Changing tables - am I missing something?

[Helen120]

Apart from the chest-of-drawers style (which seem to cost hundreds), all the changing tables/cot top changers I've found state they are suitable up to 12 months. But potty training might not start until 2 years or older - am I missing something? What are you supposed to do between 12 months and, say, 2.5 years? (Just to clarify, I'm not looking for discussion on whether we need a changing table or when to potty train - I'm genuinely confused about what you're supposed to do after 12 months!). Thanks!

Change them on the floor, on your knee, standing up? Like most people who don't have change tables do anyway.

Changing tables are completely useless once a baby starts crawling - babies just scuttle off or refuse to lie down. You wind up changing them on the floor, so they can’t fall off the damn table, or whilst they are standing up and mesmerised by CBeebies.

Floor! I haven't met a 1yo who would stay still enough to be safe on a changing table, they like to try and escape!

To be honest, we only changed our daughter on her changing 'table' (mat on top of her drawers) until she could roll at about 4 months.
Once she could move, we changed her on the living room floor/middle of our bed on a mat depending on time of day.

I have a chest of drawers type changing table and still use it for my nearly 2yr old, I have everything I need to change him set up within arms reach to the side of the table so I don’t have to bend down or move away from the table so safe.
If we go to family etc I just change him on a mat in the floor.

You put a changing mat on the floor while you sit in a chair or something. Who would want to lift a toddler onto a table multiple times a day? Not good during the twisting to get away thing they do either. Injuries could happen.

We had a cot-top changing board. It was brilliant. Saved my back (It was too uncomfortable chasing on floor/bed) and I used it with all 3 DC - because we used it from birth they were all used to it so didn’t wriggle. We also used it to get them dressed. Didn’t take up any space either. I honestly couldn’t recommend it enough!

I liked the changing table with my last baby as it had lots of storage and saved my back. You also use it after bath times etc but it's only handy when babies are very little and don't twist about. It does become redundant after about 9 months.
This time round I've ordered a cot top changer to use in the early days so night time changes aren't done on the bed or floor but isn't as bulky or as expensive.
Maybe something like that would be better for you? Mine was around £30

We had a changing table but as soon as my baby could roll we had to stop using it, he became an absolute daredevil and would frequently try to launch himself off of it! Since then we have changed his bum on the floor with his mat. He still wanders off mid change but at least I know he can't hurt himself falling 🤦🏻‍♀️

Mat on the floor. Surely everyone knows that?

I think its just because they can crawl/walk off over that age. But a tiny baby can roll off also, so the age limit seems pointless.

As long as you always stay with baby/toddler whilst changing and never leave them, then its fine to use any high surface until potty trained age.

We have bought the ikea hemnes drawer unit to store baby clothes etc. and just bunged mat ontop. It seems a good height, and no money lost if we decide to use the floor at any point as needed some drawers anyway. I like that all 'stuff' for baby is in one place, so we can easily change as clothes, nappies etc all together and can reach without leaving baby to roll off.

The floor is fine when out and needed, but its no where near as comfy on your back. Especially small babies who are changed maybe double as much per day that a toddler.

We're still using ours with dd who's 2 next month. Only after her bath and other times just change on a mat on the floor downstairs. Her legs are always waving around in the air anyway and it's a big wooden one so there's still room. She's normally changed on one at nursery (I work there), all the rooms up to preschool age have changing units, albeit larger then would normally be used at home. It's a lot easier on the back. Though some children prefer a mat on the floor as they get older.

Once your child can walk, my experience is you run around after them while they giggle and wriggle like mad until you can pin them in a corner and quickly whip their nappy off. Then they (supposedly) potty train although my 2yo is very stubbornly refusing to do that right now!

@turnthebiglightoff

Bit unnecessary?

As with all baby things, what works for one family might not suit another. We have a change table upstairs and downstairs, both very useful for storage and still in use for DD3. She doesn’t roll or wriggle off because she has to stay still at nursery. Changing on the floor or bed aggravates back issues (me) or leg injuries (DH).

In terms of the actual question, I wonder if it’s an insurance thing so they are not liable for older babies rolling off etc rather than an actual weight/age issue.

I used our cot top changer about 3x as I found it harder on my back to lift them up and down then twisting to keep the from wriggling/rolling off.

I had 2 sections and have a bad back anyway so don't know if that made any difference - changing on my knee or the floor was much easier for me. As soon as they were able to walk I got them to stand for changes and that was with button up cloth nappies 🤣

Sofa or bed (on a mat obviously!)

(I found my changing table very useful when DD1 was a baby- we lived in a flat, and had it in the bathroom. Everything I needed in one place, including running water. By DD2 we had moved to a house and it was just for storage for all the nappies, wipes etc required for a toddler and a baby, with a basket of immediate supplies kept downstairs with the mat under the sofa for easy access)

I don't see the point of them anyway. I just used a normal changing mat on the sofa

I used a changing mat on a desk until mine were out of nappies. I don’t really understand the “you can’t put a toddler on a changing table because they’ll escape” reasoning. Surely if they won’t cooperate on a changing table then the won’t cooperate on the floor? At nursery they use changing stations for all the two year olds IME.

We had one in baby's room. Was absolutely useless. I used it maybe once or twice. Most changes were done downstairs in the living room in a change mat we slid under the settee. All the rest were done on our bed. I never bothered buying one for babies 2 and 3.

They're protecting themselves in case something goes wrong. They're not the sturdiest bit of furniture so might not support a massive 12mth old. As others have said, children can be pretty wriggly by then.
We had a chest of drawers one and used it regularly until the DC were out of nappies - for DC2, he was 3.2 when this happened. I have knee problems so kneeling on the floor to change a nappy was much more uncomfortable than lifting a toddler onto a chest of drawers.

We still use one now for our almost three year old for getting her ready for bed after her bath. She can't fall off because we're supervising her obviously. Think it's the Sundvik we've got from Ikea, so it's quite big on top and just converts into a chest of drawers afterwards.

Keep on using it till your child won't let you. We used ours till ours was potty trained. I also know my nursery still uses them for children over 1.

I used ours everyday for dd until she was about 3, even if it was to sit her up while getting her dressed. They just put that as an arbitrary age to be honest, you have to make a judgement what is safe for your individual baby. Obviously I would never leave dd unattended so the risk was negligible, especially where we had it positioned in the room as it was wedged in

Never used my changing unit once and I have a genuine bad back (needed surgery.) Always found it so much easier changing on a mat on the floor - especially now baby will roll off the mat in a millisecond.