Holiday Safety Fails and Fixes: Preventing Electrical Fires w/ Hartley Webb

Every holiday season, EMS teams respond to hundreds of house fires, electrical burns, falls from height, and decorating or party related problems. Holiday decoration and Christmas tree fires are more damaging than other fires, resulting in twice the injuries and five times the fatalities per fire as the average winter holiday home fire. Follow MEMIC Safety Management Consultant Hartley Webb’s advice on the proper use of electrical cords and appliances so you aren’t putting your friends and family in danger. Plus, listen to the end of the episode for gift ideas to keep your loved ones safe. Peter Koch: Hello, listeners, and welcome to the Safety Experts podcast. So, let's set the stage. It's winter. The air is well below freezing and there's a bunch of youth standing out around the flagpole in the schoolyard. One of them says to the other. Are you kidding? Stick my tongue on that stupid pole. That's dumb. The response from his friend. I triple dog dare you. So, you may recall those immortal words from a Christmas story when Flik is about to stick his tongue on a metal flagpole in the schoolyard on the dare of his friend. Well peer pressure is a real thing. Even beyond the schoolyard, every Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons or no matter what holiday it is. E.M.S. teams respond to hundreds of house fires. Electrical burns, fall from a height, and decorating or party related problems that arise from people trying to perpetuate holiday cheer. And many of these problems arise from the improper use of electrical cords or appliances. We're going to talk about some of that today. I'm your host, Peter Koch and for the past 17 years, I've been working for MEMIC as a safety expert within the hospitality and construction industries. What I realize is that safety impacts every part of each position or tasks that you do even during the holidays. For today's episode, Holiday Safety Fails and Fixes. I'm speaking with Hartley Webb safety management consultant with MEMIC to better understand what safety challenges the holidays bring and what we can do to address them. Hartley has been a safety management consultant with MEMIC for 27 years, almost since its inception and working with a variety of businesses. He's a frequent speaker for the main in New Hampshire Safety Councils and is the chairperson for the Board of Occupational Safety and Health in Maine. Hartley achieved his CSP in 2005 is an and is a captain in his local fire department in his hometown in northern Maine. Hartley. Welcome to the podcast today. Hartley Webb: Thank you. It's a pleasure being here. Peter Koch: Excellent. I really appreciate it. So, let's jump right into this thing. We're going to talk about safety for the holidays, but we've. Before we see the solutions of how we can be safe. Let's talk about some of the results about how people try to persevere, and holiday cheer and they aren't always successful. So, do you have any examples that you've come across in your time? Hartley Webb: For electrical safety, doing the holidays? A lot of that stems from people being in a hurry, not having the right material, equipment maybe growing, you know, starting out small and then getting larger each year, but not taking into account of what they're doing or even understanding how to do it correctly. Peter Koch: Sure. Maybe start with just a few Christmas lights here and then your neighbor puts up more Christmas lights and you put it more Christmas lights and all of a sudden, you're like you half the use of CMP for the month that that time, right? Hartley Webb: Correct. And there's still tapping off the same outlet they did when they started. Peter Koch: Yeah, sure. So, when someone does that, like, what's the what's the possible result of that happening? Hartley Webb: Again, some of that understanding is just having a basic understanding of how much can a single outlet handle for for wattage and amperage. And, you know, and not overdoing it and creating an issue at the home that could be hazardous to themselves or to the to, you know, children, family. Peter Koch: Sure. Sure. And if I overload that outlet too much, what are the consequences? Hartley Webb: Well, this is basically going to be the damage to equipment or damage to the structure, which worst-case would-be fire potential. Peter Koch: Sure. Sure. Yeah. I mean, you see it in the paper often where someone's plugged in too many things or it could be a Christmas tree or something else and the heat catches something on fire or there's a spark. It catches on fire. And all of a sudden, it's a total loss for the house. So, it makes a sad and tragic outcome sometimes. Hartley Webb: Yeah. You see a lot of it, especially in the residential, a lot of the fires, even commercial. A lot of that. When you hear them. They usually just use the term it was electrical in nature. But a lot of that is misuse of of extension cords or overloading of circuits. And people just not understanding what those risk factors are, how they even come to the point where they've created a hazard. Peter Koch: Sure. Sure. So, let's think about some of those risk factors. Let's start with the house first and not what you plug into it, but like when you are looking at your facility, whether it's a commercial facility or it's going to be your home, what are some of the things that you're looking at from hardwiring in your house that would cause you to make some changes, possibly in how you decorate your home? Hartley Webb: Well, you I mean, it's it's understanding what you're plugging into it. So, you take a typical you take a typical circuit house that's gonna be there, a 15- or 20-amp circuit. And without getting too technical, if you looked at that's 120 volts, that's basically that circuit has the capability of supplying about 1,800 watts. So, if you start if you look at your typical light bulb, you say you've got a lot of 60 watt bulbs, you start adding how many bulbs are in that display. Once you get to eighteen hundred, you have you know in total wattage. You've actually maxed out that circuit. You shouldn't even be running at that potential you should be running less so. It doesn't take long. But who sits there and adds that up? Usually, they'll, they'll, you know, configure their decorations to the point where the circuit breaker now trips. Well, why did that happen? Well, you just keep resetting that circuit that can lead to problems down the road. Stuff is obviously running hot cause heat is what causes that to occur. Peter Koch: Sure. So, when you're looking to plug something in, there's usually some other thing is tied into that circuit already. And like you have a refrigerator or the other lights or other appliances. And when you tie in Christmas lights or other decorations, things to shine on your house, lights to make the outside lit. Other things like that, you're adding to the load that that circuit is being demanded of. Hartley Webb: Right. And you’re typically a typical residential circuit will have usually five to six receptacles on a circuit. So, you know, unless you really, truly understand the houses electrical system. You've got to figure out, OK, what what outlets go back to that one circuit and then start tracing. Everything that’s plugged into that circuit. So, you just tap into a garage outlet. What else is in that garage that's running and and hopefully they didn't, but they probably fed in another adjacent room, maybe onto that circuit. So, you could start chasing a lot to see what it is that's drawing power off of that that single circuit. Peter Koch: Sure. So just because I have multiple outlets within one room or on one side of my house doesn't mean that they're all tied to separate circuit breakers. They could all be on the same circuit breaker. Hartley Webb: Correct. They shouldn't have more than six