thermometers - how many different ones do i need?!

[trian]

I've got a basal body temp thermometer.

Can it be used for the following reasons:
when i need to take the baby's temperature?
when i need to take the temperature of the water in the baby's bath?
for monitoring the temperature of the room she sleeps in, as per anti- cot death advice?
thanks in advance everyone xxx

[PassiveAgressiveQueen]

you need 1 ear thermometer, but honestly you can feel it on their forehead, a thermomiter has never told me what i didn't already know.

bath water - stick your elbow in
bedroom- walk into it

[cloudjumper]

You won't be able to use your basal body temp thermometer to take the baby's temperature.

Like the above poster said, get an ear thermometer, it will be very useful in the years to come as well!
We got a bath thermometer, but only because DH and I really like very hot baths/showers and are rubbish at guessing water temp for a baby

For your baby's room - no real need, I'd say, you will notice when it's really hot/cold. And in summer, there is very little you can do about the room temp anyway. If you feel you need one, you can get the combined baby monitor/temp taking devices that display it all.

There is a gadget for pretty much everything, it's up to you to decide what you want/need.

[trian]

i think i'm going to be so knackered (single, nightmarish 10 year journey to parenthood - ongoing!) that i won't be in a fit state to judge temperature, it'll be much less stressful to just look at some numbers on a dial or whatever.
Ear thermometers don't work on small babies (or maybe all babies?) apparently - i think that's why they have those strips you can put on a baby's forehead.
thanks for the mention of the baby monitor - another thing to put on the list although i don't imagine i'll need one at first as whereever she is, i'll be.

[RedZeppelin]

No need to anything more than what you already have. A basel thermometer can be used on a baby - just pop it in the armpit. An ear one will give a quicker reading but it's not essential.

I can always tell whether my DCs have a temperature by kissing their foreheads. As for water and room temperatures - trust your instinct, just as mothers have been doing for centuries!

[PassiveAgressiveQueen]

blue pete taught me about using your elbow, okay they were talking about dog baths, but it is the same concept.

[60sname]

We have the Groegg for our bedroom. DH and I feel temperature very differently and I find it reassuring to not have to judge it subjectively. You can also read the temperature with the light off, and the colour changes if it goes too high/low at night (I am very short-sighted so saves me peering at it)

Elbow for the bath though

[WorldsBiggestGrotbag]

We have an ear thermometer, bath thermometer and a gro egg. Used them all with DD1. With DD2 I've only used the ear one. I can feel if a room is hot or cold and I can feel if bath water is hot or cold.

[originalusernamefail]

Look into a non-contact thermometer. Boots have them and it's what we use in my hospital now. They do all three things in they take babies temp / room temp / surface temp of liquids food. I like that they are none contact (you just zap the babies forehead) so you don't have to wake them if they are sleeping and in the case of ear infections you're not poking something into a sore ear.

[trian]

thanks again!
i'll have a look at the gro egg now

[Nicky333]

I have a jam thermometer - will that do the same job as a bath thermometer?

[ALR123]

We've just got a gro egg and an ear / forehead thermometer.
We've not bothered with a bath one as I'm sure we'll be able to judge it.

[cheeseandcrackers]

Almost all grobags come with a free room thermometer (cardboard thingy that looks a bit like the ones you press against your forehead) if that helps...

[BertrandRussell]

You don't need any.

Room- nicely cool
Baby- does it feel hot and is it unhappy
Bath- stick your elbow in it.

[Whiskers10439]

I use my BBT thermometer for my bath water. Seems to work fine. I know what you mean about preferring numbers to a sleepy and paranoid personal judgement!

[poocatcherchampion]

We got a thermometer that does all of those things together. It is pretty cool.

It might now be available in boots. If you are interested I can look at the brand upstairs later. Not the cheapest though ,- it was one of the only things we splashed out on

[westcountrywoman]

None.

Kiss your baby's forehead. If it feels hot on your lips, they have a temperature.
Stick your elbow in the bath water. If it feels hot, add some cold. If it feels cold, add hot.
Don't worry about the room temp either. If it feels comfortable to you, it's fine.

Instinct is much more powerful than a gadget that can give a wrong reading. Mothers have been right for years.

[Bishboshbash]

Ear thermometer, they used one on my ds in a&e at 8weeks old so they must work ok?
Angelcare monitor has the room temp on the display.
Bath just stick your hand in it, better to be a bit cool than too hot.

[CoodleMoodle]

I'd say yes to ear/head thermometer (we have one that does both) and bath thermometer (I find it hard to judge and DD has always liked playing with hers anyway).

But we've never had a room thermometer. You can get them cheap though, so get all three if it'll give you peace of mind.

[WiIdfire]

You dont need any, but Ive just bought a Nannies Choice non-contact thermometer because I like gadgets, and it does all three. (Body temp, fluid/bath/milk temp and room temp). Seems to work well so far!

[KatyN]

We use the bath thermometer in his bedroom.. It works fine.
Once we had the monitor on that showed the temperature in there.
An ear thermometer is really handy so you can tell health professionals what's going on...

Yes you can guess all these things or work them out but sometimes the reassurance of an accurate measurement is just easier on the brain!

[Onthepigsback]

I've never bothered with anything other than an underarm thermometer. You can tell well when a baby us unwell with a temp and take underarm easily enough. If they are a bit bigger and fight you off, well they may have a temp but not a dangerously high one.

[Onthepigsback]

Forget about the bath and room one. Just use common sense.

[trian]

thanks everyone, I've bought a gro egg as it's a nice nightlight too
got a forehead thermometer
don't think I got a bath one in my flurry of last minute panic buying!

[skankingpiglet]

The bath thermometer is a wonderful thing... We used it in the early days for DD when we were worried about burning her, but as PPs have said, now we just trust our instincts. HOWEVER I've used it to discover the ideal bath temperature for me, and now I use it to run myself baths at the perfect temp. No more dipping toes in and out and messing around, just run to 44 degrees. Perfect.
We had a room thermometer but only because it's part of the monitor, it's really not necessary and I think it causes more worry than it helps.
We have an ear thermometer which is great but I often have to pin DD down to use it as she doesn't like it. It worked fine when she was tiny too.

[BertrandRussell]

"I often have to pin DD down to use it as she doesn't like it."

I would use that as a pretty accurate indicator that she doesn't need to have her temperature taken!