If you are the parent of a baby who will soon become a toddler, then you may be busy toddler-proofing your home. While you may first take steps to keep your toddler out of your bathroom entirely, such as placing a baby gate in front of it, you will also have to take steps to make your bathroom safe and toddler-friendly when you need to begin toilet training.

Read on to learn three tips for making your bathroom safer and more toddler-friendly before toilet training begins.

1. Turn Water Heater Temperature Down

The default temperature setting on most water heaters is 140 degrees F . Tap water at this temperature can burn a child's skin in 2.5 seconds, even though it may take minutes to burn an adult's hand. The thin skin of a child burns much more quickly than the skin of an adult.

To protect your child from accidental burns when using your bathroom faucet, turn your water heater temperature down to 120–125 degrees F. A child's skin will burn in about two minutes on average when in contact with 125 degrees F water. However, it can take up to 10 minutes for a child's skin to burn in 120 degrees F water.

2. Protect Your Toilet Drain and Your Child

If you have never lived with a toddler before, then you may not know that many toddlers love flushing items down the toilet that should not be flushed. These items then not only go missing, but they also clog the toilet. You can help keep your toddler from flushing items that toddlers should not flush down the toilet in two ways, and the right option for you depends on how you plan to toilet train your child.

If you plan to toilet train your child on a freestanding child's potty, then install a simple toilet lid lock on your toilet to prevent lifting of the lid entirely.

If you plan to toilet train your child by using a children's insert on the adult toilet, then instead of locking the lid, instruct every adult in the home to turn the toilet's water supply off after using the toilet then flush. A typical toilet is able to flush one more time after the water supply is off and then it cannot be flushed again until the water supply is turned back on.

Instruct your child to ask an adult to flush the toilet for them after they use the bathroom.

Not only will following one of these tips help prevent toilet clogs, but they may also help save your child's life. A small child can easily fall into a toilet filled with water and drown. Keeping the lid locked or the bowl free of water can keep your toilet from being a toddler drowning hazard.

3. Install a Touchless Faucet

Teaching your toddler to wash their hands after using the toilet is important to prevent the spread of germs. However, depending on your child's height, they may have a difficult time using the traditional bathroom faucet alone or not be able to use it at all if they cannot reach the faucet handles. In addition, some children who can reach the faucet handles may leave the water running after washing their hands.

Install a touchless faucet to enable your child to wash their hands after using the toilet without having to ask an adult for help and without wasting water. Some touchless faucets also come with additional features, such as a precise temperature control option that adds additional anti-scald protection.

Follow these tips before toilet training your toddler to help protect your plumbing and your child from bathroom mishaps. Contact Complete Plumbing to install toddler-friendly bathroom fixtures today.