Lubbock, TX – According to the Home Safety Council, four out of five U.S. households plan to use ladders around their homes to prepare for the holiday season.  Annually, during the two months surrounding the holiday season, more than 14,000 people are treated in hospital emergency rooms due to injuries related to holiday decorating.
 
Christmas Decor provides its clients with professional holiday and event decorating, eliminating unnecessary accidents.  The company's designers are trained to execute lighting displays on high roofs, ladders, and in tricky situations. According to Blake Smith, president of Christmas Decor, the company's installation crews are professionally trained and use the utmost of care when decorating a client's home, without damaging moldings, roofing, or architectural elements.
 
"Homeowners are simply not following proper safety practices," said Smith. "These unsafe practices can lead to major injury and even death, turning the holidays from a time of celebration into a time of tragedy."
 
Christmas Decor always recommends using a professional for holiday decorating because of potential injuries caused by falling and electrocution, but is providing the following tips to improve safe practices for homeowners insistent on doing it themselves:
 
•    Use proper climbing equipment – Eighty-two percent of consumers reported climbing on chairs, counters, shelves and other pieces of furniture when decorating for the holidays, according to the Home Safety Council.  Invest in a sturdy and reliable ladder that can adapt to different heights according to your needs.
 
•    Practice safe techniques – Secure ladders on even ground, don’t stand on the top two steps of a ladder, and don’t reach further than you should when decorating around windows.
 
•    Aluminum and electricity don’t mix – As easy as it may be, do not string lights while they are plugged in.  If your ladder is aluminum, it will conduct electricity and an error can cause electrocution.
 
•    Save the festivities for night – Alcohol consumption when climbing ladders can lead to injury and death.  Also, decorate when the sun is up.  Decorating at night is dangerous.  
 
•    Indoor or Outdoor? - The Home Safety Councils stresses that you check the color-coded UL (Underwriters Laboratories) mark on the product’s package if you are unsure whether the light strings are for indoor or outdoor use. A green holographic UL mark indicates indoor use only, while a red one indicates that the product is safe for both indoor and outdoor use.
 
•    Stay grounded - Ground-fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs) prevent electric shock.  Plug outdoor electric lights and decorations into circuits protected by them. Portable GFCIs provide flexibility in using receptacles that are not GFCI-protected, and are often used outdoors.
 
"Hopefully, homeowners will leave it to the pros," added Smith. "If not, we recommend these tips to help keep area residents safe and healthy for the holiday season."
 
To learn more about safety for holiday decorating, visit the company's website at www.christmasdecor.net.