outlets on a given circuit. But again, who's who's added on put additions on tapped in? That can change over time. Peter Koch: Sure. And it might not have been a certified or qualified electrician doing the work either. Hartley Webb: Correct. Peter Koch: Especially on residential. On the residential side commercial side, it should be much different. But the residential side, which is where a lot of the issues are going to happen, you're going to find homeowners doing a lot of their own work. Hartley Webb: Yes, you're correct. Peter Koch: Yes. Excellent. Hartley Webb: Or getting a friend. Peter Koch: Or getting a friend to do it. Right. I can do that. Absolutely. Are there any other safety factors when you think about setting up temporary lighting or temporary decorations? Hartley Webb: Well, the biggest one from a from the hardwire, rather, it's being hardwire, but the supply system should be, you know, don't set up a display without including a ground-fault circuit interrupter is probably the most important thing you can do, especially if that's an outdoor system. So, if you're running anything outdoors, we're exposed to the elements, exposed to moisture, having a ground fault circuit outlet. And that could be either. That could be well, it could be an outlet itself’ s typical to what you'd find in your bathroom. Got your set reset button on it could be a circuit. Most homeowners aren't typically going to have a circuit breaker unless it goes to the garage or out to a pool where a circuit breaker itself has the ground-fault built into it, but it could start at the circuit breaker panel. It probably is at the outlet. If it's feeding outdoors somewhere or if you don't know, then put one in-line as a pigtail or part of an extension cord. And then that will protect that will protect the human. The everything else is protecting the property. But if you actually want to keep the person from having a shock potential, then the only thing that's going to do that is going to be a ground-fault circuit interrupter. Peter Koch: So, let's let's just touch briefly on that. What's the difference between the circuit breaker in your in your circuit panel down in your basement or in your closet versus that GFCI outlet or the GFCI pigtail that you might use to plug your stuff into? Hartley Webb: That's a great question. Is a lot of people think that they may get a false sense of security, thinking that the breaker that's in the circuit panel is going to protect them when again, that's a 15, the smallest is going to be a 15-amp breaker. So, if you start talking milliamps, which is one thousandths of a single amp, 20 milliamps, so twenty one thousandths of an amp is going to be dangerous to the human. You know, if they're coming in contact with that kind of amperage yet it'll take basically 15000 milliamps worth of worth of its heat that'll trip that circuit breaker. So, the circuit breaker is really there for property protection. The ground-fault circuit interrupters are designed to trip out at 5 milliamps when they're new. And again, it's mechanical. So but it when they're new, they should be tripping out at 5 milliamps, which will only give the slightest of even a a tingle to the human body and it will trip that circuit out in one fortieth of a second and preventing the human being from from suffering a shock. So only that will protect the human. The others, the circuit breakers only for property protection only. Peter Koch: So, the circuit breaker detects the overload. I'm overloading to a particular point, but I mean you could be you know, you could plug into that 15 amp circuit breaker that has been in the house for 30 years and it might not function the way it's supposed to either. Hartley Webb: Correct. Or you're human. He doesn't draw the full amperage. Peter Koch: True. Hartley Webb: Now, you could be passing, you know, 10 amps through the human body and that circuit breaker will not stop providing power. So and that's where you'll see the people when they get a human gets a hold of a circuit where they, you know, they can't let go because it's taken over the muscles in the body and they end up being part of that circuit until somebody kills the electricity. They're not drawing the full 15 amps, or the breaker never trips. But yet the body suffered severe burns as a result of the shock that they've encountered. Peter Koch: Sure. So therefore, that GFCI that the ground-fault circuit interrupter is going to be a is the only tool that you can use for personal protection. Hartley Webb: Correct. And it should be a must anytime anybody sets up any type of holidays display. Peter Koch: Yeah. So that's a great idea. If you don't have one in your circuit panel and you're not plugging in to a circuit that's or outlet that's already GFCI, then purchase something that you can plug your your holiday decorations into then. Hartley Webb: Correct. Yes. Peter Koch: Now with those if you're going to use one of those, anything that you need to take into consideration? Hartley Webb: Again, ground-fault is going to sense any loss of amperage. So, you're going to make sure now that every all of your connections and everything are all gonna be dry. You're not going to have any faulty wiring. I mean, it's going to tell you what kind of quality of a of a circuit you've put in place, because if it if that circuit has the ability to have any faults in it, the ground-fault is gonna do its job, which may become frustrating. But you don't want to be bypassing it because you're putting people at risk that are downstream from that electrical current. Peter Koch: Sure. I that's interesting. You bring that up. I had a friend once who was installing Christmas lights and on recommendation, he installed the GFCI pigtail in there and it kept popping. The pigtail kept popping pop and every time. So, what did he do? He pulled the pigtail out and just plugged that right directly into the wall. And of course, he didn't have any problems anymore. So, the issue in his mind was the pigtail is faulty. But what you found later on was there was some damage actually in the cordage that he was using, which was causing the leakage, which kept tripping everything. Now, no one got hurt in that particular case. But still, like you said, it's a great indication if the GFCI trips, you want to make sure you're looking downstream for the problem and not just assume that it's a bad GFCI. Hartley Webb: Correct. Yeah. And then you want to also make sure that everything on the other side of that GFCI, because now we're dealing with flexible temporary cords and everything from that point on should be of the quality. That's required as listed and labeled for how you're actually using it. And that's a that's a whole different area, but probably one of the bigger exposure areas that I see at businesses, at homes. And when they start setting up these holiday decorations, they're just not using the electrical cords that they should be and in the manner that they should be. And if you typically had a GFCI in the circuit, you're probably going to be tripping that out. But if you want to, we can go through what I see commonly as some of those temporary electrical or your extension cord issues. Peter Koch: Yeah. Let's talk about some of those. I think those are be great examples for you to bring out. I guarantee you that someone listening to this is going, oh, that's in my house or I saw that in my place of business. Hartley Webb: The first one to look at is the type if you're going to use extension cords is the type of cord indoor use. They're gonna be listed in label for indoor use. Those are typically your two wire two prong extension cords. Once you get to a three prong three wire that has the ground pin on the plug end, those are listed as outdoor cords and they should be if you ever looked at the cord closely without getting into a lot of technical detail. It should have a listing