Jackets on Infants in Car Seats

ericaraec · October 2009

Hello Mpls Area bumpies. I am due in February with my first baby and am getting some mixed advice about putting a jacket/bunting on a newborn in the car seat. Does anyone know about this? If so, what are the reasons for not being able to? The person who told me I couldn't didn't have any answers as to why. Thanks for your help!

k11karen · October 2009

It makes baby bulky in the car seat and then the harness doesn't fit correctly. Our oldest was born in Dec. We had a fleece thing from Land's End that went over the infant carrier. We used that plus a light weight blanket and he was fine. If we were in the car on a long drive we could unzip the fleece and he would still have the blanket.

MrsGo4Hockeychick · October 2009

because of compression. A bulky jacket in an accident will be compressed by the force, and a baby can be thrown out. There have been cases at the scene of an accident that the baby was thrown from the seat, but the snowsuit remained behind, properly strapped in.

The best way to tell if a jacket or snowsuit is too bulky to be safe is to put baby in outerwear and then strap into car seat. Take baby out, take outerwear off and put baby back into car seat. If you have to adjust the straps at all, it's too big.

Get a shower cap style car seat cover (bundle mes are also unsafe), and use blankets. Or, get something like the baby bloak (babybloak.com) or the travel trench (cjsewingroom.com).

trigirl30 · October 2009

You aren't going to want to fuss with putting a jacket on your little one. Get a Bundle me, the fleece thing that goes over your infant carrier, and wrap your LO in an extra blanket. Much easier!

ericaraec · October 2009

Thank you so much! This makes much more sense now. I really appreciate the information. I had been researching to no avail (probably using the wrong google search) and knew I would be able to get some advice from experienced mommies on here Big Smile

.

MrsGo4Hockeychick · October 2009

I'm also a car seat tech.

Do not, do not use a bundle me. They force the straps to not lay the way they are meant to, and ANY twist in a strap, no matter how small can weaken the straps. They are tested with perfect use, and the bundle me is not perfect use.

Also, as an FYI, the use of a bundle me voids the warranty on every single car seat I've ever seen. It'll say something in the manual about the use of after market products voiding the warranty. In the case of an accident, an insurance company can refuse payment both for medical needs and for a new seat, if they determine the injuries were caused by improper use of a child restraint (and using the manufacturer's statements regarding after market products, you'd really have no argument).

safe car seat covers are of these styles:

www.babbaco.com (we have the beep beep fleece one, got it off of baby steals last year)

https://www.babypolargear.com/infant_car_seat_cover.htm

https://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=6487082

ericaraec · October 2009

Thank you so much! I actually ordered a cover from baby polar gear yesterday! Once I got the info that anything between the baby and the seat itself is unsafe, I started looking for a cover that only fit over the top of the seat. Actually, I had thought that this is what the bundle me did, but when I looked at it further I realized that it also went underneath the baby. I have since deleted the Bundle Me off my registry. So much to learn as a new mommy-to-be! I really appreciate your help and will rest better knowing that when my little girl arrives around early February that she will be safe and warm in her seat.

MrsGo4Hockeychick · October 2009

let me know how you like the baby polar gear. I've recommended it based on reviews from here...but they haven't been so local. Would you mind letting me know how you liked it after it comes?

I wish BRU and target would stop marketing the bundle me as the end all be all of winter baby gear. The biggest reason moms don't realize they are not safe is because of major manufacturers promoting their use. They're great, for a stroller, just not for a car seat. When I'm doing an inspection, I won't even check off on the seat if they bundle me is in there...whether parents put it back in is up to them, but they can not leave my station with it in the seat.

We're ordering a travel trench for this year, since Kennedy is in a convertible car seat.

LilMissLadybug · October 2009

MrsGo4Hockeychick:
let me know how you like the baby polar gear. I've recommended it based on reviews from here...but they haven't been so local. Would you mind letting me know how you liked it after it comes?

I wish BRU and target would stop marketing the bundle me as the end all be all of winter baby gear. The biggest reason moms don't realize they are not safe is because of major manufacturers promoting their use. They're great, for a stroller, just not for a car seat. When I'm doing an inspection, I won't even check off on the seat if they bundle me is in there...whether parents put it back in is up to them, but they can not leave my station with it in the seat.
We're ordering a travel trench for this year, since Kennedy is in a convertible car seat.

What is a travel trench???

MrsGo4Hockeychick · October 2009

It's a cross between a blanket and a poncho. It over laps 2 inches in the back, so it pulls open easy for the car seat, but closes nice for a child out of the seat. They're available at www.cjsewingroom.com we're getting the turtleneck style, because we do a lot of babywearing. The baby bloak is very similar (www.thebabybloak.com) but I like the fleece patterns at cj's better.

ericaraec · October 2009

I just received the baby polar gear cover and it is really well made. The fleece is soft, doubled up and the zippers are really good quality. I haven't gotten my car seat yet, but they asked which type during the ordering so I put in the one that I registered for and they said it will fit just fine. I ordered a hat from them too - also really well made. The shipment went out the same day as my order - so good service.

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Jackets on Infants in Car Seats

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