5 Tips for Keeping Kids and Pets Safe on Your Job Site
Client communication, planning and extra precautions are essential with children or animals around during renovations
Philadelphia-based remodeler Kenny Grono and his team at custom home firm Buckminster Green had been working on a home for months when the client’s dog got spooked. “There was a husky in the house, and she didn’t even lift her head when we would walk in and out for months while we were working there,” Grono says. “And then one day, we had the doors open, we were bringing materials in, and all of a sudden she bolted and she was running through city streets.” Grono’s team was able to safely corral the dog and bring it home, but Buckminster Green added a new clause specifically addressing pet safety to its contracts following the incident.
Pets and kids can be unpredictable and work sites can be hazardous, and whether it’s a formal written policy like Grono’s or just a shared mindset, working with clients to ensure a renovation isn’t endangering their two- and four-legged little ones is in everyone’s best interest. Here are a few ways you can facilitate a smoother, safer project.
1. Make a Game Plan
Ultimately, it’s up to your homeowners to protect their kids and pets during a renovation, but keeping every family member in mind during a project’s planning stage is always smart. Work with your clients to establish some ground rules that make sense for their kids’ and pets’ ages and temperaments, but err on the side of caution. Interior designer Marilyn Kimberly Hill in Nashville, Tennessee, says she likes to meet any kids and especially any animals that will be around — and introduce her team to them — before work gets underway.
“I always tell [clients] you need to have your contractor in to see how they are with the animals,” she says. “These people are going to be in your home and this is [the animals’] home too. And they’re sensitive to energy in a different way than humans are, even kids.”
If the contractors are pet people, Hill says, arranging to have them greet the family dog or cat with a daily treat could curb some anxiety, but clients should sign off ahead of time on which treats and how many can be given.
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Ultimately, it’s up to your homeowners to protect their kids and pets during a renovation, but keeping every family member in mind during a project’s planning stage is always smart. Work with your clients to establish some ground rules that make sense for their kids’ and pets’ ages and temperaments, but err on the side of caution. Interior designer Marilyn Kimberly Hill in Nashville, Tennessee, says she likes to meet any kids and especially any animals that will be around — and introduce her team to them — before work gets underway.
“I always tell [clients] you need to have your contractor in to see how they are with the animals,” she says. “These people are going to be in your home and this is [the animals’] home too. And they’re sensitive to energy in a different way than humans are, even kids.”
If the contractors are pet people, Hill says, arranging to have them greet the family dog or cat with a daily treat could curb some anxiety, but clients should sign off ahead of time on which treats and how many can be given.
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Because kids are often at school on workdays, Hill says, pets typically figure into more of her planning conversations, but ironing out details like what start time would ensure the kids have left for school can help avoid issues.
When school’s out or if the children are preschoolers, see if it’s possible to have them spend the day elsewhere, or determine which parts of the house are off-limits. Homeowners may be able to arrange to work from home to keep anxious pets company or to have a pet sitter come by to play. Doggy day care or having the pets stay with a friend or family member during the project is another option to suggest.
When school’s out or if the children are preschoolers, see if it’s possible to have them spend the day elsewhere, or determine which parts of the house are off-limits. Homeowners may be able to arrange to work from home to keep anxious pets company or to have a pet sitter come by to play. Doggy day care or having the pets stay with a friend or family member during the project is another option to suggest.
2. Help Set Up a Temporary Living Space
If relocation of family or pets isn’t feasible, encourage the client to establish an alternative living space away from the construction. For instance, help set up a small fridge and tub for rinsing dishes in the garage if the kitchen isn’t usable. Move the TV and toy chest to a spare bedroom so kids won’t be tempted to sneak into the family room demo zone.
With pets, sequestering them in another part of the house can minimize the noise and dust they’re exposed to and prevent escape attempts. Even if a homeowner insists their pet isn’t fazed by people or racket and your crew doesn’t initially notice any nervous behavior, Bridget Schoville, senior manager of the ASPCA’s anti-cruelty shelter behavior services, says it can be hard to predict what might set an animal off.
