Raising a child, they say, is the world’s most adventurous journey. It’s a known fact that while your children may or may not do the things they’re supposed to – like eating that baby food or sleeping on time, they’ll most certainly do the things they’re not supposed to do – like trying to walk out an open door or crawl into a dusty room.
The age between 7 months and 4-7 years is where babies are most likely to injure themselves due to unfortunate accidents. That is unless you baby-proof your house. Baby-proofing involves many things, the most important of which is mounting baby gates.
For the best baby gates, you can visit Modernbabyadvice.com. But before you do, answer this: do you know what to look for in a baby gate? What makes a gate secure and ideal for you? If you don’t have the answer (and even if you do, a little extra knowledge never hurts anyone!), read on and take note of how to identify the safest baby gate for you.
Find the Right ‘Fit’
There are two types of safety gates based on their mechanism or installing or mounting:
Hardware Mounts
You connect hardware-mounted safety gates with screws onto solid walls (known as wall mounts) or a post of wood. These kinds of mounts are ideal for high-risk regions in your house such as entry-point of stairs, fireplaces, or chimneys.
These doors are the most secure choice as they are quite hard to remove – they’re installed with the help of hardware like secrets, nut bolts, levers, etc. This also makes sure that they don’t have a crossbar at the base level (a potentially terrifying tripping experience, avoided!). They’re also friendly in case your grandparents or seniors visit your baby.
Pressure Mounts
Pressure mounted baby gates are literally what the name suggests – mounted on the back of pressure, or tension if you want the scientific term. These gates are installed and tightened between two walls and are the easiest to set up or take out if you wish to do so. They are admirably useful in entryways with wood poles. Their drawback is that they cannot withstand as much pressure as their hardware mounted counterparts, meaning you cannot use them on the stairs or in high-risk regions.
Also, a fair warning – they come with a rod, sort of like a crossbar, at the bottom of the system. If you or maybe a senior isn’t alert enough, you might trip. To avoid such accidents, put a pressure-mounted gate at least one meter away from the very first stair. In case you live in a rented place and aren’t allowed to drill the walls, these mounts are ideal for you.
Note Down the Dimensions Where You PlanTo Instal the Gates
You must keep a note of all the dimensions of areas where you plan to install the gates. Gates come in different shapes and sizes and what you like may not actually fit. If there’s a minor difference in your measured numbers and the dimensions of the gate you need, don’t worry, you can buy extensions that are available in the market to fit the gates where you need them to.
Make Sure Your Baby Gates Meet The the Prerequisites
Your child will grow in height over the time you have the baby gates, so make sure the height of the gate is at least 60 cm to make sure the gate is future-proof as far as your baby’s safety is concerned.
See to the Slat Gaps
Slat gaps are gaps between two grills on the gate. You need to make sure they’re small enough to ensure that your baby won’t just weasel their way through the gaps, or worse, get their head trapped in the slats while trying.
Your Stairs Need Extra Attention
According to the Huffington Post, three brands failed the safety testing for stairs – that should compel you to take this point seriously. As mentioned above, in pressure mounted gates there is a high risk of the latch opening. There is also the risk of someone tripping over them and falling down a flight of stairs, so make sure you plan well and avoid gates with crossbars on stairs.
Make Sure the Latch is Easy Enough Operate for You but Not for the Child
This goes without saying, really. The latch should not be hard for you to open – it may create problems during emergencies, or you might find yourself locked. Similarly, the latch shouldn’t be so easy to open that your child, who’s just playing around with it, can open it with a little push.
Remember, kids, learn what they see. So, if they have seen you open that latch to let them out – they’re bound to try it on their own someday. If the latch is weak and you’re not around, it defeats the purpose of installing a gate in the first place.
Final Word
That was a complete guide to finding the best baby gates for you. The safety of your child is paramount This is why you must take note of these points before you set out to buy a baby safety gate to make your home baby friendly.