embossed or stamped or written on to the to the core casing. And you want to be looking for the letters either S, W, J, and O, which will all kind of come in there together. But that's telling you it's a flexible cord, S would. If you see the letter W on it, that's got to be a cord rated for outdoor wet conditions. So those will typically be three wire cords and you're looking for the J. That's your that's that's a good quality hard service, junior hard service type, you know, extension cord. So that's gonna be like a 12, it can be 12 to 16 gauge. But again, those are some of the things that you should also be looking at is how long you're running cords shouldn't be hooking them together in a series really exceeding 100 feet would be maximum on like a on your 12 gauge. So again, is a little weird, but just the higher the lower the number, the bigger the cord. So. Peter Koch: Sure. Hartley Webb: You know typically your smallest cord you should you should ever use on a holiday display would be a 16. Peter Koch: And is that going to show right on the jacket of the cord? Hartley Webb: Should be on the jacket of the cord. So, if you have a 16 that's about as small as you should go. They do sell 18, some of them called ribbon cord. They've also got a nickname, zip cord and a fire service, which is a sound they make when they get overheated, because that's the last sound you hear before that cord literally turns into looking like a toaster element because typically those are 13 amp rating cords being provided by a 15 amp outlet, which means that the cord will turn in to basically looking like two toaster elements in. But the breaker panel will still provide you power because it needs 15 amps to overheat while the cord can only tolerate 13. So, you'll actually disintegrate the cord while the breaker still provides power so. Peter Koch:  It just keeps feeding it. Hartley Webb: That is a common in that zip cord in the fire service is probably one of the leading causes of house fires because people try to run their stereo systems off it with big amps. Still try to run a, you know, for holiday decorations it would be those are your typical brown and white really thin. They get a little three-way box on the end of it. So, you use them as extension cords. They're designed for lamps. They're illegal for commercial use, which should tell you that they probably shouldn't be in the residential, but they sell them in every store. They're inexpensive. They're not supposed to be hooked together in a series because it'll cause significant heat again from overloading and loss. You know, Ohm's Law will kick in as more of those you start plugging together. Peter Koch: So, you should never use the zip cord. You always want to use something that's 16 gauge or greater. Hartley Webb: Correct. Peter Koch: And really, that's designed or not so much designed, but the cord you purchase should be based on the location, the but the length of run that you're going to have and what you're going to plug into it. Hartley Webb: Correct. You know, rule of thumb, if you if you read into a lot of the literature on it, if you own 16-gauge extension cords, they should not be run out to length greater than 50 feet. And at 50 feet, a 16-gauge core can only tolerate 13 amps. So, it can't really even tolerate what the circuits providing. So even use in 16-gauge cords, I mean around my home ribbon cords definitely are not allowed in in my home or any of my family's homes. If I find them, I usually remove them because I know they're the leading cause. House fires. 16-gauge extension cords really should spend the money and and get a 14 or a 12. And those should be the extension cord you see outdoors, you know, in the in the in the environments for these for these, you know, decorative displays just so they can handle the load safely. And they shouldn't still go over 100 hundred feet even for a 12-gauge. They say you should not have more than one hundred feet in total length and still be able to provide that circuit load of protection. And again, if you go longer lengths, circuit is still going to provide it. But now you're going to be creating heat, which was going to be causing an issue down line either with with the cords or with the decorative displays. And something is going to be running hot in that circuit, so. Peter Koch: Sure. So, then the more heat, the more possibility there is for for a fault, some place to melt the cord, damage the appliance or to cause a fire. Because many times you're running those cords around the baseboard or back behind a display somewhere around a bookshelf someplace or especially around the holidays, you're always moving things around. And there's there's combustible material that you're running those things around and through. Hartley Webb: Correct. And if it is so for overall, if I get asked to come in and look at a decorative display from a safety perspective, again, I'm usually standing at the outlet receptacle, making sure it's in good condition, free from damage. Has a cover plate on it. There's no exposures and the receptacle itself is not broken. Then I take a look at the extension cords that make you see that there's a ground-fault in the system. So, it's either in the outlet or it's it's in the circuit, somewhere in the cord or or at the breaker. Then I'm inspecting the cords. How many how much are they using? What's the length? Is it a good listed and labeled cord? So, it's either listed either has UL, underwriting laboratories, which is what we would use here in America, or there's a Canadian listing and labeling also that's equivalent to. But it's just it's a listed and labeled cord is not something has been picked up. So, and that it goes for the holiday decorations too, that they're all have that same UL listing somewhere on that decorative display. And and then the extension cords that are running them, free from damage, free from nicks, any of the junctions where you would plug two together being kept dry out of the moisture. So, they're not sitting in a puddle frozen in the snow. Peter Koch: So, let me let me roll you back just a moment and let's talk a little bit about that UL listing or the Canadian certification. So why is that important for the purchaser to to assure that that appliance or that cord has that listing? Hartley Webb: If it if it's listed as if you're looking for something this labeled as the outdoor use like I talked about, so you're looking for that. They're the ones that have proved that listing. So those letters we talked about looking for that J is a junior hard that's going to have a good outer cording. Typically, if you see a J on your chord, it's going to tolerate the freezing temperatures that we'll experience here in the northeast. So, it's going to be able to handle that without damage breaking of the chords. So underwriting laboratories is the one that's done that testing behind the scene and has approved that cord under all of these conditions. So, you know, it's gonna have the W for the wet. It's gonna it's gonna have the if it has an O on it that means it's tolerable to, you know, an oil type environment. J gonna be your junior usage. So, you really look for that, J in the O for outdoor display type. Peter Koch: Sure. Hartley Webb: And so, you're relying on that agency to to make sure that it passed those tests before it could be sold. Peter Koch: So, they've done the testing to assure that it meets at least a minimum standard. So you know that if you're going to purchase something with that listing and it's going to have the qualifications for location and type of use and amperage that you can then use that as the minimum correct in order to figure out how this could be used or even if it should be used in your display planning. Hartley Webb: Right. They're just telling you it's approved for how you want to use it. Now, you have to have some basic knowledge of