Car seat trouble

DS is 19 months old. We have the graco smartseat. DS figured out how to undo the harness part of his car seat and now I don't know what to do. A lot of the car seats have that same buckle for the harness part of the car seat. He isn't able to get the other part out just the top harness. Anyone have any experience with this and a solution that doesn;t involve buying a new car seat!

Re: Car seat trouble

i think you can put something like a cut tshirt sleeve over the buckle so he cant reach it, but im not 100% sure

Car seat trouble

First, it's normal especially at this age. If you have the harness tight enough, if he undoes it he will be ok so long as the cr.otc.h buckle is done. The chest clip (retainer clip) is only a positioning device and is not designed to withstand crash forces.

Second, you can take a button down shirt, put it on DS but leave it unbuttoned. Put DS in the seat, put straps on and tighten, pull the sides of the shirt free, then button the shirt OVER the harness. Can also be done with jackets.

Some kids will leave it alone if you attach the rough side of the velcro to the clip where you push it in.

Ultimately, it's a discipline issue. You'll have to teach him not to touch his harness. Eventually he will get bored with it though.

Re: Car seat trouble

Thank you so much! The ideas are fantastic plus I'm glad to know as long as the crotch is buckled the harness doesn't matter. I was afraid I'd have to buy a new seat!

Re: Car seat trouble

I am going to take a guess that you are not using the seat properly. If a 19 month old is able to undo the harness the straps are most likely too low. The one thing you did not say is , is the child rear or forward facing?

The only time I have seen this happen is when the straps are not positioned correctly or the retaining clip is too low.

Please FM me so we can talk more and I can ask more specific questions.