Drop side crib: wwyd?

docmay25 · June 2011

We have a drop side crib with ds that I was going to use for this baby. Now they have been recalled. Would you still use your old drop side crib or buy a new one? Not sure what to do. I usually listen to recalls but dh says we never had a problem with it and we should just use it. WWYD?

justEK · June 2011

I'd get a new one. I would not want to chance it.

grja · June 2011

I'd buy a new one. Better safe than sorry is the way I see it. And you can get some good deals if you don't feel like spending a lot of money.

hikerbeth · June 2011

Yes. I bought the retrofit kit to make our dropside "fixed" when we had DS.

At my parents' house we still use the dropside crib that was mine as a baby, and honestly, it's much higher quality than the cheap crib we bought when DD was born. . . the side travels along its own fixed metal rails instead of the plastic guides of newer cribs.

If you're really concerned, figure out a way to put some screws in to make it fixed. . . it's doubtful that you'll be able to resell a dropside crib after the baby, so it doesn't matter if it looks pretty.

ghm · June 2011

We didn't have a crib when we decided M needed to sleep in one...so, we borrowed my sister's. It was a drop rail crib that was broken...before the recalls, I think. Anyway, before we used it DH fixed it so it was stationary. Lots of screws.

squishywife · June 2011

Yeah I prob would use it.

Angela814 · June 2011

We're using our drop side crib. It was one of the last recalled (after the pottery barn kids ones were), and I honestly think it was recalled just because all the others were.

SuperCuteBenz · June 2011

I asked this same question a while back, and I ended up replacing our drop side. I ended up buying a Graco Charleston on clearance at Target for $88.

Unfortunately, my new crib didn't meet the cut off for the new standards, so I will probably still have a hard time getting rid of it when we are done.

jettagurl · June 2011

Call the manufacturer to see if the have a kit to make the side stationary or how to fix your situation. They may even reimburse you for a new one or replace it with a comparable one.

penguingrrl · June 2011

I continued using my drop side crib and will use it for our future child, and my sister plans to use it if/when she has kids. The company that made mine only recalled because of increasing pressure and didn't have a single incident happen with their cribs. DH is an engineer and looked over everything, especially the dropside mechanism that was creating the issues, and determined that ours is perfectly safe (the issue was with pieces made of plastic that broke, that piece on our crib is metal). We did get the kit to make that side stationary, but if it's stationary I can't reach in to get my kid, which is why I bought a dropside to begin with, so when we went to install it and it turned out Pottery Barn sent us the wrong one we never called them back and got the new patch. They had no suggestions for what petite parents should do to reach their kid, aside from standing on a stool, which isn't safe for someone as klutzy as I am lol!

JellymanKelly · June 2011

We ended up buying a crib from a friend. The side actually fell off our drop-side crib when DS1 was still using it (we ended up just transitioning him to a toddler bed at that point since he was over 3 and MORE than old enough). Since I knew it had a history of malfunction, I didn't even consider using it again with DS2.

Jodi&Joe · June 2011

If the drop side malfunctions and kills/hurts the baby, could you live with yourself? That would give me my answer.
And I hate to be so blunt but that is how I assess situations. Could I live with myself or would I be overwrought with guilt? Some things I can live with myself on....some things I can't.

ilovemygirls · June 2011

I would use it and get a retro-fit kit to make sure the side is stationary.

hikerbeth · June 2011

Jodi&Joe:

If the drop side malfunctions and kills/hurts the baby, could you live with yourself? That would give me my answer.
And I hate to be so blunt but that is how I assess situations. Could I live with myself or would I be overwrought with guilt? Some things I can live with myself on....some things I can't.

I thought the "malfunction" that caused the recalls was actually because the drop side was assembled incorrectly (not following instructions) which led to the pinch/trap hazard. Something should never be designed that allows it to be assembled backwards/upside down, but it happened. . . and I thought that snowballed into just getting rid of all drop sides to avoid all liability.

So I know that my drop side is constructed safely per the specifications (and now it's retrofitted to be fixed, so it's a moot point) so I can use my crib in good conscience.

august06mom · June 2011

I'd buy a new one. In fact, that's what we did. DS's crib was also a drop side, so we bought a new one for DS2.

JillShari · June 2011

I am currently using the drop side crib that I used for DS#1 for #2....and I've never thought twice about it. It was rated very high and the drop side does through metal slides... and I'm 4'11'' and could NEVER reach to put my kid in asleep if it wasn't a drop side. I know they probably could fix the side to not drop down, but we've used it for 4 years and never had a problem...so... use your own judgement.

sunnyday016 · June 2011

We'll be using ours again for the new baby.

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