Co sleeping with regular cot?

[Liland]

Maybe a silly question, but I've searched and can't come up with much.

I'm sure I've read on MN that some women are co sleeping, but using a regular 120cm long cot, with the side off, strapped to their bed? Rather than a SnuzPod or alternative. I'm keen to do this myself if possible, but can't seem to find a standard sized cot which will last until 2-3 years, which has more than 3 adjustable heights to match the bed height? Can anyone point me in the right direction?

Looking to co sleep as planning to breastfeed (if able to), but don't want to spend a fortune on kit we're not going to need after 6 months! This is our first so any thoughts would be welcome.

TIA!

Yes it’s possible. The cot you choose must be stable with the side removed. I will link two examples of cots in a minute. The easiest way to level to your bed is to use furniture raisers - either under your bed or under the cot to get the mattresses the same height. Then you need a piece of square foam to put the far side of the cot mattress to push the cot mattress tightly up against your mattress. (Link to follow). Cot fitted sheet goes over the top of cot mattress and foam. Finally you need to attach the cot tightly to your bed frame so it can’t move away - I’ve used extra long tie wraps for this. Will get links now

Foam supplier. www.bouncefoam.co.uk/?gclid=CjwKCAjwgr3ZBRAAEiwAGVssnSrnfHgpt7xE9F_jfQ3s7XgKiTqufjCxL2Auoop__p8a7kUbrToGYRoC6eQQAvD_BwE

You’ll want a piece the length of your cot mattress, x the height of your cot mattress x the gap between the cotmattress edge and the edge of the cot bars when the cot mattress is pushed tightly up against your bed mattress. Better to measure this gap a bit bigger so the foam is squeezed in very very tightly

Google IKEA Cot Hack. I think the cheapest of cheap Ikea cots is fully adjustable and is what most people use?

Cot 1 kinder valley

Cot 2 ikea

You can use any cot that the third side can be removed - so cot beds generally work this way. In essence the short ends of the cot need to be fixed to the base of the cot instead of being only fixed to the sides

We use the sundvik cot which has been posted above, works great and strong enough for me to lean into to pop dummy in/ snuggle then can just move back over once settled

Yes you can but you need to be prepared to get the drill and measuring tape out!

Pick a cot where the way the base is fixed can be easily adjusted. So for example Ikea cots work well as they tend to be fixed by way of holes drilled into the side supports and metal struts through the base into the sides. You also need to be aware of the design of the sides because you'll probably need it to go quite a bit higher than the current highest setting, and some cots the sides begin to "taper" as they curve over at the top. That may cause a problem. (We had this issue and had to screw support blocks to the cot which did the job but looked ugly)

Lastly you must be sure that the cot is sturdy when only three sides are attached. If the way it's set up means that the short sides are dependent on the long for stability that won't be safe. Cots which are designed to turn into toddler beds (rare in 120 long cots, unfortunately Ikea are all 140 long now) or cots with a drop side usually fit this bill but some others might too. Again there may be ways around this if you're willing to add extra supporting beams etc but it's getting more complicated with every step.

So then you set up your cot with the three sides and have the mattress to hand as well. Measure from your bedroom floor to the height of your mattress, and subtract the depth of the cot mattress. Then make some marks, pencil or masking tape, on the cot at that level. This is where you need the top of the mattress support to come to. So drill new holes or screw support blocks/brackets to the sides of the cot where they'll best support the base looking at where any supports are now.

Then you install the base at that height, add the mattress, try it next to your bed. You'll have a gap between mattresses so you'll want to push the cot mattress across so that it's flush, and find some way to stop it from moving back and plug the gap at the far side. I used rolled up towels. Don't use anything too fluffy as it can be a suffocation risk.

TBH if you only want to cosleep for 6 months, it would be simpler to get a second hand co sleeping cot! I converted one because years ago there was only about one on the market ready made and it cost a fortune. Plus I wanted the option to continue past 6 months. This time we've managed to find one which while it is only 90cm long has no weight limit, so we've got that.

Thank you so much for all the information and links! I feel much better about moving ahead now :)

Another thing to bear in mind. If you end up having a CS, having a full size cot strapped to your bed will be a nightmare. It's not much fun having to shuffle to the end of the bed and sit up to get out after surgery (rather than rolling out if bed). I speak from experience. With my 2nd I bought a Snuzpod and wish I'd bought it straight off - definitely worth the investment if you plan more than one child.

We had a (cheap) co sleeper similar to the baby baby.
Alot of the other ones, like 'next to me' crib etc.

When he was bigger we got a drop side cot and took the drop side off.

This was mosly so I could slide in and feed him and slide back out again