baby proofing tips

kaking78

@bunnyfungo's LO will be crawling any day now and it got me thinking about baby proofing. I was wondering if you STMs+ (and FTMs who are more on the ball than me) have any advice or recommendations to share. What was useful, what was useless, what did your LO get into that you never expected to be an issue? 

Personally my biggest concern is our hardwood stairs. Any suggestions on what to look for in a baby gate?

SurpriseAt39

My advice for anyone:
Get down on your belly. Squirm and crawl around. Look for things that could be dangerous.

We just put up a baby gate on our stairs about 5 months ago. (DS1 is 20 months now).
And for the last month I haven't even used it. Lol.

I always keep my plants up high because the cat would get into them.

lazyreader

We've dog proofed for two boxers. Which includes baby gating various areas. We can section the house off pretty well.

Attach all shelves to the wall is our first step. And likely putting all books up high and toys on the first two shelves. And maybe doors.

angelsnight

Haven't done it yet but I plan on buying straps soon to attach heavy furniture to the wall.  Not to hijack your thread, but a quick question....LO's dresser/changing table doesn't have a real back to it, it's just particle board.  So does anyone know how to attach the furniture strips?  I'm assuming the particle board wouldn't be sturdy enough.

As far as gates go, I don't believe pressure mounts are recommended for the top of the stairs, get one that has hardware to attach it to the wall.  Also something we didn't think of and will have to return our gate....our one cat isn't a good jumper.  I think he can handle the hallway one, but not the one at the top of the stairs (he'd have a further drop on the other side, and coming back up from the basement he'd have a further jump) so we have to get one with the little cat door built in.

cdnmomma

@angelsnight‌ when we attached ms dresser to the wall we put the tether into the actual frame as opposed to the particle board. It's held up really well.

angelsnight

Kalpa521 said:

@angelsnight‌ when we attached ms dresser to the wall we put the tether into the actual frame as opposed to the particle board. It's held up really well.

@kalpa521 thanks, I figured as much but wasn't sure if that would work either.  I'll give it a try one of these days.

kaking78

I forgot about tethering the tall furniture! That reminds me - anyone have suggestions for tethering TVs?

Ahutch428

Anyone have suggestions for lamps on end tables? Picture below for reference

angelsnight

kaking78 said:

I forgot about tethering the tall furniture! That reminds me - anyone have suggestions for tethering TVs?

If it's a flat screen, they supposedly have holes on the back for the straps but I haven't looked into it yet.  Babies R us has some in their brand and Safety 1st has some as well (at BRU) but the Safety 1st got better reviews.

angelsnight

Ahutch428 said:

Anyone have suggestions for lamps on end tables? Picture below for reference

Do you mean from a safety perspective, or just so they aren't pulling them down and breaking them?  I could be wrong, but I don't think an end table and lamps would pose the same safety threat as a large piece of furniture.  I think that may be something you just have to constantly tell them no so they'll eventually (hopefully) leave it alone.

Ahutch428

@angelsnight‌ I'm worried about climbing the table and pulling it on top of her. I'm not worried about the lamp (it's super cheap).

I think I over worry! I'm not sure what is a safety hazard, and what isn't.

Ceventa

A big item on my list right now is the pool! I've been getting quotes all week and hopefully we'll be able to get something in by August, latest September since they seem to be really busy. Started off by looking at pool fences, but right now I'm really loving the idea of the safety net:

A few people have told me that their LO figured out eventually how to climb over the fence. Anyone have a safety net on their pool? 

SomersIsles

When LO starts crawling my life is going to be crazy... I'll have to sweep All. The. Time.

My dog's fur literally sprinkles off with every step he takes.... Ugh.

angelsnight

Ceventa said:

A big item on my list right now is the pool! I've been getting quotes all week and hopefully we'll be able to get something in by August, latest September since they seem to be really busy. Started off by looking at pool fences, but right now I'm really loving the idea of the safety net:

A few people have told me that their LO figured out eventually how to climb over the fence. Anyone have a safety net on their pool? 

We need to have the pool discussion with my inlaws before next summer.  I'm really surprised my SIL never made them get a fence since her kids are there a lot and they always get in trouble for being in the off limits zone near the pool.

The net looks cool...my only concern would be is if it eventually lost its strength and sagged if a child was on it.  That might make things worse, but I know nothing about them so I'm just speculating.

Ceventa

@angelsnight I though about that too. The nets work on a pulley system allowing you to tighten them. I'm sure whoever installs would probably have some kind of warranty or servicing in case it starts to sag if the pulley system quits working. So far I've only had fence companies come out, but I will ask about the sagging issue when the net guys come. Thanks!

SurpriseAt39

Ahutch428 said:

Anyone have suggestions for lamps on end tables? Picture below for reference

If you're terribly worried about the table and LO actually tried to pull it over or tries to use it to stand up, I suggest removing it. As for the lamp...same thing.

@bunnyfungo‌
The garbage can was a hit over here too. DS1 would 'clean up his toys'. We have another tall can for recycling and he would throw his toys and books in it. We just check everything before we set it to the curb.

@kaking78‌
Is it a flat screen? Would a wall mount work? Our TVs are mounted to the wall, so they are definitely out of reach of the kids.

ProudMommy030614

Ceventa said:

A big item on my list right now is the pool! I've been getting quotes all week and hopefully we'll be able to get something in by August, latest September since they seem to be really busy. Started off by looking at pool fences, but right now I'm really loving the idea of the safety net:

A few people have told me that their LO figured out eventually how to climb over the fence. Anyone have a safety net on their pool? 

We have a safety net and an alarm. If something enters the water it sounds like a house alarm it's so loud. We had ours put in with the net and got a good deal. We didn't trust the fence since our kids were climbers.

Eta: ours is about 8years old and we haven't had any sagging issues. And we also had an alarm that goes off throughout the house when the door leading to the pool is opened. It's just a beep but you can hear it. ADT did that one for us.

dancer7889

SomersIsles said:

When LO starts crawling my life is going to be crazy... I'll have to sweep All. The. Time.

My dog's fur literally sprinkles off with every step he takes.... Ugh.

Me too. I already try to sweep/vacuum twice a week. But I don't want DD eating cat and dog hair.

DDs almost 6 months old... I'm not ready to be thinking about baby proofing!

jwls84

Outlet covers, cord shorteners, if you have blinds watch the cords for those too ( we just got cordless blinds), cabinet & drawer locks & baby gate. Those are my big things, oh and corner covers for coffe tables & end tables anything that they can hit their head into. Our TV is mounted and we will mount big furniture too

kaking78

@jtizzay Do you mean zip ties? I hope so. We have about 500 lurking in our garage. Great idea!

sopranoali

I'm gonna block the open outlets...we have dog gates....that's all I was planning? :-/

mfarmer0811

angelsnight said:

Ceventa said:

A big item on my list right now is the pool! I've been getting quotes all week and hopefully we'll be able to get something in by August, latest September since they seem to be really busy. Started off by looking at pool fences, but right now I'm really loving the idea of the safety net:

A few people have told me that their LO figured out eventually how to climb over the fence. Anyone have a safety net on their pool? 

We need to have the pool discussion with my inlaws before next summer.  I'm really surprised my SIL never made them get a fence since her kids are there a lot and they always get in trouble for being in the off limits zone near the pool.

The net looks cool...my only concern would be is if it eventually lost its strength and sagged if a child was on it.  That might make things worse, but I know nothing about them so I'm just speculating.

Just something to think about with the net. Would you be able to put the net back on after Everytime you used the pool? I would think it would be a hassle. A fence is more expensive, but I think it would more safe. They also make pool alarms.