aluminum does not rust, making it the ideal style to be near water. They are also very customizable, giving homeowners the chance to have the fence constructed to the specifications they need to meet to have their pools approved.

2. Follow the law
Homeowners must receive the proper permits and approval from the appropriate authorities in order to have their pools and fences approved as being safe. There are no laws that state the different types of pool requirements homeowners have to meet throughout the nation; however, there are specific laws set by states, towns, counties and groups geared at keeping people safe.

The American Academy of Pediatrics is one of the groups that work toward promoting pool safety. According to this group?s website, a pool fence should be installed at a height of at least four feet around the pool. The fence should be high enough to keep children from climbing over it, and it must not have any openings. This is so that children cannot get through to the pool while unattended.

There are also laws about the types of gates that homeowners install on their fences, which is another preventative measure to keep more people safe. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the standards for pool gates include that they must open out from the pool and close on their own, with the latch installed high enough to be out of the reach of children.

Although there are not set standards across the board for every state, town or county in America in regard to pool fences and pool installations, families can take the initiative to install a pool fence as a preventative safety measure.

3. Prepare the pool area for children
There are many ways to prepare a pool area to keep it safer, especially for children. If the pool is an in ground pool, installing a no-slip surface around the perimeter of the pool can help children, neighbors and guests from falling when near the pool.

Families can also make a set of ?pool rules? to help remind children of ways to stay safe when in or near the pool. Examples of rules can be things such as: no swimming without an adult present, no running near the pool, no diving into shallow water, and so on.
Safety materials should also be kept near the pool. First aid kits, life vests and other rescue materials should be on-hand and close to the pool area, just in case of an emergency. It is always better for homeowners to be prepared.

By following these three simple steps, homeowners can help keep their families, neighbors and friends safe when near the pool area.

Alex is the owner of Challenger Fence Inc., one of the fence companies in NJ that is concerned with keeping people safe near pools. At Challenger Fence Inc., families can call for pool fence installation services to help start the process keeping people safe around their pools.

Safety for Children in the Backyard

Posted on December 3, 2013 by TerrySpradlinLTD

A backyard can be a great place to spend the afternoons and evenings, a little slice of paradise right outside of our own home, but if you have children it’s important that you’re taking proper steps to ensure your backyard is safe for them. Some of these ideas may seem kind of obvious, but others may be things you haven’t even considered. It’s all about taking action to prevent injuries before they happen and before it’s too late.

Communication is very important. Talk to your kids and explain what’s dangerous in the yard and what to avoid, but don’t expect communication to be enough on its own.

Keep Tools And Gardening Equipment Out Of Reach

A lot of tools, both power tools and garden equipment, can look like toys at first glance. Many kids have plastic versions of real tools that really are toys, so when they see the real thing they may want to grab it and start playing with it. Well, there’s a big difference between a fake plastic drill and a real drill. Don’t leave any types of tools lying around your yard or within reach of your children, and take time to explain to them that these things are not toys and that they are not for kids to use until they’re older.

Dangerous Bugs and Insects

Depending on where you live, this may not be much of a threat, but it’s always a good idea to give your kids a basic understanding that certain types of insects and bugs can cause them serious harm. The same goes for snakes and small animals that may pop up in your backyard, and even some plants may be harmful.

Taking the time to educate your kids on what to avoid is also an excellent opportunity to teach them that there are certain types of people that can be harmful, but that doesn’t mean all people are bad.

Keep Tabs On Your Garden Aids

Your garden may have plants in it that are very dangerous if eaten. Now, most people wouldn’t just walk up to a random plant in a garden and start eating it, but kids will put anything in their mouths! If you look away for even a minute, that’s all the time it would take. Aside from things like this that most people don’t think of, there are more common dangers in most backyards than you would think.

For example, chemicals to kill weeds and other various chemicals for the garden may seem right at home being stored in the shed or near your garden itself, but you’ve got to keep them out of reach. You need to keep these in a safe place where children cannot gain access to them. If you’re doing some gardening, make sure you clean up afterwards and don’t leave anything dangerous lying around.

Install A Pool Fence And Keep It Up to Code

It is important to educate your kids about pool safety and to not let them swim in the pool (if you have one) without proper supervision until they’re old enough and have a keen understanding of water safety. Keep in mind that just an inch of water is enough for a child to drown.

It’s mandatory by law in Australia to have a pool fence because it’s a huge step towards ensuring your backyard is safe, not just for your kids but for grown-ups and wild life as well. Having a properly installed pool fence will help a great deal in preventing accidents and tragedies such as drowning.

On a similar note, if you have a foundation or a pond in your yard, make sure you either have a small fence around it to that you educate your kids to be careful while playing near it. It only takes a small amount of water to drown somebody, especially if they hit their head and fall into it. That’s a grim situation to imagine, but it’s better to be safe than to be sorry.

There’s no substitute for proper adult supervision when your kids are playing in the yard, but if you pay attention to the advice in this article, you’ll be making your backyard much safer.

Image Credit: hofstetterlandscaping.com