“Pets that are unaccustomed to visitors at the home may be fearful of the extra foot traffic during construction projects — contractors, delivery people, friends and family visiting to assist you or admire your progress,” Schoville says. “Even pets that typically enjoy visitors may be fearful of people dressed in bulky tool belts and hats and wielding large pieces of equipment. And, unlike your typical guest, contractors are not sitting quietly on your couch. They are nosily moving about the home, making them more intimidating than the average visitor.”
If relocation of family or pets isn’t feasible, encourage the client to establish an alternative living space away from the construction. For instance, help set up a small fridge and tub for rinsing dishes in the garage if the kitchen isn’t usable. Move the TV and toy chest to a spare bedroom so kids won’t be tempted to sneak into the family room demo zone.
With pets, sequestering them in another part of the house can minimize the noise and dust they’re exposed to and prevent escape attempts. Even if a homeowner insists their pet isn’t fazed by people or racket and your crew doesn’t initially notice any nervous behavior, Bridget Schoville, senior manager of the ASPCA’s anti-cruelty shelter behavior services, says it can be hard to predict what might set an animal off.
“Pets that are unaccustomed to visitors at the home may be fearful of the extra foot traffic during construction projects — contractors, delivery people, friends and family visiting to assist you or admire your progress,” Schoville says. “Even pets that typically enjoy visitors may be fearful of people dressed in bulky tool belts and hats and wielding large pieces of equipment. And, unlike your typical guest, contractors are not sitting quietly on your couch. They are nosily moving about the home, making them more intimidating than the average visitor.”
A temporary room for pets should be stocked with food, water, toys, litter boxes and any other comforting essentials, like a favorite napping chair, Schoville says. For cats especially, a perch or hiding place can keep them calm. Leaving music or a TV on may also be soothing. Spaces can be set up weeks in advance to give the animals time to get used to them.
“Designate and prepare their personal space before the renovations commence,” Schoville says. “Dogs and cats are creatures of habit.”
Make sure homeowners are keeping these retreat room doors and windows shut, as the disruptions and frequently propped open doors and windows that come with renovations can turn even the mellowest of pets into escape artists, like the husky Grono and his team had to rescue.
“Pets get sick of having us in the house, just like homeowners do,” he says. “There’s a point in the project where fatigue always sets in and people are just tired of having people in the house, the noise, dust and just having to answer all these emails. The pets don’t have to answer emails, but we’ve had pets where a couple months into the project, all of a sudden the cat walks into the room we’re working in and pees on the dropcloth or gets up on one of our toolboxes and pees on it just to say, ‘I’m tired of you guys, get out of here.’
“So even if you think you know them, it’s really about having them safely secured and not making assumptions about how they’re going to behave, because there’s something happening in the house that doesn’t usually happen there.”
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“Designate and prepare their personal space before the renovations commence,” Schoville says. “Dogs and cats are creatures of habit.”
Make sure homeowners are keeping these retreat room doors and windows shut, as the disruptions and frequently propped open doors and windows that come with renovations can turn even the mellowest of pets into escape artists, like the husky Grono and his team had to rescue.
“Pets get sick of having us in the house, just like homeowners do,” he says. “There’s a point in the project where fatigue always sets in and people are just tired of having people in the house, the noise, dust and just having to answer all these emails. The pets don’t have to answer emails, but we’ve had pets where a couple months into the project, all of a sudden the cat walks into the room we’re working in and pees on the dropcloth or gets up on one of our toolboxes and pees on it just to say, ‘I’m tired of you guys, get out of here.’
“So even if you think you know them, it’s really about having them safely secured and not making assumptions about how they’re going to behave, because there’s something happening in the house that doesn’t usually happen there.”
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3. Keep Work Areas Clean and Contained
Safety precautions come with the territory in home renovation, but when kids and pets enter into the equation, special considerations need to be made. Sheela Sathyanarayana,
a pediatric environmental health specialist at Seattle Children’s Research Institute, recommends that contractors completely seal off the renovation area with floor-to-ceiling plastic to keep harmful pollutants out of little lungs. “If this is done properly and re-sealed at the end of each workday, then the hazard potential should be reduced,” Sathyanarayana says. Using air scrubbers can add another layer of protection.
