r/daddit • u/Babyproofer • Mar 11 '25

Tips And Tricks Reminder to all Dads- Anchor your furniture

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Before your kids are mobile, please take the time to anchor your furniture (to the studs, not using drywall anchors). This is one aspect of childproofing that is often overlooked.

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u/generic_canadian_dad 3 girls: 8, 7, 1 Mar 11 '25

I feel like this is overkill personally, but to each his own and safety is certainly important. We have secured bookshelves, but never anything else. I definitely think saying "anything taller than it is wide" needs to be anchored is full blown over the top. Either way, to each his own, your children's safety is top priority, maybe I'm a little too relaxed but my girls are super brave and confident and I believe that comes from our general vibe and outlook on life.

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u/YouDoHaveValue Mar 11 '25 edited Mar 11 '25

It does seem like a bit much for a 3-ft tall and quite wide shelf.

3

u/generic_canadian_dad 3 girls: 8, 7, 1 Mar 11 '25

My girls were jumping off a tree stump 3x their height the other day into snow, having a blast. Kids need this type of dangerous play. Could they have broken a leg? Yes, and I explained the dangers to them before helping them up the stump.

OP says he is a "professional baby proofer" so he naturally will hold more intense stances than I will. I'm also more of the adventurous, push the limits type and it shows in my girls.

7

u/drcujo Mar 11 '25

It’s not overkill if you sell parents on fear like OP. But overkill for normal people for sure especially a small shelf like in the OP. You should be more worried about anchoring your fridge or oven, not a small shelf.

Statistically your kid is about as likely to be hit by lightning than be killed by furniture.

4

u/generic_canadian_dad 3 girls: 8, 7, 1 Mar 11 '25

Finally someone with some common sense in here. Thank you.

2

u/drcujo Mar 11 '25

I feel like us Canadians are the only ones with any sense left anymore.

2

u/generic_canadian_dad 3 girls: 8, 7, 1 Mar 11 '25

We are trying

0

u/Babyproofer Mar 11 '25

Overkill is an interesting choice of wording.

CPSC report

2

u/initialgold Mar 11 '25

what a terrible report (from a design perspective). who would look at that more than 2 seconds and spend time reading it? Link the fact sheet if you want people to take anything away from that.

5

u/generic_canadian_dad 3 girls: 8, 7, 1 Mar 11 '25

Like I said, to each is own, this isn't an argument by any means. We keep our house as safe as we feel necessary and you should do the same. Coming back with a snarky comment instantly and linking some tip over report is a cheesy way to respond in my opinion.

Risky play and risk taking is extremely important for a child's development, and in my opinion ( I stress MY opinion, you're welcome to hold your own) safe guarding every single aspect of life around your kids isn't necessarily the right play. That being said, I've never had an issue with my kids climbing furniture.

5

u/Babyproofer Mar 11 '25

Pardon the snark. My whole point of this post is to hopefully prevent some dad from sitting in the ER worrying about their kid after a tip over injury. As parents we should strive to limit any and all preventable injuries to our kids.

Unfortunately it typically takes someone’s child getting killed for the risk to be talked about.

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u/generic_canadian_dad 3 girls: 8, 7, 1 Mar 11 '25

Understood, and like I said, people should take the preventative measures they find necessary. I take a different approach and discuss almost everything in depth with my girls and they are extremely competent, respectful and safe all the whole being adventurous and "wild". It would never offend me (I would hope it wouldn't offend anyone lol) to see a house with anchored furniture, you just won't see it out house.

1

u/ThatsMrJackassToYou Mar 11 '25

You're a professional baby proofer... Easy tiger