say, okay, how am I using this? And I don't overuse it. Peter Koch: Sure. Hartley Webb: Like connecting too many together. Another common exposure. I see a lot in the in both residential and commercial. Is the use of the computer power strip. I mean, if you read that, it's not an extension cord. I can't remember actually how it's listed and labeled, but is a term that it, but you can't plug an extension cord into a power strip. You also can't plug a power strip into an extension cord based on the listing and labelling is just not allowed because of the potential overloading of that circuit. So, you can't plug two together. She can't start stringing these power cords along these computer strips to try to give yourself more outlets because again, there's more potential now. So, the manufacturers are like, no, you know, I'm going to give you six additional outlets. You're already plugging those into a six-receptacle circuit. You're looking at 12 potential, you know, places to plug stuff in now, and they, and they just don't want to continue that. So, again, you can't pigtail those together again, you can't run them off extension cords and you can't run extension cords off of the computer strips. So that's commonly we'll see those on the displays because, you know, you have 50 displays on your front lawn, where are you plug in these all in? Peter Koch: Yeah. And you see it, too, like you're going to run a 50-foot extension cord or 100 foot extension cord out from the garage to your front yard and you're gonna have a power strip that connects your lights to it. You're blow up snowman, your video display or whatever you're going to have out in your front yard. That's all plugged into that power strip. And you have no idea how much that's drawing. But we've seen it, especially here in the wintertime where you after its snowed. And if it snows early, people put their displays out after it snows, and they start running those displays. You'll see the cord melt down through the snow because it's generating enough heat to be able to do that. Interesting. Yeah. So, we talked about cords. We talked about some about cords. What are other what other mistakes? Do people make that you see using extension cords or power strips in the home? Hartley Webb: One of them is causing them to be damaged based on how they're being used. So, you know, you're really not supposed to run them out windows where your windows are being closed on them and causing impact, don't put them under carpets or that type of stuff or areas where weight could be distributed onto them because it has ability, again, at those points to be creating heat and causing a little additional resistance. The garage doors and then allowing the garage door to continually to close on it or worst case is to put it on a hinge door or throughway hinge door where every time that door opens and closes, it has the potential to continually damage and pinch that cord, let alone I've seen them run across driveways, walking surfaces being hung by staples and other conductive material that have not only the potential to damage the external casing of the cord, but may inadvertently, you know, penetrate the cord. Now, now there's the potential to again create a shock hazard by somebody coming in contact and in bringing that electricity outside of the enclosure that it should be inside the cord. Peter Koch: Sure, sure. Yeah. So not not hanging. So how would you hang an extension cord if you needed to get it up off the ground and you had the potential to do that. How could you hang a cord? Hartley Webb: Yeah, they actually if if for Christmas type displays or holiday displays. If you have a roof type thing, they actually have clips that will go on not only metal rules, but will also go on shingled roofs that are nonconductive. They actually caused no roof penetration. So, saves you actually putting penetrations and holes in your house. If you do have to hang them. Recommend not stapling them, it would be better to staple like a zip tie to the building and then attach the cord with the zip ties. So, you've got something nonconductive that's literally you know that the cord is hung by. Anytime you have a drop from overhead, where there would there be a lot of weight resistance or stress placed that should be taken up by some type of, you know, don't cause that type of stress. Don't hang a lot of stuff where you're causing a lot of weight and pull onto the cords. They're just not designed for that. And they'll have the potential to be damaged, especially if exposed to, you know, the environmental cold conditions. And for long periods of time, wind, that's the type of stuff that may cause movement. But again, using using the zip ties, using they make, not conductive clips. If you're going to use staples, they have insulated staples. So again, you don't have the potential to damage and then penetrate the protective casing of the cord. Peter Koch: Right. So that sounds great. So, don't damage the outside. Don't hang out with something conductive. Make sure that you're not hanging. The weight of the appliance or whatever you are tying into from the cord itself have something else to take up the strain, right? Hartley Webb: Yeah. And if you gotta run them across a walking working on surfaces, try to run over doors and stuff but if you've got to run them across, bridge them, protect them somehow so that traffic, people shoveling aren't going to come in contact with them. Vehicles are driving over them, that kind of stuff. Where you've got a high potential for damage. Peter Koch: Catch them in the snow blower. Hartley Webb: Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Get them off the ground. In this climate, because when you put him down, everything's usually exposed. But within three or four weeks, next thing you know, you're you can't find it when the season's done. So, you're either leaving it till spring or you're pulling it up and it's frozen into the ground. Peter Koch: And no doubt. No doubt. Okay. Excellent. So, cords let's see the we talked about the length of course we've talked about the UL listing of the cords. We've talked about making sure that we're not going to overload the circuit by plugging too many cords and the use of of those of the power strips and trying not to use or not using those power strips as an extension of the extension cord. But, you know, using that to plug directly into the into the outlet. Peter Koch: So, if you had to figure out how much you could plug in to an extension cord, how would what would you do? How would you do it? Hartley Webb: Well, like I mentioned, your typical circuit. It's 120-volt circuit. So, in a 15 amp, 120 volt circuit can handle 1800 watts. So, one way of doing that is figuring out all your wattage. So, every one of your displays, your LCD displays, or your incandescent bulbs will have a wattage. So, if you buy a string of lights, it's going to tell you on that box what wattage that light string takes. So how many light strings can you plug together in a series? If you read most of manufacturers of the incandescent lights, the ones that have the filament, the old style, not the new L.E.Ds, but the incandescent ones, they all, most manufacturers won't allow you to put more than three of those strings together in a series. They've got a plug on each end. So ideally, I get, you know, some people tend to just go to infinity until they run out of money of buying lights. But again, the manufacturer doesn't want more than three of those because, again, what's the wattage of that individual string? And so, you would be adding that up to try to say, OK, I can't go to 1800 and 1800 is the maximum that should be placed on a circuit. So, you should be a little shy of that. And then also be aware if you're running that on an extension cord, that may not you know, again, if you're buying the 16 gauge cords, you're going to make sure