To warn acquaintance over dangers of socket covers?

[BedPig2013]

A friend of a friend that I went to school with has updated her Facebook status to say that her son is locating the socket covers and removing them, I'm undecided whether to comment on her status or private message her to tell her about the dangers of socket covers, I don't want to come across as interfering because I don't know her well at all but I think that if she's aware of the information it could stop her worrying. So wwyd?

Disclaimer - most of what I know about socket covers is from MN. BUT isn't it modern sockets that are safer, old ones weren't? So when your DH was a child it may well have been different....

Oh heck. My PFB is almost 15 and socket coveres were definitely required if you were a responsible parent then. My Dad (who knows everything about everything but is also an electrical engineer, so was probable worth listening to) told me he thought they were dangerous but I as a modern mum and not an old fogy knew best. Do I have to tell him?

No, you don't have to tell him - but it would make him VERY happy

RoSPA DOESN'T recommend them so if they're not good enough for RoSPA they're not good enough for me.

There was a post by the Car Seat Lady who I follow on Facebook. She linked to a story about a lady whose child was thrown out of his car seat because she hadn't been strapping him in properly and she'd posted photos of him strapped in wrong (in cute 'look at my child sleeping' posts rather than related to being strapped in) She said she wished someone had messaged her to point out she'd been strapping him in wrong (twisted straps). So I guess if this acquaintance's son is doing something dangerous maybe she would welcome being given new information she could consider about acting upon.

We gave up on the covers with DS1 (now 23) as he was far more interested in flicking the switches. In the end, we taped down the one for the fridge and hid the others behind furniture.

The HV mentioned I should have socket covers to me but I just kept quiet about the safety dangers and smiled/nodded.

You could just PM her and say I think there's research blah blah. I didn't realise either etc etc

When BS 1363 was defined in the 1940s the designers wanted to make sure that the socket was very safe. One of the things they did was to make the pin holes too small for a child to put their finger in.

DH did this in the 1970s. So 30 years after, according to this article, sockets were designed to be too small for a child's fingers.

With the uk sockets, you have to put something in the earth hole to open the other holes. It may have been the old round pin sockets, which were still around until the end of the 1970s.

YANBU .

As is demonstrated in this thread many people are simply unaware of the dangers.

iamsofuckingfurious

I seriously doubt that using socket covers is an informed choice. A choice maybe, but an uninformed and dangerous one.

Just logged in to let her know and somebody else has already told her all the relevant information anyway

Have to say that all I know about socket covers is also from parenting sites but it seems so wrong that they still sell socket covers so parents presume they're the safe option, even when I worked in a nursery we had socket covers

I have weird children who have never once had any remote interest in plug sockets, maybe I'm just lucky . I've never child proofed my house in any way. Never have the fire on, only the heating, so no need for a fire guard. No stair gates, just close the room door so they have zero inclination to go near the stairs. And never done socket covers or cupboard/fridge locks and the works either. The only none toy things they've ever been interested in is the remote control and my mobile. Are they really strange? I don't know... But I'm certainly pleased I didn't bother with socket covers now!

Anyway, I'd personally tell the acquaintance because I don't think it's really well known yet, I know I didn't hear about it until maybe six months ago and my eldest will be five in March... So she might be totally oblivious. Then it's up to her if she removes them or not but at least she's been informed.

You were lucky . My first one fiddled with knobs and switches on televisions, stereos, washing machines, car dashboard, etc but thankfully did not stick his fingers in things. His contemporaries used to post keys, sandwiches etc. in videos, which he didn't do and I had to hide it when they came over (or their mother would not be able to drive them home ) I never had any problems with stairs with any of mine but had to keep a stair gate up for visitors as the stairs were in the sitting room and magnetic.

I had a friend who came to visit when I had DC2 and her toddler did nothing except fiddle with the switches. Drove me potty. Clickclickclickclickclick.

I don't know whether it's my house or super-bat-hearing but I can hear if one of the children switch a socket on in their room. I have been known to appear at three o'clock in the morning to give them the Death Stare, make sure it's off, hiss "NEVER play with sockets" and stalk back to bed.

My son turns the sockets on and off on and off which is why we were so careful with the socket covers.

my HV actually warned against them. She was unusually well-informed and supportive though. Gutted she's left now :(

to whoever can put a plug in a socket upside down - if you are in the UK, and it is a wall socket, you have a dangerous non-standard installation. If it is an extension block, some of those ARE too narrow so take it out of use.

repeat - all functional, non-broken UK sockets are shuttered so the live terminals cannot be accessed with no plug in. Whether or not the socket is switched on.

correct - the covers should be banned.

My parents never used them - they were of the opinion the covers drew attention to the sockets.

[NB for this this tale - my parents are educated, were caring parents and didn't take any risks with us. The below happened in about 3 minutes of me in the living room and mum in the kitchen.]

A famous family tale - when I was about 5 I unhooked my Dad's keys from the hooks in the hall with an umbrella, and decided to play canal boats. I remember this vividly. I was using the dark triangular space behind the sofa (the sofa had an angled back) as the interior of the boat.

I knew that boats had engines started by keys. You can see where I'm heading with this right?

I stuck the keys in a socket, pretending they were an ignition. Very unfortunately for me, they were a large bunch and I was able to stick one in the top, and one in the live. I went BANG and all the lights went out! Flew across the room, destroyed the socket, the keys and all the electrics on that circuit.

This was the early 90's and fortunately dad had a brand new swish Ford Escort, and it was the first ever car they'd owned with a thick plastic key fob - which thank god, I was using in the live slot, so I didn't receive an electric shock directly. It would have undoubtedly killed me.

I'm of the opinion that sockets themselves are fine - just keep the objects you can stick in them well away from small hands.