Blog
Tips on Keeping Baby Cribs Safe
Damage to baby cribs can easily occur with just every day use resulting in minor bumps and dings. To ensure that baby cribs work properly and look great for years to come, follow these uncomplicated maintenance tips.
Screws and bolts that keep your baby’s crib secure can loosen from daily use. This can unfortunately make the crib unstable or even cause it to misfunction. To keep the baby crib hardware tight, check each bolt and screw once a month but do not over tighten since that can damage wood as well.
We previously discussed that dings and chips can happen on even the newest of baby cribs. When fixing those areas up, be sure to use a 100% toxic-free paint in a color that matches for the best blending. This job is best done when the crib can be taken outside to keep fumes away from baby as well.
If you discover that your baby is teething and chewing on some of the crib rails you should consider adding a plastic guard to the crib. This will let your baby to safely chew on the rail without risking slivers or other injuries from damaged wood.
Music mobiles are a great way to entertain small babies. They give an element of visual stimulation to a space that baby is in often and could become quite boring. Since mobiles are suspended out of baby’s reach, they are safe until baby commences sitting up. At that point mobiles should be abstracted from the crib space.
Babies are delicate; that is no secret. To keep baby as safe as possible make sure to keep all thick bedding, pillows and stuffed animals out of baby’s crib. Things like these can pose a suffocation risk while baby is asleep, but can be fun play things when baby is awake and supervised.
To keep baby safe from a moving or falling accidental injury make sure that all moving parts of the crib are locked whenever baby is in the crib. Moving parts include casters and the drop rail. Double checking is definitely worth it to skip a trip to the emergency room.
Sometimes families pass cribs down through the generations and across siblings. This is an ideal way to use and love a family heirloom, but never use a crib that was owned by someone you don’t know. Baby cribs from unidentified sources could hide potential dangers and put your baby at risk.
Check recalls on your baby’s crib and other furniture to be sure that it wasn’t involved in a safety concern. A great place to start is at the US Consumer Product Safety Commission at www.cpsc.gov
Cribs are designed to lower the mattress height as your baby grows to keep them within the crib and prevent crawling out. Follow your instincts, manufacturers’ recommendations, and your doctor’s advice on the right time to lower the crib mattress for the greatest safety.
Babies are generally curious, so keep all dangly things away from baby’s crib. Dangly items include things like: dresser runners, lamp cords, blind cords, lights and anything else that your baby can grab and pull off a shelf or dresser top.