How To Make Your Stairs Completely Baby Proof

If your child has started crawling, or maybe even walking recently, then the chances are that they have gone straight to the stairs and tried to climb them. It can be a terrifying you in the process. So, with this in mind, here are a few tips to help keep the stairs safe, secure and you relaxed.

Keep Them Away From Stairs (as often as possible)
Ok, starting an article about baby-proofing the staircase in your home with the oh-so-simple advice of ‘keep the baby away from the stairs’, seems more than a little unhelpful. However, this is actually a really very useful suggestion because, by keeping the baby away from the stairs, you are limiting their contact with them and therefore, keeping them safe.

Buy a baby gate (or two)
When babies become toddlers and get more mobile, one of the best ways to protect your baby is by getting a couple of gates to keep them away from the top and also, the bottom of the stairs. The baby gate that you buy will depend on your staircase and your needs; it can be as simple as choosing a wooden gate over a metal gate, or a gate that you can screw into the wall over one that you can screw into to the banister itself. Stores like Tesco stock a variety of different baby gates.

When purchasing a baby gate, be sure to think about your home first and what needs to be done to prepare.

• Research types of baby gates. If you have an open staircase, look for a 3-in-1 gate, which extends to create a protective playpen around the bottom of the stairs. Please note, pressure mounted baby gates are designed to be used for rooms on the same floor, but not for stairs. 
• Declutter everything, especially the stairs. Some people use their staircase as a place to store things, like books and clothes, but when you have small children in your home, this cannot be an option. When starting to declutter don’t just limit yourself to the stairs, but also the area around the stairs. 
• Rearrange furniture. Move furniture and other items that a toddler could climb on to bypass the stair gate and access the stairs, such as bookcases and chairs. Also, make sure that both the entrance and exit of the staircase is clear, so the kids don’t trip. 
• Don’t forget the railing! The banister can also cause problems, as young children can fall down the stairs if they don’t use it correctly. Look into buying a banister guard — a sheet of clear plastic or netting that covers up all the gaps in the banister — if you think this will be a problem. 
• Carpet the stairs.  Carpet is much easier for young children to work with and, if they should take a tumble coming down the stairs, it’ll be much softer than hardwood flooring. 

These few hints and tips should allow you to breathe a sigh of relief when your little one starts to crawl around the house. If you properly prepare your home and do your research about baby gates, you can keep your children safe from perhaps the biggest threat to their safety — the stairs.

Image by Dave Herholz used under the Creative Commons License.

Keeping Kids Safe Around Heaters

Well, the winter season is here and my blanket no longer seems to be able to provide sufficient warmth for me to get through the day – that, and the fat that the rest of the family complain about it being cold as well! Purchasing a heater or radiator in preparation for the cold months ahead could be one of the most useful purchases you make for yourself and for your family however when there are kids in the household, the issue of safety arises as well so consider these tips when installing a heater in your house.

Place it where little hands can’t get to it

A simple enough idea but it’s surprising how many people overlook it when selecting a location for their heater. Make sure the heater is out of reach of children because if they can’t get to it then they have no chance of tampering with it and possibly hurting themselves. If you have a shelf which is sufficiently capable of housing something as large as your heater then that would be a good place to put it. Other than this, you can look around your house to identify spots that would be hard for a child to reach but whatever you do, just make sure the heater is placed next to a mains socket – a wire running from one end of the room to the other is quite clearly dangerous and could make your efforts to make your heater child proof counter-productive.

Opt for Non-conductive covers

If it’s an electric heater you’ve purchased, then why not pay that little bit extra and opt for one with non-conductive covers. Non-conductive covers block off any areas which are dangerously hot. No matter where you place your heater, chances are, the kids will get to it one way or another since children are ‘explorers’! If they can’t immediately reach it or touch it, they want it even more installing non-conductive covers will mean that if your children do end up touching your electric heater, they will feel a soothing warmth rather than a burning heat.  The downside to this solution of course is that your room will have a reduced level of heat but the potential safety benefits may just make this option worth it. Let us know if you think non-conductive covers on electric heaters are a good idea in the comments section.  

Considerations before purchasing the heater

Taking suitable precautions once the heater has been installed is all well and good but keeping safety in mind before purchasing a heater can make life a lot simpler when it comes to keeping your kids safe around a heater. Looking for a heater with an automatic off switch would be a good place to start. This would ensure that the heater automatically switches itself off in case any meddling hands give it a push and tipple it over. Also, consider a heater which heats the air above it rather than something that lets out heat near the bottom of the heater where a child could possibly put their hand.

After reading the above article, a general rule must have started to emerge - use common sense when installing a heater. Try to think about what a child could do to hurt themselves with your heater and how you can prevent that.

BIO: These safety tips were given on behalf of Economy Radiators who specialize in heaters and radiators.

Rear-Facing Car Seats For Babies & Children Are Safer

When I was a child, I remember being only about 3 years old and sitting in the front seat. Thankfully, times have changed and there are much safer ways for children and babies to travel. Even at 5 years-old, my son is in a booster seat and will be for a few more years. It's all about safety and, of course, I want my children to be as safe as possible, especially when in the car.

Another thing that has changed over the years here in the United States is the usage of rear-facing car seats. Yes, we can turn them around at 1 year old or 20 pounds, but many, many parents, including myself, choose not to do so until much later. In fact, in the Nordics, children must remain in rear-facing car seats until 4 years of age. Since 2002 the American Academy of Pediatrics has recommended rear-facing car seats for children until they reach the weight limit suggested. Only then should a child be switched to front-facing seats. Why? Because rear-facing seats are five times safer for children in the event of a car crash!

Safe & asleep in his rear-facing car seat!

Regardless of the mounting evidence that suggests rear-facing car seats are a must for infants and children, 70% of parents in the UK do not even know rear-facing seats exist for children 18+ months old. The parents interested in purchasing these rear-facing car seats have a hard time even finding them because many manufacturers do not supply them to the UK, though they do to several other European countries. This just doesn't seem fair to me, especially when experts continually recommend rear-facing car seats.

It is time to not only educate parents and retailers on the safety features rear-facing car seats offer babies and children, but it is also time to address the issue of the rear-facing car seat availability in the UK. This is exactly what Motors.co.uk intends to do with their Rear Facing Campaign: http://rearfacing.motors.co.uk/. Any parent would choose an item that is guaranteed to keep baby safer, right? If more stores carried the rear-facing car seats, more parents would immediately be aware of them. It's really a win-win situation.

What's your opinion about rear-facing car seats? I'd love to hear it!