August 2011 Moms
ladybugpjb
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baby-proofing a free-standing fireplace?
ladybugpjb
member
While house-hunting, I've come acrosss two houses with old-style pot-belly stoves. Maybe that's not the right name for them - they are like free-standing fireplaces that look like they are made of iron...I'm cold-weather dumb. Sorry.
The first time I saw one, I just moved on thinking, "I don't want to deal with that," and then I found another one this morning.
Does anyone have one? Would having a stove like that be a deal-breaker for you when choosing a house? I'm obviously concerned about DS and LO2 getting burned, but I don't know if I'm just paranoid because I've never had one or known anyone who had one. I don't even know if we would use it.
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Re: baby-proofing a free-standing fireplace?
Is having it removed an option? We have a gas fire place and we use this https://www.amazon.com/Kidco-Close-Hearth-Gate--Black/dp/B006OJIKD0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1356961932&sr=8-1&keywords=fireplace+baby+gate
work really well for us.
Olivia June BFP 12/26/10 EDD 09/01/11 Birthday 08/02/11
BFP 12/25/12 EDD 09/06/13 M/C, 01/02/13
BFP 01/28/13 EDD 10/08/13 STICK BABY!
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I wouldn't be deterred from a house because of one, unless it is one of the main sources of heat and you have to use it regularly - that would just be a pain. We have one in our basement, and we only use it occasionally. The rest of the time, I just use the top of it as a mantle for decorations.
What is the setup on the ones you've seen? Is it sitting directly on the floor, or is it on a raised stone or brick platform? Since we don't use ours frequently, I'm more concerned about the fact that ours is on a raised brick platform, and the edges are really rough. We're looking at either getting some of these hearth safety cushions (click here for link) or maybe even installing a gate around the hearth, which would also address any concerns when we actually use the stove. We will probably just use our plastic playyard gate system, but there are some really nice options for metal hearth gates if you wanted to spend a little more.
Thanks for the replies - since we'd be renting, I doubt they'd remove it. I also don't know that it will really get cold enough to use it for a main source of heat. The last one I looked at was in the den, so I think it was put there more for looks. In both houses, they were directly on the floor.
The houses aren't at the top of my list, but I've been following the house-hunts of some other military families moving to the area, and they've had trouble finding something suitable, so I might have to go further down my list than I want to. I just didn't want to cross the houses off the list of possibilities for something that's not as big of a deal as it is in my head.