This online column lists items that are recommended to be bought new not used. I can understand most of them - but cribs don’t seem to me to belong on the list.
Cribs would seem to be an ideal example of the kind of things that could be bought used. Their usefulness is over after a period of time and at that point cribs in perfectly good quality are no longer needed by their original owners and presumedly many of them are going to be sold used. And it’s not like crib technology is making any huge leaps and bounds or that cribs are some high-tech item likely to break down under routine use. The reason given - that poorly designed cribs are dangerous - seems to have no bearing on the issue. A used crib is no more likely to be poorly desinged than a new one. If anything, I would guess that the used market is more likely to have weeded out the really dangerous ones. I’d assume no parents would sell a lethal crib to another pair of unsuspecting parents.
You’d think dangerous cribs would have been weeded out, but there are lots of hazardous ones out there.
Slats/rails too far apart is a biggie. Also to watch out for is weak/bad latches that may fail and let the sides drop. This is a hazard to any body parts that might be innocently in the path of moving parts, as well as possibly allowing the baby to fall out.
The CPSC’s website goes beyond saying “don’t buy a used crib” and points out the things to watch for.
Why would any of these be different in a used as opposed to a new crib? Okay, I can see the possibility that a slat might have been broken by the original owner. But if you can see that they weren’t, what’s the difference?
The Australian Consumers’ Association “Choice Guide to Baby Products” (unfortunately packed in a box at the moment, so I can’t quote exactly) says something like “Make sure your cot conforms to Australian Standard AX-blahdiblah” and notes that older ones won’t be certified as conforming.
It then goes on to road-test a bunch of new cots which ‘conform to the standard’ and * every single one of them * fails at some point :eek:
So… personally, I don’t think there’s a big difference. Learn the signs of a safe cot (closely spaced bars, nothing to catch little fingers) then check any cot you buy, new or used, yourself, don’t assume that just because it came straight out of the shop it’s ‘better’
Do buy a new mattress though. That’s what the SIDS organisations suggest (just to feed everyone’s parental paranoia!)
Older cribs sometimes had cutout designs and wider spaces. Basically, what the CPSC (and others) are saying is not to use Grandma’s hand-me-down crib that’s about to be passed down to a sixth generation.
Other issues that I learned about include decayed or damaged wood from improper storage that might not be able to bear weight. Some kids (mine is an example) jump around in them. I noticed cracks in the base of the crib, probably from jumping around. It’s just plywood, so it’s easily replaced, but I’m going to check the rest of the crib carefully before it’s used again.
The rule of thumb as I learned it is that if it’s designed to bear weight, check it CAREFULLY or buy a new one.
My son’s aunt hung herself from her crib at 18 months. She got her body out through the slats, but her head wouldn’t fit. She died before anyone could help her. It was a family heirloom crib, which her father immediately sawed into pieces so it could never be used again.
Can you check a crib to see if it conforms to all the current safety regulations? Yes. Do most parents? Nope.
I would say that as long as you make sure that the crib is up to current standards and still sturdy and strong, it’s just fine. My kids survived their used crib (yep, we checked it out), and it’s been passed on. I only know a couple of people who actually bought their cribs; they’re pretty easy to get for cheap/free from someone who’s done with it.
If you’re too lazy to check whether a soda can will fit through your crib, you should probably buy a new one. But life with little ones is fraught with danger–electrical outlets, fishponds, and windowblind cords, to name 3 that my kids have done their best to kill themselves with–so you might want to rethink parenthood if you’re that lazy.