Earthquake-Proofing Your Living Room: A 2-Hour Safety Upgrade
Let's talk about something most Salt Lake Valley homeowners don't think about until it's too late: earthquakes. Seismologists consider a major Wasatch Fault earthquake likely in our lifetime. And while we can't control the tremors, we can control what happens inside our living rooms when they hit.
The good news? You can knock out the most important safety upgrades in about two hours over a weekend. No special skills required. Just a little muscle, a few inexpensive supplies from the hardware store, and the peace of mind that your family room won't turn into a hazard zone during the next shake.
Here's how to earthquake-proof your living room: fast.
1. Secure the Big Screen (Before It Becomes a Flying Object)
Your 65-inch TV is the centerpiece of your living room. It's also a 40-pound projectile waiting to happen.
If your TV is sitting on a console or entertainment stand, it's not secure: no matter how stable it looks. During even a moderate earthquake, that thing can tip forward, slide off, or topple completely.
The quick fix: TV anti-tip straps. These are inexpensive (under $15), take about 10 minutes to install, and they're almost invisible once they're on. The straps attach to the back of your TV and anchor to either the wall behind it or the console itself. If you have drywall, make sure you're hitting a stud. If you're not confident finding studs, a simple stud finder from any hardware store will do the trick.
The better fix: Wall-mount your TV. This is the gold standard for earthquake safety, and it also frees up floor space and looks cleaner. If you've got the skills and the right mount, you can DIY this. But if drilling into studs and running cables through walls sounds like a headache, that's literally what we do at Your Handyman Pros.
2. Anchor the "Towering" Furniture
Bookshelves. Armoires. That tall IKEA cabinet you swore you'd secure "eventually." These are the biggest dangers in your living room during an earthquake, and they're one of the most common causes of earthquake injuries inside homes.
A six-foot bookshelf fully loaded with hardcovers weighs hundreds of pounds. When it tips, it doesn't just fall: it crushes. And it tips easier than you think.
The fix: Furniture anchor straps. These are L-brackets or nylon straps that attach the top of the furniture to the wall. You'll want to anchor into studs, not just drywall, so the anchor doesn't rip out under stress.
Most straps come in kits for under $20 and include everything you need. Measure twice, drill once, and make sure the furniture is level before you tighten everything down. This takes about 15–20 minutes per piece of furniture, and it could literally save a life.
Pro tip for renters: If you can't drill into the walls, consider earthquake-resistant tension poles that go between the top of the furniture and the ceiling. They're not as secure as wall anchors, but they're way better than nothing.
3. Heavy Art and Mirrors: Stop Hanging Things on Hope
We've all done it. You hammer a nail into the drywall, hang a heavy mirror or a big canvas print, and call it good. That works fine: until the house starts shaking.
Heavy items hung on standard picture nails or regular hooks can swing, fall, or even launch off the wall during seismic activity. If that 30-pound mirror is hanging above your couch, you've got a problem.
The fix: Swap out standard picture hangers for seismic hooks or heavy-duty wall anchors. Seismic hooks have a closed loop design that prevents the hanging wire from bouncing off during shaking. They're cheap, they're easy to find, and they work.
For anything over 15 pounds, mount directly into a stud using a heavy-duty screw. Use a level, a stud finder, and take your time. If the artwork or mirror is particularly large or valuable, it's worth having a pro handle it. We've done plenty of wall work across the Salt Lake Valley, and getting heavy décor properly anchored is one of those "measure twice, drill once" jobs.
4. Glassware & Display Cabinets: Add Latches, Save the Heirlooms
China cabinets, curio shelves, glass-front display cases: they're beautiful, but they're also full of breakable, sometimes irreplaceable items. During an earthquake, cabinet doors swing open, and everything inside becomes a mess of broken glass and shattered memories.
The fix: Cabinet latches. You can get low-profile magnetic latches or simple twist locks that keep cabinet doors closed during shaking. These take about 5 minutes per door to install, and they're practically invisible when closed.
Bonus upgrade: Line the shelves inside your cabinets with non-slip shelf liner. This keeps dishes, glassware, and collectibles from sliding around or tipping over. It's a $10 roll of grippy material that you just cut to size and lay down. Easy.
And if you've got particularly valuable or sentimental items on display? Use museum putty to secure them to the shelf surface. Museums use this stuff to keep artifacts in place, and it works just as well for your grandma's porcelain figurines.
5. The "Big Picture" Structural Safety Check
Here's where things get real. All the TV straps and cabinet latches in the world won't help if your house has foundational issues, outdated earthquake retrofitting, or structural weaknesses.
If your home was built before modern seismic building codes (we're talking pre-1980s in many cases), it might not be properly bolted to its foundation. Older homes in Bountiful, Sandy, and parts of the Salt Lake Valley often have cripple walls in the crawl space that aren't braced. During a major earthquake, these walls can collapse, and the entire house can slide off the foundation.
This is not a DIY job.
If you're concerned about your home's structural earthquake readiness, you need someone with a B100 General Contractor license: someone who understands foundations, framing, and code requirements. That's us. We work with pros who can assess your home's structural integrity, recommend retrofitting if needed, and handle the heavy-duty work that keeps your family safe.
We're talking foundation bolting, cripple wall bracing, and making sure your home can handle the Big One when it comes. While a larger project might take more time, you can still do a walkthrough yourself over the weekend.
Two Hours, A Few Supplies, and Serious Peace of Mind
You don't need a full weekend or a giant budget to make your living room significantly safer. Most of these upgrades: TV straps, furniture anchors, seismic hooks, and cabinet latches: cost less than $100 total and take just a couple of hours to complete.
But here's the thing: if you're looking at your bookshelf, your TV, and that heavy mirror above the couch and thinking, "I really should do this, but I'm not sure I'll do it right": just call us.
We can handle these kinds of safety upgrades for homeowners in Herriman, Draper, Sandy, West Valley City, and across the Salt Lake Valley. We've got the tools, the know-how, and the speed to knock out a whole checklist of earthquake safety fixes in one visit. And if there's a bigger structural concern? We've got the licensing and expertise to handle that, too.
Because at the end of the day, earthquake-proofing your living room isn't about being paranoid. It's about being prepared. And in Utah, that's just smart homeownership.
Ready to make your home safer? Give us a call or check out more of our Pro Tips and Projects for ways to protect and improve your home.