you've got some really short lengths like 25, anything over 25 feet doesn't necessarily have the potential to supply that fully eighteen hundred. So again, you would want a good quality extension cord. But as far as determining that that would be one way of doing that would be to just figure out what you have for load. And you mentioned it earlier, but you've also got to look at what else is plugged onto that series before it gets to the outlet you're using, because if you're running refrigerators and anything else, freezers that may be in the garage, before you tap into that garage outlet for your outside Christmas display you want, or you've get hot tubs and other things that maybe things that are tapped into that circuit. You want to be including those. Peter Koch: Sure. Because you could have the holiday party happening. You could have people coming over and you. Plug in your display. It might work great until the refrigerator kicks on and then your whole house goes dead and you start putting the hot appliance, anything that has heaters involved with it out in the garage where you might have a, you know, a table set up and you've got the crockpot going and anything that's got a heating element is drawing a lot of wattage. Peter Koch: Let's take a quick break and we'll be back in just a moment for more discussion with Hartley and the holiday safety fails and fixes. Peter Koch: Ever cringe when watching someone, you know, take on a task or wonder how they survived the last project they started? Or maybe you've thought the next time I do this; I really need one of those. Well, just in time for the holiday gift buying season. The team here, MEMIC, has put together a gift giving guide for the safety minded and some ideas for gifts for those friends and family that you want to keep around after the holidays. Check out the list and a surprise gift giveaway at the end of this episode of the MEMIC Safety Experts podcast. Peter Koch: Welcome back to the MEMIC Safety Experts podcast. Today, we're talking with Hartley Webb, safety management consultant at MEMIC. So, let's jump right in with some more electrical safety questions regarding the holidays. Before we broke, we were talking about electrical cord safety and had looked into different components of what might make a system fail. Well, what are some of the separate fixes that you might have for it? Overall, if we're looking at setting up a display for the holidays, whether it's going to be Thanksgiving, Christmas or a winter holiday or really any holiday, what are some of the good operational safety practices that you can follow for electrical purposes? Hartley Webb: First thing I would do is when you when you bring your electrical appliances out, whether be decorations, hot pots, the computer power strips, the whatever it is you're going to set up for your electrical supply and for the equipment you're using inspect it. I mean, look at the plug ends. Make sure they're in good condition, free from damage if it is an appliance or a cord that does have. It's a three-wire outdoor listed cord. It should have three prongs. Make sure the ground pin, pin exists, cause that ground is there for your protection. So if there is a fault in any of the appliances or devices, it has a path for that current to flow back out of the piece of equipment or the other or the appliance or whatever it is that you're using and put it back safely to ground. Peter Koch: So, let me hold you there for just one second. If I have a three-pin cord coming from my appliance. Hypothetically, let's just say that I'm trying to plug it into a two-space receptacle, whether that be an outlet on the wall or even an extension cord. I shouldn't break the ground pin off to make it fit? Hartley Webb: You shouldn't. And don't use one of the adapters that converts your three prong into a two prong. Better known as a suicide adapter, because that's just about what you're attempting to do. You're getting rid of that. That's there for your safety and that needs to function. So, you don't want to be putting that into the outlet. If you do use one of those, it can legally be used on an outlet to convert. But you have to verify because now you still need ground. So those little adapter plugs have the ability to use the center screw on your receptacle plate as a ground, but you have to verify that that center screw is grounded. So, if it's not grounded, it serves no purpose. So just don't use it, and that and that brings back the whole ground-fault circuit interrupter again. Again, because if your cord has a ground fault in it, because if you're still looking at a two wired outlet receptacle in the wall, I can pretty much guarantee you it doesn't have a ground fault on the breaker. So, if you got if you got old wiring in the house, forget the ground-fault. You're going to have to add that in a cord, a GFCI will function on a two-wire circuit. So that doesn't give you permission or you should, still shouldn't use a three-wire extension cord missing a ground pin. If you're missing that ground pin, either have somebody properly fix the cord or replace the cord. But you really want to use, because again, you're you want to have a ground pin on your extension cords. I really wouldn't bother buying in an indoor rated two wire cord. Peter Koch: Extension cords can get pretty pricey. And while many homeowners or business owners will be looking to save a little money here and there so they go and purchase those small two wire extension cords in the long run, you really want to have the tool that's going to protect your investment in the property and decorations, but also the people that are going to be using it or sharing in the holiday cheer that you're going to be presenting, is that correct? Hartley Webb: Correct. Correct. And then again, to get back to the original question there, I would inspect it. So, make sure it's got the ground pin on it. Look at the entire length of the cord. Make sure there's no damage cuts or anything in the protective casing of that of those cords, whether they be on the appliance or an extension cord. If there is damage, don't tape it. Don't try to make any, if you've got really good shrink tubing, but then you've got to take the ends off to fix it. Just don't try and makeshift because wrapping tape around it doesn't really do much but, it allows moisture to get in, allows moisture to be trapped. Doesn't really give you the protection you really want, if you've got a lot of damage to the cord you want to be replacing the cords. It's really the only safe way to go home. And it is your friends and family that we're looking at. So. Peter Koch: So inspect all the appliances that you're going to be plugging in, inspect the outlets that you're going to be plugging the appliance into, and then inspect the cords that you're going to be using to get some distance away from those wall outlets as well. Hartley Webb: Yep. Correct. Peter Koch: Great. So, replace anything that has obvious damage to it or doesn't look functional. So, let's talk a little bit about how you can go about protecting yourself and your property from damage or from harm. Hartley Webb: Figure out, make sure or try not to overload. And to give a good example, if we just wanted to look at holiday lighting, one of the biggest. You see a lot of people converting from incandescent to the L.E.D. and a good example of that would be if you had your typical 15-amp circuit. Although we have said that that 15-amp circuit can handle the the 1800 watts. Ideally, they don't want more than 1400 watts on that 15 amp. So, if we looked at 1440 is what they want. So, 1440 watts. What does that mean? Well a string of L.E.D lights. You literally could plug in 105 strings of lights. Of L.E.D lights because your typical L.E.D. string only has 12 watts. So that's that's 105 strings of lights on one circuit. If you're using L.E.D, on the other