A beautiful lawn and garden can seem like the perfect place for children to play, but there are many overlooked hazards that compromise home safety lurking among the foliage and the tools you use to make it beautiful. Extend the protection that ADT offers to your green pride and joy with these tips.

* Bodies of water: Fence in and educate children about water gardens and ponds as drowning hazards.

* Plants: Keep play areas free of plants with thorns or prickly parts. Also tell children not to eat anything found in the garden because some common plants are toxic.

* Fertilizers: Lock fertilizers and other substances away from a child’s reach, and teach them not to eat them. Also wash your hands before handling food.

* Insects: Plant insect-attracting plants away from play areas.

* Tools: Store sharp tools behind locked doors when not in use and teach children to stay away from them.

Feeling safe at home is essential. But  installing your home’s security system on your own isn’t. Don’t hassle with DIY home security systems. Instead, trust the professionals at ADT, which have helped protect American homes and businesses for more than 130 years.

If you still aren’t convinced, check out these reasons why you should let America’s #1 home security provider handle your home alarm system:

• Comprehensive monitoring: Rest easy with home monitoring for police, fire and medical emergencies.

• Around-the-clock monitoring: Security professionals monitor your home 24/7 at four interconnected command centers. You can feel peace-of-mind knowing that these professionals are on the lookout while you’re at work and the kids are at school.

• Simple controls: The system’s digital keypad makes it easy for people of all ages to use and the keychain remote allows you to arm or disarm the system from your driveway or bedside table.

Taking all the necessary precautions to deter burglars from breaking into your home – including investing in a home security system – is important. But don’t forget to protect your guest house and other places where you store expensive equipment like lawn care tools. Here are some tips to help you secure your home’s storage units and guest house.

• Display protection: Don’t just post yard signs and window decals for your home alarm system by your house. Make sure that at least one of these home security decals is on the outside of your storage shed or guest house. It can serve as a deterrent, just as it would on your house.

• Lock it up: Invest in a good lock to place on the door and make sure the windows are secure.

• Mark your property: Tag your expensive equipment and tools, so that it’s obvious they belong to you. This can include placing a nametag on tools or writing your name and address on them with a permanent marker.

Just because your child is playing in the backyard – close to your home and its alarm system – it doesn’t guarantee that an accident won’t occur. And if other parents or children won’t be around to alert you of an accident, it’s even more important to take the appropriate steps to improve you child’s home safety.

Use these basic tips to help keep children safe while they’re at play:

• Close proximity: Never let children play on equipment out of your sight. Kids will more likely be careful with you around and when an accident does happen, you’ll be there to help. Also keep a mobile or wireless phone nearby in case you need to call emergency services.

• Soft landings: Cover the ground below and around equipment with soft materials like rubber mulch, pea gravel or hardwood chips so when falls happen, these materials – rather than pavement or grass – will soften the blow and help protect from serious injuries.

• “Fall zone:” Make sure soft ground coverings reach out in a six-foot radius from equipment and each piece of equipment is at least six feet apart to allow for a proper “fall zone.” If your child falls, this will ensure that is nothing in their way except for the soft ground covering.

Whether you’re crossing the street to go to a neighbor’s cookout in your quiet development or hustling through a crosswalk downtown, don’t assume that you’ll never be involved in a vehicle-pedestrian accident. Well-meaning drivers can easily get distracted and overlook pedestrians. According to the NHTSA, 4,378 pedestrians died in traffic crashes in the U.S. in 2008.

Remember that your home security system can only protect you at home and be sure to keep these safety tips in mind when you’re traveling by foot:

• Follow designated paths: Use sidewalks where provided and only enter or cross streets at legal areas. Drivers expect to see pedestrians in these areas and should be more alert near them.

• Stay visible: If there are no sidewalks, it’s safer to walk facing traffic so you and drivers can see each other better. Avoid walking at night when possible, and wear light-colored clothing and reflective materials. Also carry a flashlight in dark areas.

• Avoid impairment: Consuming alcohol and drugs not only impair your ability to drive, they can also make walking difficult, as well. Keep this in mind and plan accordingly for when you’ll have to walk somewhere.

One of the biggest life changes an adult can experience is the role reversal that comes with taking care of an elderly parent. And while you might be used to your parent being the one to offer you guidance and assistance, there is definitely a point where it’s your responsibility to do the same for them.

Asking an elderly parent to move in with you is a big step. After all, most parents would like to maintain their independent lifestyles. Fortunately, some home alarm systems come with around-the-clock monitoring for emergency medical response, so you can rest easier when leaving parents at home.

While it’s  important that you have an alarm from an alarm company like ADT – where you get the medical emergency monitoring – you need to take other steps around the house. Make sure that you have all rugs securely attached to the floor, that steps are not going to cause any sort of tripping or accidents and that all walkways are clear. Move wires out of the way, and try to make it easy for your mom or dad to make their way around the home.

