Fun Activities to Keep Your Kids Busy This Summer

May 19, 2021 by

The days are longer and without school obligations your kids may find that they have more time on their hands than they know what to do with this summer. Make summer boredom a thing of the past with these fun activities. And don’t let the kids have all the fun, many of these activities can be fun for the whole family!

  • Scavenger Hunt – This fun activity can be adapted for indoor or outdoor and for all ages and interests. It’s easy, inexpensive, and can often be done using things already found around your home. Create a color themed scavenger hunt that can help toddlers learn their colors and help older kids discover all the different hues that can be found in the world around them. Do a scavenger hunt at night with flashlights for an added dimension of fun. A nature scavenger hunt can keep little ones focused during hikes, picnics, gardening, and other outdoor activities. For older kids and teenagers, you can design a scavenger that has secret codes or brain teasers they have to complete to get the clues. The possibilities are endless! 
  • Arts and Crafts – Now is the time to get creative and use up all those leftover art supplies from the school year. Create a summer mural by covering a basement or garage wall with a long piece of craft paper. Work on it all summer, adding to it little by little. Decorate your walkways with sidewalk chalk or create outdoor games such as twister, hopscotch, four square, or an obstacle course with the chalk for extra fun. Paint rocks to give as gifts or to decorate a garden. Summer is the time to get messy and get creative by recycling the materials you have at home into fun crafts.
  • Enjoy Nature – Summer is a great time to encourage your kids to unplug and go enjoy the great outdoors. 
    • Go for a walk around the neighborhood or a nature hike.
    • Take a swim in a pool or public access lake, river, or ocean.
    • Strap on helmets and take a ride around the city or countryside.
    • Start a garden and let the kids do the planting, watering, and weeding.
    • Make it a goal to play at a new park every week of the summer. Packing a picnic lunch will make it even more special.
    • Pick a clear area to run and fly a kite which will teach your kids patience and coordination. 
    • Surprising your kids with a water balloon fight on a hot day will make a great summer memory.
  • Brain Power – Just because it is summer doesn’t mean your kids can’t continue exercising their brain. Check here for a great list of science experiments you can do this summer. Visit your local library for books, educational computer games, and other educational activities. Bond with your kids over a challenging puzzle that you work on a little each day of the summer. Sharpen the kids video directing and editing skills by creating some home videos.

Of course, there are plenty of fun places to visit this summer in NYC. Check this list for some ideas to become a tourist in your own city. At Sentry Window Guards our main focus is your child’s safety. We provide various types of childproof window locking mechanisms and safety devices for your home or building to keep everyone safe this summer!  

Filed Under: Child Safety Tagged With:

Sentry Window Guards Is Thankful For Our Customers!

November 12, 2018 by

We are so THANKFUL for our customers! At Sentry Window Guards our ongoing commitment is protect the safety of families, especially children. Our life’s work is to continue to be the most reliable window guard manufacturer in the country. We’d like to thank our customers that have supported us over the years and share what they have to say about Sentry Window Guards!

“I could not be happier with my experience with Sentry window guards. Ed and Clarivel were very helpful throughout the entire process, answering all my questions and making sure I had all the knowledge and materials I needed to properly install the guards in my home. Personal service and a great price; highly recommended!” – John O., Brooklyn, NY

“Just a quick note of appreciation. Javier was fantastic yesterday, and the child guards and rubber stoppers look great and work perfectly. Thank you for a job well done.” – Tore K.

“Thanks very much for fitting us in today. The guys were very professional, efficient and a real pleasure.” – Christine W., Oliver’s Realty Group

“Ed, I wanted to let you know how much I appreciated how quickly and professionally you and your company completed the installation of the window guards. It took less than four hours from my first call to you for the job to be finished. Your installers were right on time, completely professional and a pleasure to work with. As a small landlord in NYC, I find this kind of service very, very rare and I wanted to thank you for the great service.” – Bruce C., New York, NY

“We are a US-Top 50 window and door manufacturer based in NYC. Every time a project requires window guards, we have enjoyed partnering with Ed for more than 10 years. The array of color options Ed offers in the Sentry window guard selection perfectly compliment the design elements of each project and we’ve had many satisfied clients. Ed is a veteran in the business, knowledgeable and reliable. His team has always been first class, on time and on-point. This is one relationship that we treasure.” – Steven Y., Crystal Window & Door Systems, LTD

“I live in an apartment building in Manhattan; management wouldn’t be of any help to supply us with guards for our apartment. I called Sentry and spoke to Ed and he walked me through it and within 3 days we had our window guards installed in black aluminum, which no one else carried. Love the guards and the service.” – Jillian L.

