Safety Precautions To Consider When Re-Landscaping Your Backyard

When spring comes and you begin to think about your backyard landscaping design, you may be ready to make some major changes. While you can and should make all of the updates and changes that you want in your backyard landscaping design, you also need to keep safety in mind as you do so. So, before you begin the process of redoing the landscaping, get to know more about some of the safety precautions that you should consider. By getting familiar with the safety precautions you need to take, you will be protecting yourself, your family, and the environment around you from potential problems as you work on your project.

Locate And Mark Your Utility Lines

If you plan to do any kind of digging or building in your landscaping design, it is important that you are aware of any utility lines that may be running underground to your home. Electrical lines can be buried underground to prevent above-ground wires and lines from disturbing your home's aesthetic appeal as well as avoiding lightening strikes in electrical storms.

As such, you will want to have the power company come out and mark where your electrical lines are. If you are digging in your yard and accidentally cut into your power lines, you could not only knock out the electricity to your entire home but could run the risk of severe electrical shock from an exposed and cut live wire.

Your gas lines into your home are equally as important if not more important to mark. Whether you use natural gas, oil, or propane to heat and fuel your home, cutting into those lines accidentally poses an environmental and personal emergency.

Know What To Do If You Do Cut Into A Line

Should you accidentally sever an electrical line when working in your backyard by mistake, you will need to contact your electrical company immediately. A repairman will be able to shut off the power leading into your home so that the cut line can safely be removed and another can be spliced into the system in its place. However, this process can take a great deal of effort and further digging in your yard.

If you cut into a fuel line while working in your backyard, you will need to report any spills and leaks to the government immediately. Contact your local fire department as well as the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change about the spill. Local authorities will respond by evacuating the area and trying to contain the leak. Any spill of liquid fuel will need to be cleaned up and removed before you can return to the area. If it is a gas leak, the gas will need to dissipate in the air before it is safe to be in the area again. Contact a business, such as Highmark Enviromental Services, for more information. 

Now that you know a few of the major safety precautions to take when re-landscaping your backyard, you can be sure that you are aware of the potential hazards in the process and do everything that you can to avoid and deal with problems as they occur.