When your baby starts to be on the move, you want your house to be the safest playground they have. Baby proofing can be overwhelming, time consuming, and expensive, but it is all worth it to know your most precious item is safe. I first started by childproofing my kitchen – cabinets, drawers, pantry, etc. Thinking I could get by with the cheapest way to childproof my cabinets, I installed this type of cabinet latch. The problem…pinched fingers…mine, my husbands, and most importantly my baby’s. These type of latches allow the cabinet to open just enough so you can push down on the latch to release, but this also allows baby to put their fingers in the door and OUCH! This wasn’t going to work for my little one. The other negative to these latches is that they are always on. What I mean is, even after baby goes to bed, you cannot “turn them off” to allow easy access for yourself or friends to open cabinets and drawers. What a pain!
Though more expensive, I purchased this Tot-Lok magnetic cabinet lock and have never been happier. My cabinets and drawers are tightly closed so no more pinched fingers (for myself or baby) AND I can turn them off after baby goes to bed or I have company over that needs to enter certain cabinets or drawers.
The way they work is you install the lock in the cabinet and the only way to open the cabinet is with the magnetic key. I recommend having a few magnetic keys around the kitchen so they are accessible at all times. Also, it is helpful to put a small label on the outside of the cabinet so you know where to put the key, but after a while you can remove the labels because you’ll get the hang of it. To turn them off, you simply open the cabinet, flip the red switch up, and voila…easy grown-up access! I installed these locks on my bathroom cabinets and drawers as well. They are also a selling point for a potential buyer to your house as they can remain permanent (turned off), but your house will always be childproofed. Here is a video link for how to install the Tot-Lok Magnetic system, which was very helpful to watch.