“I’m a local window contractor in NYC. When we have various projects that need window guards, we purchase all our guards from Sentry/ American Architectural windows. We’ve also have instances when we’ve needed a guard within an hour’s time and Sentry has provided that service on a regular basis. Our clients love the look of their guards, which is not an easy task because the clientele we service are high end and are used to the best in quality.” – Ross A.

“Without Sentry Window Guards, my insurance would be enormous. Thanks Sentry for helping me lower by bills and protect my family.” – Tom J.

 

For more information regarding our window guard products and our experience and leadership in understanding NYC safety requirements, contact us today!

Filed Under: Community Involvement Tagged With: ,

Know the Dangers of Lead Paint on Window Sills in New York

November 21, 2015 by

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, lead poisoning is “the number one environmental threat to the health of children in the United States.” In their most recent survey, approximately 4.4% of all children aged 1-5 have levels of lead in their blood that equal or exceed the threshold level of concern established by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). And while these numbers are down from just a few years ago, lead exposure is a great concern.

Most lead-poisoned children have been exposed in their own homes. If you rent your apartment or home, controlling your family’s exposure to lead is more difficult to control. Many New York City apartments are older dwellings and even though lead-based paint has been banned for residential use since 1960 older buildings contain old layers of lead paint.  Lead paint was typically used on kitchen and bathroom walls and throughout homes on doors, windows, and wooden trim. Unless tested you can’t be sure if it was used in your home or apartment. Before you move in, ask the landlord if the paint has ever been tested for lead. If it has, ask to see the results. However, landlords in New York State are not required to test paint for lead, nor are they required to allow a prospective tenant to test paint for lead before renting.

Symptoms of Lead Poisoning

The most common way children get exposed to lead is by mouth. They may chew on a window sill or other area that contains lead.  Symptoms of lead poisoning vary. They may affect one area or many parts of the body. Typically, lead poisoning builds up slowly after many small exposures to lead.

Lead toxicity is rare after a single exposure or ingestion of lead.

Signs of repeated lead exposure include:

  • Abdominal pain, cramps
  • Aggressive behavior, irritability, fatigue
  • Constipation
  • Headaches
  • Loss of developmental skills
  • Loss of appetite
  • High blood pressure, anemia. Kidney problems
  • Numbness or tingling in the extremities
  • Memory loss

NYC Lead Paint Notice

New York City law requires that tenants living in buildings with 3 or more apartments complete the attached form and return it to their landlord before February 15, each year. If you do not return this form, your landlord is required to visit your apartment to determine if children live in your apartment.  This form also applies to dwellings built from 1960 – 1978 if the landlord knows lead paint was used.

Please see below for the form or click on the link below-

http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/downloads/pdf/lead/lead-annual-notice.pdf

Sentry Window Guards is the leader in home and business safety. Contact us today to learn more about our window guard products, our experience and leadership in understanding NYC requirements and how we can assist you.

Sources

http://www.ag.ny.gov/environmental/lead/lead-paint-hazards

http://www.healthline.com/health/lead-poisoning#Symptoms4

http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/home/home.shtml

NYC Health Lead Poisoning and Window Falls

Filed Under: Child Safety, Falls From Windows Tagged With: , , ,

Creating Your Fire Safety Plan in New York

October 1, 2015 by

Creating a Fire Safety Plan in New York     

As summer winds down and cooler temperatures begin arriving we’ll all begin spending more time indoors, as a result, most home fires occur between the months of November through March.  Now is the time to make a fire plan or review your existing one.  Fire’s don’t just happen to careless people, anyone could be at risk.

Here are some recent statistics:

  • In 2014 public fire departments in the United States responded to 1,298,000 fires.
  • In 2014, 494,000 fires occurred inside of a structure.
  • An alarming 74% or 367,500 fires occurred inside of homes.
  • Every 86 seconds a U.S. fire department responded to a home fire in 2014.
  • Cooking equipment is the leading cause of reported and unreported home fires and injuries.
  • Children under five years old are almost 1-1/2 times more likely to die in a home fire as the average person.
  • Most home fires that cause child deaths occur during the months of December – February.
  • In 2014, there were 26,531 structural fires in the five boroughs of New York City with an FDNY average response time of 4 minutes and 9 seconds.

