Features to Look for In Child Safety Gates

Although it is a long journey from infanthood to toddler but busy as you will be in looking after and enjoying your bundle of joy, time will pass without your realizing it. The infant who was sleeping for most of the day will start crawling and then stand up on feet. That is the time for which you must prepare for and it should be before your baby starts exploring the new world and crawling to out of bound areas. Child safety gates are an important part of childproofing your home.

Childproofing is providing a safe environment to your child for protecting against dangers that your child is not aware of. Baby safety gates are meant to prevent your little one from moving to places that are not safe like the stairs, kitchen, bathroom, or any other area you think is potentially harmful to your child.

Types of Child Safety Gates

Child safety gates are of two types and classified according to how they are mounted. The first type is the traditional heavier version that can be mounted on walls and furniture. The other is pressure gates.

Child Safety Gates: Pressure Gates

As the name suggests, these depend upon pressure to stay in place. These are easy to install and do not require any hardware. These are also generally less expensive. However, pressure child safety gates may sometimes be knocked out of place with a light punch.

Child Safety Gates: Hardware Mounted

These are sturdier and require you to mount them on a wall or furniture. You can install them in less than an hour by sinking in few screws for mounting. Considering that it is a matter of your baby’s safety it is worth the trouble.

Features to look for in Child Safety Gates

* You should take care and avoid buying safety gates that do not display ASTM/ JPMA certification. Check for the certification for the particular product that you are buying. Child safety certifications are not given to brand names but to individual products.

* Make sure that you are buying the right size. The gate may be adequately high for use now but remember that your child will be growing taller. Choose a taller model so that it provides long term safety.

* Spacing of the bars in gates are of equal importance. As a general rule the space between bars should not be more than 2.5 inches or 6 cm. This is to ensure that the child’s head does not get stuck between bars.

* Hardware mounted safety gates are designed for ease of opening but the same cannot be said about pressure child safety gates. You will have to go through the gated area often so do not depend upon having to jump over the gate.

* Accordion-style screen gates are a virtual hazard so avoid buying them even if you get them cheap or second hand.

Depending upon the brand and features child safety gates can cost you anything in the range of $75 and $100, with pressure based models cheaper by about $20/40.