There are few things more appealing to a curious toddler than something to climb onto, including bulky, top-heavy furniture. It takes almost no time for a piece of furniture or large item to topple over, potentially causing serious injury. Even if your home’s exterior is secure with an ADT home alarm system, there are hazards inside of your home that can be easily fixed.

So take a look around, evaluate your living area and apply these simple home safety tips to help prevent furniture tip-overs in your home.

* Anchored away: Secure any top-heavy or unsteady pieces of furniture to a wall using anchors, braces, brackets or wall straps. Beware of placing large items on stands or furniture because items like book cases, fish tanks and TVs can fall off stands and injure children. Be especially careful when anchoring flat screen TVs to the walls.

* Lower is better: Keep heavier items on lower shelves to help make furniture bottom-heavy and less prone to tipping over. But always read manufacturer’s instructions on placement of your TV and furniture and follow the guidelines and warnings.

* Stray items: Make sure unsteady furniture and shelves are clear of items that can be tempting to children like toys, candy and  remote controls.

As summer vacation approaches, children will have more time to wander around the house and get into trouble. Keep in mind that home safety doesn’t stop at alarm systems, or the main interior of your home.

Take the time now to organize your garage and tool shed with these tips so that little hands won’t have access to hazardous objects and substances:

• Use kid-proofing instruments: Treat the garage as any other part of the house you’ve already kid-proofed with outlet covers, drawer and door latches and other safety devices.

• Be careful with garage doors: Keep all garage door remotes out of reach, and look for models with counter-balance systems and automatic ones with features that stop or reverse doors when they come in contact with an object.

• Secure large equipment: Store ladders horizontally so children can’t climb on them, and keep sharp, large objects like rakes and shovels in a locked cabinet or secured on a wall in a low-traffic area.

• Hide harmful substances: Store and lock up all harmful substances so they are out of your child’s reach. If a child swallows a potentially poisonous substance, call the National Capital Poison Center at 1-800-222-1222 and have the product’s packaging in hand.