What to Do

Leaving you as little as one or two minutes to escape once your smoke alarm sounds, fire can spread rapidly through your home.  This is a great opportunity to get the entire family involved in creating an escape plan.  You should try to create two means of escape from each room, utilizing windows and doors.  Sometimes a drawn floor plan with escape routes and smoke alarms noted is easier for children to understand.

NAFTA provides a very child-friendly, interactive grid which gets children involved in a safe, fun way.

http://www.nfpa.org/safety-information/for-consumers/escape-planning/basic-fire-escape-planning

NAFTA recommends that smoke alarms be installed in every room where anyone sleeps, outside each sleeping area and on every level of the home.

It is imperative that every person in the household understands the escape plan. During your fire drill, make sure the escape routes are clear and doors and windows can be opened easily.

Fire safety in a high rise or apartment building has its own challenges because of many differences such as time/distance to get out of the building, smoke movement, and fire department access.

Best practices for planning an escape from an apartment building can be found here: http://www.nyc.gov/html/fdny/pdf/safety/fire_safety_education/2010_02/07_residential_apartment_fire_safety_english.pdf

  • Choose an outside meeting place (neighbor’s house, a light post, mailbox, or stop sign) a safe distance from your home or apartment building where everyone can meet after they’ve escaped. Make sure to indicate your meeting place on your family’s escape plan.
  • Make sure your street number is clearly visible from the road so that responding emergency personnel can find your home.
  • Make sure everyone is familiar with contacting 9-11 or the Fire Department directly.
  • If there are infants, older adults, or family members with mobility limitations, make sure that someone is assigned to assist them in the fire drill and in the event of an emergency. You’ll need a backup person in case the person assigned to assist isn’t home during the emergency.
  • If windows or doors in your home have security bars, make sure that the bars have an emergency release so that they can be opened immediately if necessary.
  • You should consider telling guests or visitors to your home about your family’s fire escape plan. When staying overnight at other people’s homes, ask about their escape plan. This is especially important if your child attends a sleepover.
  • If your smoke alarm sounds, be fully prepared to get out.
  • Once you’ve escaped the fire, stay out!  Do not go back into a burning building. Let the fire department know if someone is missing.

 

Testing your Plan

  • You should have a home fire drill at least twice per year.  Once children have mastered your escape plan, consider having one at night when they are sleeping. You don’t want to frighten them, so tell them before they go to bed that you’re having a fire drill. Having a fire drill at night will also let you know if anyone in the house sleeps through the smoke alarm, if so, assign them a buddy who will wake them up.
  • If your home has two floors, make sure everyone can get out of a window easily from the second floor.
  • Teach your family to stay low to the ground to avoid any toxic smoke.
  • Close doors as you escape, which slows the spread of the fire and may give you more time to escape safely.
  • Teach family members, especially children what to do in the event that they cannot escape.  Show them how to stuff towels or clothes under doors to prevent smoke from entering the room they are in.
  • Don’t forget to teach everyone about testing the door for heat before you open it.
  • Make sure everyone understands “stop, drop and roll”.

 

Fire Prevention Week

NFPA has been the official sponsor of Fire Prevention Week since 1922. According to the National Archives, Fire Prevention Week is the longest running public health and safety observance on record. This year’s fire prevention week will be October 4 – 10th and the theme is “Hear the Beep Where You Sleep.” For more information on Fire Prevention Week click here: http://www.nfpa.org/safety-information/fire-prevention-week

The FDNY has a very interactive fire prevention department, for more information click on the link: http://www.nyc.gov/html/fdny/html/safety/index.shtml

 

At Sentry Window Guards, your family’s safety is very important to us! If you have questions about fire safety and your current window guards, give us a call!

________

Sources

http://www.usfa.fema.gov/data/statistics/

http://www.esfi.org/

http://www.nfpa.org/

http://www.nyc.gov/

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Child Safety, Safety Tips Tagged With: ,

Is your New York apartment safe?