hand, if you bought the old incandescent bulbs, the holiday display bulbs that are incandescent, those are typically 60-watt strings. The ones that I looked up; you could only have 24 strings to max out that same circuit. So, 24 strings of incandescent compared to a hundred and five strings of L.E.D. So if you're looking at these monster displays, then you know where you want to have a lot of lights, it is going to behoove you to go to the L.E.D or you're going to have to use a lot of circuits within your house in order to supply it. You're not going to be able to try to draw off that one outlet on the side of the garage because it's just not going to tolerate it. And again, remembering what else is plugged into that circuit. Peter Koch: Because in order to safely plug in the one 105 L.E.D strings or 60 incandescent strings, you've got to know what else is tapping into that circuit. Correct. They may have to be a dedicated circuit if the holiday decorations will draw more than what the circuit can handle. Hartley Webb: And the manufacturers of those incandescent are telling you, don't put more than three in a series because that's a thin 18-gauge wire that only has 7 amps of capability. So, they don't want more than 3 of their own plugged in because that has the potential now to begin heating itself. Peter Koch: So, the farther away you get from the source, the more that you draw, the more heat you're going to have and the less voltage is available at the end of the line. Hartley Webb: Right. And you're going to have a lot of voltage drop across that fine wire. So, it's creating heat in itself. So that's why they don't want more than 3 any 3 strings hooked together. So, you know, it would take you a lot of strings to have 24 strings at 3 strings to an extension cord. Peter Koch: And am I correct that the solution is not to go and get a bigger breaker? Hartley Webb: Yep. Peter Koch: So, my business code or building code would drive that, but it could also be affected by who did the installation and what they had on hand to do it. Hartley Webb: Correct. Peter Koch: So really, again, knowledge about your system and its limitations is important for both property and personal protection, but really talking about personal protection. Another way to ensure functional personal protection is having that ground-fault circuit interrupter. You can find them integrated into a circuit breaker or receptacle or a power strip or pigtail. So, if I'm buying a pigtail and I want to put it in my circuit, where do I put it in relationship to the tool? And why? Hartley Webb: You want to get it as close to the supply as possible. So, you should if you're going to buy a one that plugs in, it needs to be rated the receptacle. So, if you happen to buy one, that is a 3 way pigtail type so you can put 3 appliances on the end of it or three additional cords on the end of it. You want that on the wall end you don't want to go out with an extension cord and put it out on the far end and then start plugging stuff in. So, you want it as close. You want to protect as much of the temporary wiring circuit that you've created as possible. So, your GFCI should be right at the receptacle. Peter Koch: So let's talk a little bit about the benefits of moving from incandescent to L.E.D., it seems to be a good solution, especially with larger displays or a more fragile system, because it seems to lower the load on the system and the potential for additional heat and therefore failure someplace else within the circuit. Hartley Webb: Right. And with that being said, don't get a false sense security, which a lot do. Cause they'll start wrapping the L.E.D. around the live displays of your bows and your wreaths, your trees or whatever you may have. L.E.D. still produce heat. So again, keeping stuff watered, keeping stuff moist. You know, you still have to be concerned that, it is not going to create anywhere near as much heat. But they still can run warm. They still can create heat. And probably the biggest thing from a fire, I see with heat is gonna be your spotlight. So, any type of a spotlight display, because, again, those are going to be your 250, 500, 1000 watt lights. They're going to create a tremendous amount of heat. So, again, keeping stuff away from them, that's combustible for whatever you have for displays at your home at that time. You're using the spotlights. Peter Koch: Sure. And and in the winter season, even in areas that don't have snow, people have displays around the holidays and those spotlights are becoming more popular. And the grass at that time of year can be dry and brittle. They could be buried in a shrub or someplace to keep it hidden from people to see. And that typical incandescent or halogen light may generate enough heat to create a fire hazard. Hartley Webb: Correct. And the biggest things that a lot of things that tell homeowners from, from the fire perspective or my fire department background is invest in the timers. Number one, you don't want any of these displays or any of these items that you've plugged in for for a dinner holiday party or even if every nightly display, you do not want that stuff running after you've gone to bed. So, you want to make sure that stuff is on timers. You never want any type of display to be operating any of this temporary electrical stuff has been set up once you've gone to bed. I mean, it's just it's creating too much exposure to to be asleep in the house with this stuff all creating heat, all creating load and you just don't want it. So a lot of times I'll ask them to have timer's if you want, if you're willing to have the money, you can invest in a timer that will cycle off for 30 minutes and then stay on for a set period of time. So you can actually allow like if you get a lot of incandescent displays, you can actually set those newer timers for the for the holiday festivities to actually have that stuff go out for like a 30 minute time or go out for 5 minutes every 30 minutes to allow that stuff to cool back off and then heat back up again. So, anything that may have contact with combustible material gives it a chance to cool. And so, they do sell those now and again. It's just having the people that recognize it. Or, you know, or be willing to purchase and set those up. Peter Koch: Well, that's a great suggestion. Timers can help us shut the lights off automatically. But I'm assuming that the timers will have the same limitations that the cords and everything else does. They only seem to be designed as for a certain amount of amperage or voltage. Correct? Hartley Webb: Yep. And you want to make sure there's a lot of the timers. Again, indoor rated, so they're only gonna be a two-wire capability. So, don't be bypassing you need to buy timers that are designed for outdoor use. And again, you can set those for as often as you want them to go on and off. The general rule of thumb that the underwriting laboratories and stuff from what I've referenced for the electrical standards is saying 3 hours on, 30 minutes off. That's their cycle time they want for incandescent lighting displays. Peter Koch: That's a great rule of thumb. So, using a timer and setting it so your display will be on for 3 hours and then off for 30 minutes will allow the fixture and power supplies to cool off and reducing that potential for overheating and a possible fire. Hartley Webb: And again, if it's if it's a display while you're in your home, you do not want that lit up while you're in bed, while you're asleep. So, it needs to go out during the hours in which you're which you're sleeping because that's not when you want something to go wrong in the house. Peter Koch: So, let's just talk about that a little bit. It's not exactly about electrical safety. But tell me about the things that you should have in your house or place of business in the event that something does go wrong and catches on fire. You've