Safety precautions come with the territory in home renovation, but when kids and pets enter into the equation, special considerations need to be made. Sheela Sathyanarayana,
a pediatric environmental health specialist at Seattle Children’s Research Institute, recommends that contractors completely seal off the renovation area with floor-to-ceiling plastic to keep harmful pollutants out of little lungs. “If this is done properly and re-sealed at the end of each workday, then the hazard potential should be reduced,” Sathyanarayana says. Using air scrubbers can add another layer of protection.
Good ventilation and a work site that’s cleaned up daily also eliminate some risks. That means sweeping up dust and debris (young kids and pets spend a lot more time on the ground than adults do, and they have a tendency to put what they find there in their mouths), securing any tools — whether that means taking the batteries out of a drill or keeping a power sander locked away — and disposing of any waste a child or animal could otherwise get into. Even empty paint cans or other discarded supplies could pose a threat if a curious kid or dog is nearby.
4. Keep Clients in the Loop
Let clients know when especially dangerous or disruptive work is planned.
“There are certain points in the job where you want to let them know that the danger is greater than others — like there are times when we’ll have holes open in the floor, and a person’s not going to fall down them but if there’s an open duct, a cat might come in and jump into the ductwork,” Grono says.
Let clients know when especially dangerous or disruptive work is planned.
“There are certain points in the job where you want to let them know that the danger is greater than others — like there are times when we’ll have holes open in the floor, and a person’s not going to fall down them but if there’s an open duct, a cat might come in and jump into the ductwork,” Grono says.
Other instances to alert homeowners to might be when wires or other electrical features are exposed, when sanding or other dust-stirring work is planned (particularly if toxic particles from old lead paint, asbestos or mold could be disturbed), when workers will be bringing a lot of equipment or materials in and out, or when that day’s construction will be unusually noisy or smelly. If a new carpet or hardwood floor is being installed, that might be a great weekend to suggest the homeowners stay at a hotel while chemicals off-gas and dissipate.
Schoville points out that pets are especially sensitive to sounds that are intermittent as opposed to continuous. “Think a nail gun versus a sander,” she says. If a nail gun or something similarly startling is on the day’s to-do list, talk with your clients ahead of time so they can arrange to be home or have a dog walker come by.
5. Commit to Best Safety Practices
Aside from the obvious upside of nobody getting hurt or sick, making kid- and pet-centric safety measures standard practice is the kind of attention to detail that keeps clients coming back, writing positive reviews and recommending your firm to friends. Whether it’s highlighting low injury rates, safety awards and previous work with families or switching to more natural building materials, a clear commitment to health and safety is a win-win.
“Our focus on materials that improve indoor air quality is definitely a selling point for people, especially those with kids,” Grono says.
To keep up to date on the latest renovation safety practices that could affect children or pets, Sathyanarayana points pros and homeowners to the Environmental Protection Agency’s indoor air quality tips page, several pages on the department of Housing and Urban Development’s site and the National Center for Healthy Housing’s site.
Tell us: How do you make sure your clients’ kids and pets are safely out of the way? Let us know in the Comments.
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Aside from the obvious upside of nobody getting hurt or sick, making kid- and pet-centric safety measures standard practice is the kind of attention to detail that keeps clients coming back, writing positive reviews and recommending your firm to friends. Whether it’s highlighting low injury rates, safety awards and previous work with families or switching to more natural building materials, a clear commitment to health and safety is a win-win.
“Our focus on materials that improve indoor air quality is definitely a selling point for people, especially those with kids,” Grono says.
To keep up to date on the latest renovation safety practices that could affect children or pets, Sathyanarayana points pros and homeowners to the Environmental Protection Agency’s indoor air quality tips page, several pages on the department of Housing and Urban Development’s site and the National Center for Healthy Housing’s site.
Tell us: How do you make sure your clients’ kids and pets are safely out of the way? Let us know in the Comments.
More for Pros on Houzz
Read more stories for pros
Browse millions of photos for inspiration
Talk with your peers in the Pro-to-Pro discussions
Join the Houzz Trade Program