August 14, 2015 by

By far, the most common threat to an apartment unit is burglary. Having your home entered and pilfered through by a stranger can leave a family feeling vulnerable and violated. In 2014, there were 16,765 burglaries in New York City, don’t become a statistic, it is important to understand who commits burglaries and why. The majority of apartment burglaries occur during the daytime when most people are away at work or at school. Burglaries also occur at night when there are seemingly obvious signs that no one is home. Most apartment burglars are young males looking for things that are small, expensive, and can easily be converted to cash. Items like cash, jewelry, guns, watches, laptop computers, and other small electronic devices are high on the list. Quick cash is needed for living expenses and drugs.

Statistics tell us that more than 30% of all apartment burglars gained access through an open door or window. Ordinary household tools like screwdrivers, channel-lock pliers, small pry bars, and small hammers are most often used by burglars. And while it may seem that apartment burglary is random, there is a selection process.

The burglar simply chooses an unoccupied apartment with the easiest access, the greatest amount of cover, and with the best escape routes. What follows is a list of suggestions to minimize your risk by making your home unattractive to potential burglars.

Because of their easy access, and in some cases their hidden nature, these are probably the least safe places to live in a building:

  • A first-floor apartment that can be accessed from the lobby
  • An apartment with a window within 18-feet of the ground
  • An apartment with a fire escape
  • An apartment below ground level
  • An apartment facing the back of the building (because it’s out of plain sight)

THE MOST COMMON MISTAKE: As surprising as it may seem, most burglars get into an apartment through an unlocked front door or an unlocked window, they don’t pick locks. It’s tempting to leave windows open when it’s warm but if you are on the first floor, or you have a fire escape at your window and don’t have window guards, don’t do it. Burglars don’t break windows, it makes too much noise, and they look for an open or unlocked window.

Consider installing a window guard to help keep the thieves out. Installing a window guard will slow a thief down and may even get them to think twice about breaking in.

If you have a fire escape, be sure to have an approved gate on it, you may need to use this point of egress in the event of a fire.

Keep careful control of your apartment keys. Avoid giving your keys to too many people, the dog walker, the plant waterer, etc. Don’t leave your keys on the table when someone comes in to do work in the apartment.

If you’re going to be away for a long time, you might want to consider the equivalent of a “nanny cam” that lets you see what’s going on in all rooms of your apartment via your computer wherever you are in the world.

The NYPD is here to help:

Although it is not widely publicized, the NYPD offers a free crime prevention service to all NYC apartment dwellers, owners or renters.  A trained Crime Prevention officer from your local precinct will come to your home, conduct a security survey and make recommendations for any improvements that he/she thinks are necessary.

All you have to do is to call your Precinct’s Crime Prevention Office and schedule a date. If you don’t know what precinct you live in, the NYPD website includes a Precinct Finder feature.

Go here for more information: http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/precinct_maps/precinct_finder.shtml

Once you know your precinct, you may want to look at crime statistics for your neighborhood.

Go here for more information: http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/crime_prevention/crime_statistics.shtml

Or here: http://maps.nyc.gov/crime/

You may wish to register your portable electronic valuables; computers, printers, iPads,etc.with the NYPD’s Operation Identification project.  The precinct will send an officer out who will assist you marking your valuables with invisible ink or help you with an engraving tool so that you can etch a serial number onto your valuables. That number will be registered with the NYPD, making the property traceable. You will be given decals for your window that say that your property is registered, a deterrent to any would-be burglars.

Go here for more information – http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/crime_prevention/operation_id.shtml

To Insure or Not to Insure

Renters or owners insurance is a good way to avoid a problem later on. Often clothing, furniture, artwork and electronic devices are covered in a basic policy but jewelry, furs, and silverware are separate categories requiring additional coverage. If you have a home office with expensive equipment, that too, may require a separate policy. In the event your apartment is burglarized, insurance will help cover the costs to replace your stolen property.

To decide how much insurance you need, take an inventory of what you have. Don’t underestimate the value of your clothing or shoes, many people make this mistake.

Keep a record of all significant purchases so that if there is a loss you can document it, speeding up the reimbursement process. Also, take photos of what you have, and save credit card statements when you buy something new.

When purchasing a policy determine whether you want to have one that pays the actual cash value of replacing what you had or the depreciated value. The former will be about 20 percent more expensive.

A basic policy with $15,000 to $20,000 of coverage will cost from $100-$150 per year. To find the best agent for you, getting a reference from a friend is a good idea, someone who has had a claim handled satisfactorily.

Sources

Filed Under: Safety Tips Tagged With: ,
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