done your inspection. You've got your L.E.D. lights. You've got the proper wiring. But there's a fault somewhere or something happens and then there's a fire. So, what should you have in place to help protect lives and property? Hartley Webb: Well, to top of that list is going to be a smoke detector. I mean, and not just having one, but where are they located, and can they be heard from the bedroom? And there's a one near the bedroom. So, again, you in any of your fire departments can help you with a probably, probably not only providing if you can't afford one, but properly setting them up within the house. Where should they be? There's a lot of agencies and stuff that can help with that. But having the smoke detector working, having a carbon monoxide detector, which is a little bit differently, but again, you're overseeing a heating season usually depending on where you're from if you're up here. It's heavy heating season. So again, having a carbon monoxide detector also should be a working fire extinguisher. Again, me coming from my background. I have one hanging in my bedroom. I mean, that's the door I'm going out. If the smoke detectors off and it's not going to do me any good to be and down the hallway to get to my my doors leading from my house without having an extinguisher in my hand if I get a smoke detector going off. So, I have one hung in my bedroom wall, fairly large one. And then I have one at the base of my stairs. You know, not something my wife really wanted with her décor, but she's got an extinguisher at the top of the stairs. So, in the event that that's the direction that I may decide to head, given the conditions, I mean, again, overall, you want out. So if you have young kids have a fire plan, they know how to get out of the house, not by the hallway only, but if they can't, they know exactly what you want them to do in the event they cannot get out of their bedroom, you know, safely. The biggest thing I've pretty much taught my kids and my family, you know, sleep with your door closed, you know, keep the door closed, because, again, we usually show the children in our community. You know, each and every year they get an understanding, you know, how fast a house can can fill with smoke. And you don't want you know, when you hear that smoke detector go off. You only have seconds. And if the door's open, you're going to start to impinge on that sleeping quarters, which is black to begin with. Dark. So now, you know, you want to be, you know, give me given you a chance. So, you know, keep the doors closed, keep a smoke detector there. You know, have a fire extinguisher on hand, have an emergency plan for the family. Once they get out. Know what to do, where to go. Because again, you've got to be thinking about temperatures. You gotta, you know, where are the neighbors? How close are they? Who's accessible for help? You know, and so everybody, you know, get a head count, get help on the way, get a place safe for the family to go get warm. Those types of things. Now's the time to be thinking about those before before an incident ever does happen. Peter Koch: All excellent suggestions. And in addition, a lot of people, because of an insurance plan or building code, already have the fire extinguisher or smoke detector. However, how do we know that those tools we expect to help us in the event of a problem will work as we expect? You mentioned this before. Testing these tools for function should be a key part of household and workplace safety. It matters if the alarm goes off, but it also matters that the people affected by the alarm can hear the alarm. Hartley Webb: Yeah. Correct. And it doesn't hurt. You know, try it some evening. Just go test the thing after everybody’s gone to sleep and just see how everybody reacts. And it's an eye opener because, you know, I had my children aren’t home anymore, but I have 2 kids that would pop right out of bed and do what was required. And then I have, you know, my youngest boy who, you know, you could set everyone off in the house and he won't even roll over in bed. So, you know you, that you have to know that beforehand and prepare for that cause somebody’s got to go get him, because the smoke detector, he won't even know because they've gone off. But I've got backdraft on the woodstove or something. And, you know, every mine are all wired. So, when one goes off, the whole house goes off. And I've had the whole house go off and my son wasn't even aware. You know, they were going off for like 10, 15 minutes. So, they you've you've got to be able to, you know, plan for that in the event that that happens, because somebody's got to go get him. Peter Koch: Yes, that's a great point. So even if you've tested them, make sure they're all functional. Can people who need to hear them actually hear them? Do you have an emergency plan that covers all the people or positions necessary? Cause if you think about it, we're not just talking about normal, everyday operations. If you're adding a big display, then you might be adding a lot of electrical load and equipment to that house or business. So, if you're adding or increasing the potential for problems, you need to make sure that everything is working appropriately. The smoke detectors and fire extinguishers all need to be there, and they all need to be inspected and top-of-the-line so that they're going to work when you need them to work. Hartley Webb: And we've been talking a lot about electrical here with these displays. But one of the things that I see that's more common now is a lot of the live live candle type displays interior for the holiday and that goes the same thing. You know, again, have some type of routine, but do not go to sleep. Do not go to bed while those things are still lit. Peter Koch: Great plan. Fantastic. Well, I think that just about wraps up this week's Safety expert podcast brought to you by MEMIC. I really appreciate you sharing all your expertise with us, Hartley. You have any final comments or tips that you want to leave with our listeners? Hartley Webb: When the holiday is all done. Probably the most important thing you can do when you put the displays away, pack them neatly, pack them organized. Cause a lot of times a lot of the damage from a lot of the electrical a lot of that is done during the during the packaging for the off season. So, take the time, pack it in a manner that's going to prevent damage for the following year. Other than that, just hope everybody has safe holidays and enjoys the season. Peter Koch: Fantastic. I really appreciate that. Hartley, thanks for joining us today. And to all of our listeners out there. We've been speaking with Hartley Web safety management consultant with MEMIC about Holiday Safety Fales and Fixes. If you have any questions for our guests or would like to hear more about a particular topic or from a certain person on our podcast, email us at [email protected]. This podcast is presented by MEMIC, a leader in workers compensation insurance and a company committed to the health and safety of all workers. To learn more about MEMIC and how we can help your business. Visit MEMIC.com. Don't forget about our upcoming workshops or webinars and for upcoming dates and for what topics are out there. Visit MEMIC.com and check out our Safety Academy. You can find the podcast here on i-Tunes or right here at MEMIC.com. If you have a smart speaker, you can tell it to play the safety experts podcast and you can pick today's episode or even a previous episode. You can also enable the Safety Experts podcast skill on Alexa to receive safety tips and advice from our any of our episodes. We appreciate you listening and encourage you to share this podcast with your friends and co-workers. Let them know that they can find it on their favorite podcast player by searching for safety experts. Thanks for tuning in to the Safety Experts podcast brought to you