The ACCC says that about 2,600 Australians receive hospital treatment for injuries caused by toppling furniture and televisions each year. That’s approximately 50 people per week getting clobbered in their own homes by inanimate objects. Tragically, at least 22 children under the age of nine have died in Australia from toppling furniture or televisions since 2001 with children under 3 years of age at greatest risk. So, what can you do about this risk?
Book cases, wall units, TVs and other large, heavy objects need to be properly secured. If you’ve put together some IKEA over recent years, you’ll have noticed that their furniture comes with brackets for securing units to walls. Even the relatively short KALLAX until I used to build the LEGO play station for my stepsons’ birthdays came with securing brackets.
ACCC Acting Chair, Delia Rickard said “We strongly encourage parents and carers to check every room in their home for toppling hazards and anchor any tall or unstable furniture or large TVs. If you don’t have anchor kits, you can buy them cheaply at hardware stores or furniture retail outlets”.
One of the challenges with the brackets that come with flatpack and other furniture might not suit your home. For example, if you have deeper skirting boards that the standard then you might need to come up with a different solution. But there are dozens of different options to choose from at your local hardware outlet.
I’m not a fan of the small anchors that come with many shelving kits. I’m a fan of these plasterboard anchors from Bunnings. They screw into the wall and then you screw into them. I’ve used them for brackets on shelves and for attaching a coat rack to a wall. They’re a lot stronger than the small lugs that ship with many flatpack kits.
If possible. I’d also recommend wall mounting TVs so they can’t be pulled over. If that’s not an option for you, there are strap systems that secure the TV to a bench or wall like these TV and Furniture Straps.
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