emiliemadison (or other carseat knowledgeable people), a question!

crazgrljes

We have two Britax car seats which we bought used; there is one in my car and one in DH's. I just thought to check the height/weight limit on the seats as I had heard recently that the seats might have a RF height/weight limit which would be different from the FF limit. It looks like one seat can RF to 30 lbs and the other, to 33 lbs. I'm not seeing a height limit anywhere, and neither seat came with a manual.

My LO is about 32 lbs and he is 16 months. So my question is...do I have to buy a newer seat in order to keep LO RF until 2?

I know I could probably look this up on Britax's website but I figured it would be easier to ask an actual person.

 

sugarland726

I'm pretty certain the answer is yes, you do need to get a new seat to continue RFing. And the height measurement is when your LO's head is less than one inch from the top of the carseat. Someone has a link of how to properly measure that, I don't have it.

emiliemadison

First things first- if they only RF to 30 and 33 lbs, there's a good chance that one or both of these seats is actually expired and no longer safe to use. There should be a sticker on the back/underside of the seat that says the manufacture date. Britax seats are good for 6 years, so if it's older than that, you must absolutely get new seats ASAP. Aside from that, not knowing the history of used seats means that even if they're not expired, they could have been in a crash/improperly used/cleaned incorrectly- which renders them unusable and unsafe without any obvious signs of misuse. I'd recommend buying new seats regardless of their age.

As for weight limits- yes, you must buy new seats anyway to continue RF because your LO has already passed the limit on one and will reach the RF weight limit on the other at any moment. Height limits for RF are reached when the child's head is within 1 inch of the top.

The Evenflo Triumph65 and Graco MyRide both RF to 40 lbs (as do several others).  HTH, and let me know if you have questions.

skmac05

emiliemadison:

First things first- if they only RF to 30 and 33 lbs, there's a good chance that one or both of these seats is actually expired and no longer safe to use. There should be a sticker on the back/underside of the seat that says the manufacture date. Britax seats are good for 6 years, so if it's older than that, you must absolutely get new seats ASAP. Aside from that, not knowing the history of used seats means that even if they're not expired, they could have been in a crash/improperly used/cleaned incorrectly- which renders them unusable and unsafe without any obvious signs of misuse. I'd recommend buying new seats regardless of their age.

As for weight limits- yes, you must buy new seats anyway to continue RF because your LO has already passed the limit on one and will reach the RF weight limit on the other at any moment. Height limits for RF are reached when the child's head is within 1 inch of the top.

The Evenflo Triumph65 and Graco MyRide both RF to 40 lbs (as do several others).  HTH, and let me know if you have questions.

Can you explain this? Thanks!

emiliemadison

skmac05:

emiliemadison:

First things first- if they only RF to 30 and 33 lbs, there's a good chance that one or both of these seats is actually expired and no longer safe to use. There should be a sticker on the back/underside of the seat that says the manufacture date. Britax seats are good for 6 years, so if it's older than that, you must absolutely get new seats ASAP. Aside from that, not knowing the history of used seats means that even if they're not expired, they could have been in a crash/improperly used/cleaned incorrectly- which renders them unusable and unsafe without any obvious signs of misuse. I'd recommend buying new seats regardless of their age.

As for weight limits- yes, you must buy new seats anyway to continue RF because your LO has already passed the limit on one and will reach the RF weight limit on the other at any moment. Height limits for RF are reached when the child's head is within 1 inch of the top.

The Evenflo Triumph65 and Graco MyRide both RF to 40 lbs (as do several others).  HTH, and let me know if you have questions.

Can you explain this? Thanks!

Lots of people clean their seats- either for themselves or in preparation for sale- by removing the harness and submerging it in water/using cleaning chemicals/putting it in the washing machine. The fibers of the straps will be weakened if cleaned improperly and can fail in a crash, which would be catastrophic. The only approved way to clean the harness straps is to spot clean with water and mild soap or with a mild vinegar/water solution. 

[Deleted User]

Butting in to say 2 things:  Thanks for always being super helpful about carseat questions, and I LOVE the pics of your kids.  They are adorable!  Butting out now!

emiliemadison

sofamonkey:

Butting in to say 2 things:  Thanks for always being super helpful about carseat questions, and I LOVE the pics of your kids.  They are adorable!  Butting out now!

Aww, thanks!  

Angela814

Just want to add that the seats may not be expired yet. We have the classic Marathon that rear faces to 33 lbs, and it expires in June I believe. But that still doesn't give you enough time to rf to 2 years, and he'll gain more than 1 lb in that time frame anyway.