What to do with Drop-Side Crib
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What to do with Drop-Side Crib
In 2010, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission banned
cribs with drop-down sides because they have been blamed for the deaths of at least 32 infants since 2001. Drop-side cribs were under scrutiny for many
years; more than 11 million were recalled 2007-2010.
For more info, including recalled brands and checking your older
crib for safety, see www.cpsc.gov/cribs/
Oct 2011
My littlest one is now in a big bed, and we're cleaning out
so the drop side crib has to go.
I can't sell it, I can't give it away - clearly the recall
is there for good reason, so it can't be used for a baby.
But, I'm trying to be a little eco-conscious and hope that
someone out there repurposes these for something.
What suggestions would people have for me besides sending it
to the dump?
We repurposed our crib by converting it into a toddler bed.
We took one of the sides out. I am not sure if my husband
bolted down the other side or not, but it really shouldn't
matter since that is against the wall. We shortened the
legs so our toddler can climb up by herself. Reuse the
mattress and you are set!
love repurposing
Safety First! I suggest you DO NOT USE the drop-side crib
without securing the sides. This is life and death... and
an avoidable accident.
I have secured a couple of these cribs so the sides no
longer drop... a good handy person can do that for you.
Oct 2010
We inherited a very nice crib from my sister. It is a ten
year old Morigeau wooden crib with a drop side.
Unfortunately drop sided cribs are no longer recommended,
and what makes it worse is that we lost all the hardware
during our move. All this has persuaded me that I should not
use this crib for our baby. I also don't want to sell it or
donate it because I figure if it's not safe for me, it
shouldn't be safe for anyone else.
I'm just casting out for ideas for what to do with a
perfectly beautiful, but possibly unsafe, crib, other than
taking it to the city dump. Anyone else in this situation
and/or has practical suggestions?
TZ
I think some crib manufacturers will provide kits to turn a
drop-side crib into a stationary-side crib. Doing that
might make it safely usable again. You'd think there'd be
some sort of standard kit or directions out there, since
it's such a wide-spread problem, but I couldn't find
anything in a quick Google search. Hopefully someone else
will have more info for you.
In the Same Boat
Babies R Us periodically has a trade in event where you can
bring in an old crib (or car seat or a list of other big
ticket items) and in return you get 20% discount off. We got
rid of our expired car seat that way. My understanding is the
trade in items get discarded.
anon
Several ideas. You can disassemble it, remove brackets and
recycle the wood. You can offer pieces of it up on
freecycle, in a way that someone can't use it as a crib. You
could try converting the side railings into furniture. I
recently took my son's old toddler bed sides and attached
sliding shelves to the rails to make a nice storage unit.
Wood can almost always be re-purposed. Good luck.
anon
We have a drop-side crib from our older child we used for our younger. I didn't
like the drop side anymore so we pushed that side against the wall and just
lifted the baby out over the non-drop side. The mattress is
adjustable in height
so lifting her out was never a problem, and when we put it on the lowest setting
as she grew, by that time she could stand and lifting out was easy. She's been
in that crib 3 years with zero issues with the drop-side, since we don't use it.
Used crib worked for us
I think just about everyone is going to be in this boat since
the consumer product safety commission is about to say that
all drop-side cribs are not to be used anymore. It's a bummer
to throw away my expensive Italian crib but such is.
Maybe someone can use the wood for a table or something
Laura
We went through the same dilemma with a slightly more recent
crib (not drop side, but it was recalled).
If the crib has been recalled, or the manufacturer is
willing to take it back, they will give you a voucher good
for the purchase of another crib (most likely from the store
that sells similar cribs to the old one). To get the voucher
the manufacturers typically asks you to mail them the
hardware, and a photo of the label on the crib. So, if you
can find the hardware (bolt plates, and screws), you could
get yourself a brand new crib.
That still leaves you with the big pieces of the crib which,
you are right, seem to be a waste to just throw away. We
tried to find some other application that wouldn't be a
danger to anyone, but in the end we stored them until babies
r us had a trade-in event (they do this once in a while to
take recalled stuff like that off circulation). They give
you a 20% (maybe 25%) coupon which is good for any purchase
from them that same day. So, if there is something expensive
you want to get from there, wait until the trade-in event. I
can only hope that what they collect does get recycled or
reused in some other way.
Olivier
I bet you could use the head and foot board pieces to make
a really nice toddler bed.
Kathleen
I saw a friend of mine transform the crib into a kind of sofa/lounge chair in
the toddler's room. She did this by removing the drop side entirely, and
filling the interior space with pillows and stuffed animals. Looked very
cozy. I don't know if your child is old enough for this kind of arrangement,
but at some point he or she will be, and it could be a fun little den to hang
out in.
Anon
We just got some hardware and screwed the drop side into the
corners so that it can't go anywhere now. It's pretty easy
to do with a drill and some screws. Works great for us.
-skip the dump, and modify it
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