Showing posts with label Home Safety. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Home Safety. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Bees


Incident last Friday, June 13:
"A&M experts: Africanized bees likely behind deaths of three dogs in Katy"

Incidents from 2013:
"Summer of killer bees?  Aggressive swarms plague Texas, leaving one dead and many others injured"

Bee Removal Call List, provided by Harris County Beekeepers Association
http://www.harriscountybeekeepers.org/bee-removal-call-list.html
Good information about bee swarms and hives can be found here:
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74159.html

 "AHB swarms also practice 'nest usurpation,' meaning they invade EHB colonies and replace resident queens with the swarm's African queen."
(AHBs - Africanized honey bees, EHBs - European honey bees)
Information per USDA on Africanized Honey Bees:

"Nest usurpation" by killer bees adds to the importance of inspecting properties and hiring a professional to relocate any hives away from homes.
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Sunday, August 18, 2013

Water Heater Temperature


Information on water heater temperature per OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) :



Q. Can Legionnaires' disease be prevented?

A. Yes. Avoiding water conditions that allow the organism to grow to high levels is the best means of prevention. Specific preventive steps include:
  • Regularly maintain and clean cooling towers and evaporative condensers to prevent growth of LDB. This should include twice-yearly cleaning and periodic use of chlorine or other effective biocide.
  • Maintain domestic water heaters at 60°C (140°F). The temperature of the water should be 50°C (122°F) or higher at the faucet.
  • Avoid conditions that allow water to stagnate. Large water-storage tanks exposed to sunlight can produce warm conditions favorable to high levels of LDB. Frequent flushing of unused water lines will help alleviate stagnation.

Q. Do you recommend that I operate my home water heater at 60°C (140°F)?

A. Probably not if you have small children or infirm elderly persons who could be at serious risk of being scalded by the hot water. However, if you have people living with you who are at high risk of contracting the disease, then operating the water heater at a minimum temperature of 60°C (140°F) is probably a good idea. Consider installing a scald-prevention device.


Q. Can my home water heater also be a source of LDB contamination?

A. Yes, but evidence indicates that smaller water systems such as those used in homes are not as likely to be infected with LDB as larger systems in workplaces and public buildings.
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Saturday, July 27, 2013

Trees and Storms


AgriLife Extension - Texas A&M System
"Be Tree Wise.  Protect Life and Limbs."


Adjoining Landowners
"Whether the tree is causing damage or not, if its branches extend beyond your property line, your neighbor has the right to trim your tree to the property line.  Landownership rights extend indefinitely upward and down and those rights are protected from invasion by an adjoining landowner to the same extent as surface rights.  In trimming the tree, your neighbor is not allowed to unduly harm your tree, however."

Tree Owner’s Responsibility
"Tree owners in urban areas have a duty to inspect each and every tree on the premises to determine hazard trees and have them removed."


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Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Pool Safety


Pool Safety

Pool Safely by U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)

A pdf by American Academy of Pediatrics

A pdf by National Safety Council

UTHealth - The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
Kids & Water - Safety do's & don'ts

American Red Cross
Maintaining a Safe Environment around Your Home Pool
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