We would be appalled at the thought of leaving a gaping hole in the middle of our living room waiting for an unsuspecting family member or guest to step into and possibly be seriously injured. No less hazardous, however, are the types of flooring material found in most homes and businesses that become dangerously slippery, especially when wet. With the abundance of anti slip products and technology available today, there is really no excuse for having slippery floors.
Some of the more common floors that benefit from applications of anti slip paint or coating, anti slip tape, treads and mats are polished marble, granite, concrete, ceramic, terrazzo, travertine, porcelain and vinyl tiles. Notoriously slippery areas are bathroom floors, kitchen floors, bathtubs, shower pans, hallways and entrance ways, steps, locker rooms and swimming pool decks.
Even though stone and tile surfaces appear to be hard and smooth, they are actually porous to one degree or another. Moisture accumulates in these pores and just like a glass of water that can be filled slightly above the rim, liquid stands on the floor and creates the potential for someone walking across it to hydroplane and fall. Taking advantage of these openings in the tile, different kinds of anti slip coatings can be applied that fill these crevices and form an anti or non slip layer.
An anti slip mat placed at entryways, in bathrooms, including inside shower stalls and tubs and strategically oriented in kitchens can go a long way in reducing slips in these areas of the home that produce the most slip and fall accidents. Workrooms with concrete floors, especially where there is the possibility of oil or grease residue, should always have anti slip mats and they should be cleaned regularly. For those environments where mats would not be sufficient, anti slip flooring, while not inexpensive, can easily pay for itself if it prevents only one serious injury.
Accents rugs can double as being a tool in your decorating arsenal, with the colors chosen to complement and tie together the theme of your decor, and, at the same time, provide for stable footing on that oak or walnut flooring in your home or office. While hardwood flooring is not generally installed in rooms that normally get wet, a highly buffed wood floor can be quite slippery, especially to those wearing non rubber soled shoes.
Stairwells are obvious locations for anti slip stair treads but they should also be considered in areas where there are just a couple steps. Sometimes those areas are even more dangerous because people misjudge them. Anti slip tape with a reflective coating that is visible in low light can be a good choice in these cases.
The number two cause of injuries in the U. S. is slip and fall. Only auto accidents account for more. Slip and fall is number one in accidents in homes, lodging, restaurants and public buildings, and, of those, 70% occur on flat or level surfaces, meaning not on stairs or ladders or anything other than a flat surface. Every day, approximately 25,000 injuries resulting from slips require hospitalization. According to the AARP, falls are the leading cause of accidental deaths in persons over 65 years of age and contribute to 40% of admissions to nursing homes.
Anti slip matting, coatings, treads and the like cannot, of course, prevent all of these, but can certainly go a long way to significantly reducing them. The most important thing is to be proactive. Don’t wait until someone you care about or one of your guests or customers is injured before taking the steps to create as safe an environment as possible.
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