Toddler Safety in The Home
Life with a toddler has many challenges! Things we took for granted before, suddenly become fraught with peril. Curious little people with inquisitive minds and a determination to seek out all things dangerous, hone in on everything we'd rather they didn't touch. Little fingers poke, pull and push and seek out anything they can get hold of. Nothing is safe, nothing is sacred! This is the time when we, as parents, need to take precautions to protect our precious bundles with regards to safety in the home. Toddler proofing your house is quite a minefield which is why a company like Simple Safety Solutions is invaluable. They say:
"We are passionate about providing quality child safety products as we believe that all children have the right to live, learn and play in a safe environment. All our child safety products provide simple solutions to the every day concerns you may have about your children's safety. We aim to provide the biggest and best selection of child and baby safety products so that you have one less thing to worry about."
My son is now 16 months old and he is eager to explore every square inch of his environment! Some days we have quite a battle to keep him out of drawers and cupboards. He may have a toybox filled with bright, colourful safe toys, but the contents of my kitchen cupboard is far more enticing. So when I was offered the chance to try out the Baby Dan Safety Starter Set by Joanna at Simple Safety I was very keen to give it a go!!
This set consists of 21 pieces, with the basics needed to baby proof your home. The first item we used was the Fingersafe that fitted to the top of the door to stop it from slamming shut on little fingers. One of my nieces actually had her fingertip removed in a door related accident, so this is something I am very aware of. The device was discrete, easy to fit and did the job perfectly. 10/10 for its simplicity and effectiveness!
The Socket Plugs were quite different to the ones I had used in the past. They sit flush in the electrical socket, preventing children from inserting anything into the power supply. A unique twist and pull removal system means that they can not be removed by a child. Previous designs I have seen had small integral handles and I had witnessed Freddy and his 2 year old cousin pulling them out...it was an intriguing game for them! The Baby Dan covers need to have a second one locked on to the three corresponding holes on its face to remove it from the socket. No toddler has managed to remove one yet! Quite ingenius!
The corner protectors sit on the sharp corners of tables or work surfaces and stop nasty knocks on baby's heads. They did exactly what they said on the packet! They were easy to put on with adhesive pads and did the job!
The drawer/cupboard locks were slightly fiddly to fix as they screw directly into the drawer or cupboard front and sides, but once fitted were very secure. The opening mechanism was very effective, you just reach in and flick the catch to open the drawer. My son has done battle with them and has not managed to gain access. So I am impressed with their effectiveness!
The on/off lock is easily installed with the double sided sticky pads onto the fridge door. It seems sturdy and strong which impressed me. The catch attaches to the locking mechanism which slides up and down to secure or release it. This simple switch allows the door to be opened or locked shut. I was surprised that it worked so well to be honest and is our favourite safety device in the set. Again it has not been defeated by Freddy! Thumbs up!
As this picture shows Freddy is intrigued with the contents of my plate cupboard and is regularly removed before he uses my plates as frisbees. This is obviously a problem that needs to be overcome!!
Baby Dan's solution to this problem is the Cabinet Lock. It consists of a plastic clamp-like device that fits around the two handles and is then tightened to prevent access. I don't know if possibly my cupboard door handles are further apart than the norm, but the fit was quite loose meaning that Freddy could pull back on the doors creating a gap between them into which he could have inserted and trapped his hand. Also the ratchet mechanism was quite difficult to use and was also sharp on little fingers. Using the screw-in door/cupboard locks has proven to be more effective and much more practical. This is the only piece of the safety set that we are not using, as it didn't seem to be effective enough on our double fronted cupboard.