by MEMIC. Remember, you can always learn more by subscribing to the podcast at MEMIC.com/podcast. Peter Koch: Hey, this is Peter Kotch, host of the MEMIC Safety Experts podcast, wishing everyone a safe and healthy holiday season. And in order to help you along the way, the team here MEMIC has put together a list of safety related gifts which can help your friends and family members arrive at the next family gathering or holiday party cast free and with whatever parts they still have intact. It's the time of year again when we start projects, decorate the house for the holidays, clean our walking paths, make gifts, cook and generally make ready for good cheer that accompanies the holidays. At work, our employers help us to stay safe by providing equipment that helps to reduce our exposure to workplace hazards. However, at home we don't have that, and that could put us at risk by our own choices. And I bet if you haven't yourself, you know someone who has cleared snow from a roof without fall protection or cleaned out the chute of a snow blower by hand without shutting it down first, or worn your indoor shoes across an icy driveway because it will only be this just once, or you've run stock through a table saw without the guard or had your ears ring after using a leaf blower, a mower, or some other power tool for a while, or maybe cut your finger prepping food for a holiday meal or jump the car battery for a friend without safety glasses. Really pick a task, any task. And there is a piece of kit that you can and probably should use to help protect yourself from the inevitable. So, I asked our team here at MEMIC to give me some of their favorite possibilities for safety related gifts. And here's what they came up with. Guest Caller: Hey Pete, this is Richard. Idea for a safety gift, would be cut resistant gloves, to protect your hands. Guest Caller: Hi Pete, it's Natalie. My idea for a safety gear is a push stick to use with a table saw. Guest Caller: Hi Pete, it's Mike. My suggestion is the microjig push-blocks for table saws. From a personal experience, my father recently sustained four stitches in his finger because he got his fingers too close to his table saw. So, this was my gift to him. Guest Caller: Hi, Pete, this is Tony. My idea of a safety gift is a set of safety chaps for the chainsaw operators. Guest Caller: Hi, Pete, this is Tom. My idea for safety gift is an A.B.C. rated fire extinguisher for home use. Guest Caller: Hi, Pete. This is Rob. My idea for a safety gift is a pair of ice cleats that don't have to be taken off when I walk inside. Guest Caller: Yeah, Hi, Pete, this is Greg. My idea for a safety gift, which is actually an ergonomic gift, would be an economically priced vertical mouse for anybody that might be starting to develop a little bit of tennis elbow or a lateral epicondylitis. Guest Caller: Hi, Pete, this is Jason. My idea for a safety gift is a roof rake to allow snow to be removed from your roof safely. Another great idea for a safety gift that I hope to receive this Christmas is a pair of traction devices to be worn with my winter boots to ensure that I maintain good traction. Guest Caller: Hey, Peter, it's Barrett. I'd really like one of those fancy awesome ski helmets like you wear for Christmas to keep my head safe on the slopes. Guest Caller: Hi, Peter. This is Esther Murray and I'm calling to give you my safety idea. Number one, we need to have a small collapsible step stool. Those cost in the neighborhood of $20. The second tool, called the Handy Bar. It fits right into the strike on the car door. And you can help your elderly parent into the car by having them grab onto the Handy Bar. Those two tools may make it easier to take and transfer our elderly parents hither and yon. Guest Caller: Hi, Pete. It's Dave Darnley in Buffalo, New York. My idea for a safety gift. It's a winter car safety kit. Guest Caller: Hi, Pete, this is Susan. This has to do with winter driving and things that you should put in a safety kit for your car. Number twelve, a pair of boots. Eleven, a change of socks. Ten, a first aid kit. Nine, jumper cables. Eight, flashlight and batteries. Seven, cell phone chargers. Six, hats and gloves. Five, roadside flairs. Four, a warm blanket. Three, bag of salt. Two, ice cleats, and an ergonomic shovel for snow. Happy holidays. Peter Koch: Links to information on some of these items can be found in the show notes for this episode. Check them out. If you're looking for some great gift ideas. Last, if you go to MEMIC.com/podcast and enter your email to sign up for podcast updates before December 23rd, 2019. You'll be entered into a drawing for a set of in-step ice cleats. Winners will be chosen after December. 23rd. And announced in the first MEMIC Safety Experts podcast episode of 2020. Tune in then to find out if you've won. Good luck. And from all of us here at MEMIC, be safe this holiday season.   Resources, Ideas and People Mentioned in Podcast   Hartley Webb, Safety Management Consultant - https://www.memic.com/workplace-safety/safety-consultants/hartley-webb MEMIC - https://www.memic.com/ MEMIC’s Safety Experts Podcast - https://www.memic.com/workplace-safety/safety-experts-podcast MEMIC Safety Net Blog - https://www.memic.com/workplace-safety/safety-net-blog A Christmas Story - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085334/ National Safety Council of Northern New England - https://www.nscnne.org/ Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) - https://www.osha.gov/ Certified Safety Professional (CSP) - https://www.bcsp.org/CSP Central Maine Power (CMP) - https://www.cmpco.com/wps/portal/cmp/home/!ut/p/z1/hY7LDoIwEEW_hQVbOqSo4I4YhBDQGF_YjQFTC6ZQUir8vo0aExMfs5u5554MIihDpMn7iuWqEk3O9X4g4yO20yByZrBwU8eDlYOTbRjuYO7ZaP8PIDqGL-OD7pM78jIs1zHWBifYRHaI7XjyBH44YkQYF8XjXb8psMsQkfRMJZXWVepzqVTbTU0wYRgGiwnBOLVOojbhU6UUnULZO4naOoPLiPeJbxg3t9mK_g!!/dz/d5/L2dBISEvZ0FBIS9nQSEh/ Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) - https://www.google.com/search?q=ground+fault+circuit+interrupter&ie=&oe= Ohm’s Law - https://www.electronics-tutorials.ws/dccircuits/dcp_2.html UL Listed - https://marks.ul.com/about/ul-listing-and-classification-marks/promotion-and-advertising-guidelines/specific-guidelines-and-rules/ Canadian Standards Association (CSA) - https://www.csagroup.org/testing-certification/product-listing/?utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F Safety Gift Ideas: Cut Resistant Gloves - https://www.google.com/search?q=Cut+resistant+gloves&ie=&oe= Push-Stick for Table Saw - https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=ACYBGNQW4P8BfQ46fNIqcYzULHc1w6R6KQ%3A1574455269788&ei=5UfYXcTUL-KyggeOvJ2oCQ&q=push+stick+for+table+saw&oq=push+stick+for+&gs_l=psy-ab.1.0.0l9j0i333.35801.37644..39834...0.3..0.236.2502.0j14j1......0....1..gws-wiz.......0i71j35i39j0i273j0i131j0i20i263.L8IlbYWVn5A Microjig Push Blocks - https://www.microjig.com/content/push-blocks Chainsaw Chaps - https://www.google.com/search?q=chainsaw+chaps&ie=&oe= A B C Extinguisher - https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=ACYBGNTwOS4u-KoldhO8T7AXsaaGmLnTCQ%3A1574455397206&ei=ZUjYXcyJDIfH_Qbpg5PQCw&q=abc+extinguisher&oq=abc+extinguisher&gs_l=psy-ab.3..0i7i30l10.7455.7953..8556...0.1..0.216.595.0j1j2......0....1..gws-wiz.......0i71.-Psm1iO_VFs&ved=0ahUKEwiM0Ki11_7lAhWHY98KHenBBLoQ4dUDCAo&uact=5 Ice Cleats - https://www.thecuresafety.com/K1_Mid_Sole_Ice_Traction_Cleats_Pair_p/k1mid.htm Vertical Mouse - https://www.google.com/search?q=vertical+mouse&ie=&oe= Roof Rake - https://www.google.com/search?q=roof+rake&ie=&oe= Ski Helmet - https://www.google.com/search?q=ski+helmet&ie=&oe= Small Collapsible Step-Stool - https://www.google.com/search?q=small+colapsable+step-stool&ie=&oe= Handy Bar - https://stander.com/product/3001-handybar/ More gift ideas - https://www.memic.com/workplace-safety/safety-net-blog/2017/december/memics-safe-gift-guide