Safety Gates For Stairs

When you were a child, your parents probably taught you from a very young age to stay away from the stairs until you were old enough to learn to go up and down them safely and on your own. Today, more and more moms have to work outside the home, and those safety issues are a bit harder to teach, due to a lack of time. Teaching your child to avoid problems is the best way to go, but at times you have to make sure they are safe because you have so much to do. This is when safety gates for stairs and other areas of your home can be life savers.

Instead of baby proofing your entire home, you may want to make sure dangerous things like chemicals or knives are secured, but otherwise, you are going to want to teach them to look but not touch. It can be trying, but it works better in the long run. Stairs are one of those things that is right on the edge of dangerous but teachable. However, when you are cooking dinner, checking homework for two other kids, trying to fold laundry, and answering the phone, you may want to have some help from safety gates for stairs.

Just like you should never leave your baby alone in the tub, you should never leave them alone when they could stumble upon an open set of stairs. It really only takes a moment for the worst to happen. Safety gates for stairs that are installed and used properly are going to be very helpful when you have to turn your back for just a moment. The trick is to use them right and to make sure that everyone else in your home knows how to use them the right way as well.

Safety gates for stairs must be closed at all times. Some are short enough to be stepped over if you were to place them in a doorway, but that is not really possible on stairs, unless you want to chance breaking your own neck. Do not get the gates that do not latch, but rather stretch across the opening. These are best for the doorways in your home that do not open up to stairs. Get the gates that latch so they can swing open when you need to walk back and forth. You also have to make sure everyone else in your home knows to keep these shut at all times.

If you are not sure that you can install safety gates for stairs and doorways the right way, have someone come in to do it for you. Gates that are not installed or used correctly are more dangerous than having nothing there at all. You won't watch as carefully if you think things are secure. Don't forget that though these are usually made for babies and toddlers, these safety gates for kids can be used to keep smaller pets off of the stairs as well. Larger pets will jump right over them, but smaller ones will stay put.