bed rails v bed bumpers for overnight stays at gran's

thanks, Tanith, no hard feelings!

thanks, grans, for all the comments and suggestions and the funny bits e.g. grandchild landing on your back! Plenty to think about there and good points made about having a stair gate! Gransnet much better than online reviews eg Argos, Amazon!

My son slept in a double bed at age 3. Skip the expensive bed rails. Get a couple foam pool noodles, duct tape them to the mattress under the sheet. My son never once rolled out of bed with that $2 hack.

My Grandaughter started sleeping in our spare double bed at 2.5, the bed up against the wall at one side and a rail very similar to the one mentioned earlier from Amazon at the other side, though ours was from Argos. It works really well, it doesn’t stop her getting out of bed, that wasn’t the intention, but it does stop her falling out in her sleep. We also had a stair gate on the stairs but no longer use that as she’s now 3.5. Works really well.

The double bed that DGD sleeps in here is quite high. We bought inflatable bed guards and put them under the bottom sheet
www.amazon.co.uk/Bumpers-Toddlers-Inflatable-Guardrail-Children/dp/B07T4NWQD7/ref=sr_1_6?crid=2C0PU7DEHH171&keywords=Inflatable+bed+bumper&sprefix=inflatable+bed+bumper%2Caps%2C102&tag=gransnetforum-21&qid=1646259870&sr=8-6

They're also useful for taking on holiday.

Welshwizard

thanks, grans, for all the comments and suggestions and the funny bits e.g. grandchild landing on your back! Plenty to think about there and good points made about having a stair gate! Gransnet much better than online reviews eg Argos, Amazon!

Welshwizard
Her parents may have done this already but when mine first went from cot to beds I taught them to get out of bed by lying front down on the bed, legs over the edge then gradually pushing and sliding backwards until their feet touched the floor iyswim.

Her parents may have done this already but when mine first went from cot to beds I taught them to get out of bed by lying front down on the bed, legs over the edge then gradually pushing and sliding backwards until their feet touched the floor iyswim

Callistemon21 that’s how I get out of bed when my sciatica is particularly troublesome ?

I might try it myself, Grannynannywanny, good idea!

wildswan16

Just tuck them in by the side against a wall and put a couple of spare cushions under the mattress at the other side - so it is at a slight upward tilt. A duvet on the floor if you are still worried.

I’d be hesitant about doing anything that angles the mattress. They could become stuck in a position that could compromise their breathing. I’d ask the parents what they wanted you to do. They are so clued up these days.

I would try a mattress on the floor as the safest option but then you need to think about stairs in case GS gets out of bed and goes for a wander.

I think trying him in the double bed should be fine but maybe also get a double size waterproof mattress cover - and does the room door need a safety gate to stop him getting out of bed and wandering into an unsafe situation? I agree that bed rail sides may be risky as he may be tempted to climb and more likely to fall. Good luck!

My first DGD slept in our spare double bed from age 2 +. It was very low to the ground and we placed pillows on the bed plus pillows duvet etc on the floor in case she took a tumble. She is hypermobile so wasn't so able and adventurous as many, so no accidents. Now we have a much higher spare double bed and a very active 7 month old 2nd DGD, so I'm reading advice here very carefully for future reference.

My children always slept in a double bed when visiting my parents (son was a monkey and could climb out of a cot at 11 months!), and we/they just put something soft at the side of the bed (pillows/duvet/old cot mattress etc) in case one of them fell out - they never did!!

Safety 1st Portable bed rail £19.99 amazon, next day delivery. Mesh inset. Really good idea as it gives the child the impression of being enclosed but at the same time it's not hard should s/he roll against it as a wall would be.

I’ve a bed rail and don’t bother buying new get yourself on gumtree or Facebook eBay etc ppl always selling them off. I paid 7 pound for mine and the lady I got it from was also a grandparent who had bought it for same reason.

Read up on safe sleeping.
Babies and toddlers should never be in a bed next to a wall in case they slip between or get stuck against the mattress and wall and can’t move/ breathe. There have been some deaths.

The bed rail from Amazon that GNW suggests looks great. As far as stair gates go - my twin great-grandsons were 3 years old a couple of weeks ago; they've been climbing over stair gates since they were approx 2 years 3 months! After the first half dozen times my granddaughter took the gates down as it was more dangerous to leave them up for the boys to climb over!

notgoneyet

The bed rail from Amazon that GNW suggests looks great. As far as stair gates go - my twin great-grandsons were 3 years old a couple of weeks ago; they've been climbing over stair gates since they were approx 2 years 3 months! After the first half dozen times my granddaughter took the gates down as it was more dangerous to leave them up for the boys to climb over!

Yes, there's always one who will do that! My DGS would too.

It's a good idea to teach them to slide downstairs feet first on their tummies, too.

Simply place mattress on the floor! No brainer

Rails dangerous and bumpers too. If little one already on floor she can't fall ! How highs the bed anyway? !

At almost 3 the child should be perfectly safe in any bed without bumpers or rails, if he's a fidgety sort like one of mine then something soft on the floor is sufficient.

The portable bedrails grannywanny..suggested are great my daughter uses one and it works really well and easy to move.

He'll think he is a really big boy in a double bed. If possible have one side up against a wall and place cushions on the floor at the unrestricted side. I used sofa cushions as the were big. Or an inflatable bed but they may difficult to secure to stop slipping. Good luck.

We got a child’s Disney sleeping bag and put pillows on either side. Get a waterproof mattress protector too…. just in case! Think ours was younger than 3 years too and it worked!

We have a double bed that our 2 year old grandson sleeps in. We put bedrails on each side. We felt that he could fall in between the wall and mattress if we didn't put a bed rail on the wall side. The bed has a headboard, and we put pillows near the bottom and sofa cushions on the floor at the bottom as well.