It seems that the danger in drop side cribs is loosening of the hardware to allow a gap to form between the mattress and side. If properly installed and maintained, these cribs are safe. There is no inherent defect in design. Is this correct.
However, if despite this I wish to modify the crib to make it safe, is there any well know method or kit available. Looking at the crib, the only method I could see was to drive a screw through the end post and into the top of the side to immobilize it. Is there any downside to doing this?
I read somewhere that a movement is on to ban the sale of all dropsides because of all the deaths and recalls. It’s more than just the hardware coming loose. Admittedly, the hardware is minimal for all the activity involved. A kid can stand there and shake the crib around the room like a washer on spin with a bowling ball inside. I like your idea of reinforcing the crib and locking the door so it can’t move. Also, place the mattress in the low position so the kid is not as likely to climb out. Kids are amazing climbers and they have as much time on their hands as prisoners. The downside is that lifting them up and out may be difficult for some women who are overworked already. Beats the alternative of having an accident though.
And to think I had four children, all of whom used the same cheap drop-side crib without incident.
I can’t really address the original question in this thread, but I don’t mind dropping in to recommend the purchase of a Pack’n’Play.
Well I took four #12 3 inch screws and drilled through the end posts of the crib and then into the side rails and inserted the screws. I am not going to test anything, but the sides now appear firmly fixed in place. I also took cut pieces of a straw and put it around the short segment of screw threads the were exposed. It seems a reasonable fix, and like I said, was the only one I could think of.
The crib involved is thirty years old and was used uneventfully for each of my four children. My daughter was unhappy that it had drop sides so that was the reason for the modification. The crib will only be used infrequently when they visit.
This is an extreme case of “anecdotes don’t equal data”. Items intended for children are generally banned if just a few dozen kids are killed by them. Obviously, the odds are in your favor.
It’s a simple matter of running the rail spokes through the bed frame itself making it impossible for a gap to form. It’s not rocket science. But hey, parents throwing their back out lifting a baby over the top sounds like a plan.
It’s very frustrating when the over-reaction starts like this. If I were starting out now, with a newborn and the back problems I’ve gone through, I’d have to use the play yard ( http://www.csnbaby.com/Mia-Moda-479-BLK-MIA1132.html) option.
Stay tuned for twice the number of deaths as parents begin to put regular crib mattresses into the play yards and the babies slip between the mattress and sides. . .