It’s important to plan ahead before a parent moves in. It’s ideal to set them up in a room on the first floor of your house that is also near a  bathroom. While it’s a big step, asking your senior parent to move in can be a great way for the entire family to grow closer.

While there’s nothing quite like feeling the sunlight on your face after a long winter, it’s still important to remember that too much heat is never a good thing. And this isn’t just about your face–it’s also about your house and vehicle. Keeping your home cool is important for it structurally, not to mention how important it is to ensure that young children, elderly relatives and pets are not subject to temperatures that are too much to handle.

Keeping doors and windows shut is about more than home security. It’s also an essential way to save energy and make sure the pumping AC doesn’t go to waste. If you’re running the AC while you have the windows open, you’re wasting a cool air, while also making your house a bit more vulnerable for a break-in. Try to keep the doors and windows shut so you  can save on your energy bill and make the most out of your system.

It’s also a good idea to inspect your HVAC system before the summer, in case it looks like it will need any repairs. If you get it fixed early, you might also be able to find more reasonable prices. This way, your home is more prepared for a particularly brutal summer.

It’s also worth noting that the summer heat can have other effects on your home security. Sometimes when it gets particularly hot, it is easier to accidentally trigger a power outage in your own home by overloading extension cords or using too many devices on a single fuse at  time. Fortunately, many home security providers offer systems that work even when the power goes out. ADT  home alarm systems come with battery backup so you’ll get hours of home monitoring even if you lose power.

If you want to protect your car from the heat of summer, the best idea is to find shade.  Try to park your car in places where it won’t get direct sunlight. This will make everything from the interior to the paint job last longer, and it will also be a lot more pleasant to get in on a sunny day.

While summer might mean taking a break from the office to hit the beach, for many Americans, it also means preparing for hurricane season. If you’re not sure where to begin, don’t wait until the last minute to get ready. After all, there are some things that a home alarm system can help out with, and others that might require a little more work. Here’s a simple hurricane preparedness checklist so you can make sure you cover all the basics before a big storm arrives:

1. Do you have enough food and water for two to three days? If you’re far enough away from the ocean that evacuations aren’t necessary, then you need to have enough supplies to make it in case you can’t leave the house for a few days. Stock up on nonperishable food and enough drinking water for the entire family.

2. Did you move the lawn furniture indoors? When it comes to home security during a rough storm, this can mean the difference between a manageable amount of damage done to your home and something more serious. Make sure to move all lawn furniture and outdoor decor inside if a big storm is headed your way.

3. Did you park your car in a safe spot? Once you’re finally able to leave the house, it’s important to have a car ready. But if your car incurs damages due to falling branches or live wires, you won’t be able to go anywhere. Try to park it somewhere safe – ideally in the garage. And if you’re  leaving the house, remember to set that ADT home security system before you hit the road, just in case looters are eying your property after the storm is over.

The first step when you’re leaving for a summer vacation is to remember to activate your ADT home security system . Burglars know that people go away in the summer, and they prepare accordingly. To avoid falling victim to a burglary, you need to make sure that your property looks occupied – even when it isn’t. Be sure to replace the light bulbs around your house, including your exterior lights, and set some sort of timer that will turn lights on and off both indoors and outdoors. This way your house will look more lived-in.

But home security is about more than making sure robbers don’t break in. Also be sure to handle the smaller steps around the house. Unplug electronic devices from overloaded power strips, and be sure that you remember to turn off things like coffee makers, irons, and flat irons. This will greatly reduce the risk of a home fire.

Before you leave town, remember to make essential home security updates to your house. If you take the right steps before leaving, it will make for a much less stressful return home.

Home security is about much more than keeping criminals outside of your house. It’s about protecting your loved ones and personal belongings from other dangers as well – like fire and carbon monoxide poisoning. And while advanced burglary monitoring is a function of all ADT home security systems, remember that there’s more to taking care of your property than worrying about a break-in. In fact, statistics show that in most parts of the country, people are more likely to deal with a fire or water damage than a break-in.

So what can you do to help protect your home from a fire?

Install Smoke Detectors – Once they’re in place, make sure you regularly replace that batteries to keep them functioning.

Be prepared – Have items around the house including fire extinguishers in case a small fire breaks out in the kitchen or another area of the house.

Get an ADT home security system – ADT allows you to integrate smoke detectors into your home alarm system. If there is smoke or fire in your home, the alarm will sound and ADT will immediately contact the local authorities.

Whether it’s during the winter months when fires are statistically more likely to occur, or at another point in the year, take the steps necessary to help prevent a fire in your home.