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Can baby sleep in carrycot with mattress instead of buying moses basket?

28 replies

apples82 · 02/08/2011 15:13

Looking to get a travel system pushchair which includes a carrycot.

Can I use this carrycot with a moses basket mattess and on a stand instead of having to buy a moses basket, which in my eyes would do the same job???

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Cattleprod · 02/08/2011 15:15

I did, because I can't stand the frilliness of moses baskets and didn't want one in the house. I only used it during the day though, went straight to a bedside cot at night.

urbandaisy · 02/08/2011 15:19

The one thing to bear in mind is longevity, as many travel system carrycots are smaller than moses baskets, so you may not be able to use it for as long.

We got a (completely frill-free) moses basket because we want the baby in our bedroom for as long as possible, and there's not way we could fit a cot (even a bedside one) into the room with us.

seasickgal · 02/08/2011 15:19

I did for each for my children, as I can't stand moses baskets, but then I am unreasonable.

BaronessBomburst · 02/08/2011 15:20

Yes, we did.
We had the Maxi-Cosi travel system and used the pram body as a bed for the first few days. We were planning to use it longer but after about 3 days the HV said there was no reason why DS couldn't go straight into the cot, so we did that. The cot was in our room and we made it up half-way down, so that his feet were against the bottom and his head was in the middle. (so that he couldn't wriggle down under the blankets).
We didn't use a stand for the pram body either - we just stood it in the empty, unmade cot.

DiscoDaisy · 02/08/2011 15:21

All of my 5 went straight into cots. We bought cots that we were able to have the bottom at two different levels so when they were newnorn we didn't have to bend down at all to put them in.

pookamoo · 02/08/2011 15:32

They usually say on the packaging or label for the carry-cot whether they are suitable for night-time sleeping. DO you know which one you are likely to get?

apples82 · 02/08/2011 15:54

Yes I believe the Hauck Shopper 11 Trio Set.

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allthefires · 02/08/2011 16:18

I'm putting a moses basket mattress in mind as one in carrycot is not suitable.

Will be used for naps etc as have a crib upstairs.

pookamoo · 02/08/2011 20:31

Maybe ask the stockist, if it's a baby shop? They should know the health and safety advice. As far as I recall it is more to do with ventilation in the carry cot, rather than the mattress itself.

It looks really nice!

apples82 · 03/08/2011 11:17

Ah I didn't think about the ventalation aspect. Good call! Smile

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Mum2be79 · 03/08/2011 18:37

I've got both plus a cot! If you can afford it (and maybe if you have a large house like us) I'd reccommend it. We bought our travel system second-hand, the cot brand new from ebay and the moses basket was bought by my parents, hence the reason why we had all three!

We are keeping moses basket in our room (for BF at night), cot in the nursery for when night feeds become less and travel system downstairs for daytime sleeps. For us, it saves carrying things around the house - meaning the moses basket up and down the stairs every monring and night.

Each to their own though. One friend had a cot only in her room and used the floor beneath baby gym for daytime sleeps whereas another friend used moses basket downstairs and cot upstairs.

Sewmuchtodo · 03/08/2011 18:44

I have just had a look at our pram instructions and they say carrycot is fine to sleep in for periods of upto 21days. Our new pram is a Quinny buzz 4. x

pookamoo · 03/08/2011 20:14

21 days? sewmuchtodo that's one heck of a long sleep! Wink

Actually, I'm not sure what they actually mean by that... is it 21 x 24 hours, or 21 x 8 hours (i.e. night times only) ? That's quite confusing labelling, isn't it?

How could they know how long each child will sleep for over a period of 21 ou days, and what happens after that? Say for example you were away on holiday for 21 days, and you used it for that time, would you have to not use it again? Throw it away? or could you wash it and then start using it again?

It's a minefield, isn't it?

DC2 is due in a few weeks, and I have just started wondering if I should get a new mattress for the moses basket, as it has been in the loft for 2 years after DD finished with it! What do you think?

Mum2be79 · 03/08/2011 21:50

Why what will happen after 21 days????

Sewmuchtodo · 03/08/2011 21:58

Hehe, I have no idea!

The post got me curious as plan to use (and never thought it would be a problem) the carrycot when away with our impending arrival in October so I went and had a look. I also plan to use it for daytime naps as we live in a three story house and don't want to haul the crib up and down 2 flights of stairs every day.

I think I will ask in John Lewis as thats where I bought the thing! x

allthefires · 03/08/2011 22:00

The SIDS advice is to get a new mattress- they are only a tenner. Definately worth it for peace of mind.

Sewmuchtodo · 03/08/2011 22:01

Ok, now looked on Quinni website and got this

'Can my baby sleep in the Quinny Dreami overnight?
The Quinny Dreami is designed to be used as a carrycot, not a substitute for an overnight Cot.'

Now im confused as the booklet says differently Hmm

starfishmummy · 03/08/2011 22:05

We planned on using a carry cot to start with but MIL turned up with a Moses basket (not too frilly). I have to admit it got a lot of use!

pookamoo · 03/08/2011 23:07

How strange sewmuch, because it also says on your link that it is not designed to be used as a moses basket... I bet John Lewis will give you different advice, just to confuse matters more!

allthefires I think I will get a new mattress - it will be one of the few things that DC2 actually gets new! Grin

emsyj · 03/08/2011 23:11

I used the carrycot from mine. It said it was suitable for sleep. It was also bigger (not smaller) than my moses basket, which I never ever used (and have since given away on freecycle). Waste of money!

apples82 · 04/08/2011 08:54

I have thought about getting a moses basket, but we're in a tiny one bed house, and if I can save on buying extra things then that'll be better.

The cot will take up a lot of room in our bedroom, so we're trying to keep that out as long as possible.

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kateyfer · 04/08/2011 09:12

you should only use a carry cot for short daytime naps really, due to the mattress quality and ventilation issues, and a cot for nighttime sleeps. I used my carry cot downstairs in the day, and my crib/cot upstairs at night.

kateyfer · 04/08/2011 09:13

should also have said that I had an uberlong DD, so she only fitted in the carrycot for 5 weeks and they are meant to last up to 3 months...!

munstersmum · 04/08/2011 09:18

Yep. We used Mamas & Papas carry cot with stand for about first 3 months. Absolutely brilliant.

Pootles2010 · 04/08/2011 09:22

We did use carrycot + mattress on holiday. I don't think i'd do it full-time, as the carrycot prob wouldn't fit on a stand in the same way moses basket does.

Ours certainly didn't, it was fine on floor but not as convenient.