Share your tips for childproofing your home with Fairy Non Bio

[JustineBMumsnet]

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Babies and toddlers are often curious about everything they can get their hands on, making the process of childproofing a rite of passage for most parents. Fairy Non Bio would like to hear your tips for childproofing your home.

Here’s what Fairy Non Bio has to say: “Cleaning products are easily found by little explorers and it is our passion to keep all children safe. We have designed new child lock pack systems for our 3in1 PODs to make it difficult for them to get into, but we still want to spread the word to click close the lid and store up high. We want to know what else could help keep kids safe!”

Do you find it best to have stair gates in the doorway to every room? Do you have an alternative for once your child works out how to use your cupboard locks? Perhaps you know a way to get corner guards to stay on your tables even though your child attempts to pull them off? Whatever your childproofing tips, we’d love to hear them.

All who share their tips for childproofing below will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher for the store of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck

MNHQ

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I think the best way to stop my kids getting into trouble was to try and teach them what was and wasn't dangerous, so yes, obviously stair gates at the top of the stairs but where possible I would keep a close eye on them reminding when something was not for them. I tried making my house completely bulletproof with my first and it was borderline impossible so with my second I tried this approach and it was much less stressful!

I always found the corner protectors to be useless, they would fall off so easily or the kids would deliberately take them off!
The best advice I had was from the health visitor who told me to get on my hands and knees and crawl everywhere in my house, so I could see things from the baby's perspective. Anything dangerous (or generally just interesting or valuable) was swiftly moved.
Stair gate on the stairway is of course a must.

create barriers everywhere!

We have stair gates and plug caps and two very inquisitive children so constant supervision is the only way to keep them safe as I couldn't predict the things they might do!! All cleaning products have nozzle turned to off and kept in cupboards in rooms that have doors we keep shut. I have always told my eldest that these are 'chemicals' much to my mums amusement as everytime she gets her cleaning stuff out he points and says 'chemicals'!! I don't think you can be too careful about these substances, they could be very harmful to little ones!

There are loads of people saying they didn't need to babyproof because they just taught their child what was and wasn't safe - is my 11 month old a very slow learner, am I a very ineffective mother, or both?! I honestly can't see how this could work, but then I am also open-mouthed in astonishment at the children who 'showed no interest' in emptying cupboards, etc - getting into everything is his life mission!

We've deliberately left a couple of kitchen cupboards with stuff he can play with - Tupperware, etc but we've had to put locks on lots of them. Again, maybe I'm a bit shit but I can't understand how I can supervise closely enough that he couldn't pull a plate out onto his head, for instance - I'm always in the room with him but I couldn't always move quickly enough to stop that. Are other people literally always within arm's reach? What if you're, say, chopping vegetables for dinner? Could you really react that fast?

Basically, we've extensively childproofed and never let him out of sight and he still has me with my heart in my mouth at some point most days!

I have stair gates everywhere and plug socket covers.
Chemicals, cleaners and medicine is stored in a high locked cupboard.

I cover all danger areas in fairy liquid so it's to slippery to do anything

I must say, child proofing the garden was a lot harder work than the house, we have an enclosed garden and tended to have the back door open and allow dcs to free flow play in nice weather.

Unfortunately, previous owners had a deep love of plants that were either spiky, or poisonous - which seemed to do annoyingly well and prove hard to dig up/kill.

We did teach the shed being out of bounds, and dc1 now 9 still asks permission before going in to get the garden toys out.

foam guards on the doors to prevent trapped fingers, safety gates (however DS1 can now open them for DS2 aaaahhhh).
I have just invested in a £9.99 universal safety strap to prevent my television falling or being pulled on top of a child.
I have a fireguard fixed to my fireplace too.

ahh the joys.

Although I absolutely believe that nothing is a substitution for adequate supervision.... I also know that accidents can happen in a second. When DS1 was just starting to roll over I worried about him bumping his head on everything which lead to our tiled fireplace and god knows what else being taped up with inches of bubble wrap and pool noodles!
We only had a stairgate on his bedroom door as he was always supervised downstairs or with one of us upstairs.
Perhaps we were very lucky in that even from an early age DS responded well to our verbal 'boundaries' and wouldn't push much when we said 'no'.

We're now expecting DS2 in Autumn and I'm a bit more tetchy about childproofing everything else- though I think it'll be a bit harder this time around! My biggest fear now will be keeping DS1's lego etc out of choking-hazard reach!

Get on your hands and knees and see everything at a child's level your more likely to see any dangers

We have locks on all of our kitchen doors and stair gates at each level. Also asked someone to fit child locks on our windows to make sure our daughter is unable to climb out!

Like I apparently was mine don't really touch so I've been quite lucky with plugs and stuff but there is always something to bang into etc and I've it really found an answer. Washing machine cupboard locks so all the cleaning stuff is in there and I'm paranoid about not leaving chargers out for example

After 17 years of parenthood and 5 children aged 17,15,13,7 and 4yrs I have realized that the only successful way to childproof is either a bare minimal home with nothing of value as kids aren't interested in boring stuff let's be honest,they are like magpies so anything you actually like or would like to keep locked away in storage as you can guarantee your little cherubs will snot all over those lovely cushion covers and throws and smash that gorgeous piece of art your mother got you for Christmas or all else failing a straight jacket works fab!!🤪

My top tip is supervise your children and don't leave things to chance. Regardless of the many protections you can put in place, it is impossible to totally take away all danger, so regular supervision is paramount!

Some of these comments are quite judgy, and I think it's worth remembering that babies and toddlers are all different. I have a friend who I can imagine coming out with the 'just watch them and you don't need to babyproof' line because her DD, the same age as my DS, doesn't move more than about a foot from her at all times and isn't all that interested into getting into things, or indeed moving. DS is near impossible to keep still and can be metres away from me in seconds (and is on the verge of walking, so that's only going to get worse!). It's all swings and roundabouts - she's actually struggling a lot with the extent of her daughter's separation anxiety, which isn't a problem I really have at the moment, for instance - but what works for one child is disastrous for others. How fearless and interested in testing the boundaries they are makes a big difference to whether you 'need' to baby proof.

Wow the amount of people on here who are making their homes incredibly unsafe by using socket covers.

DO NOT USR SOCKET COVERS, EVER!!!

UK plug sockets are the safest in the world and are basically impossible to electrocute yourself with, unless you stick something in there, like... socket covers. Please if you use them get rid of them immediately.

www.fatallyflawed.org.uk/

We have four stair gates in our house as live in a 3 storey townhouse, a nightmare for us when you quickly want to go downstairs to answer the door and have to go through four! An absolute must for our little ones.

We have child locks on cupboards/drawers with hazards inside

Babygates at every door lol

We have stair gates at the top and bottom of each set of stairs. 4 in total, all different, I kind of see it as a challenge for anyone wanting to get to the top floor :p Thats pretty much all we have but you have reminded me to order window restricters before it gets hot.

We have stair gates at the top and bottom of the stairs and childproof catches on the kitchen cupboards. I never thought I would agree with playpens but it is essential for when mum needs a look break or if someone comes to the door. It only takes a second for little ones to get into mischief

Blue tack under ornaments, to prevent them being knocked over.

Stair gate, cupboard locks, corner protectors