carseat / LATCH PSA

[littlecindy]

has anyone else heard about this? the LATCH system might not be safe for toddlers and preschoolers due to the combined weight of the child and the carseat itself? in my car, for example, the child plus seat needs to be less than 48 lbs (unless you use the top tether) and the seats can weight up to like 23 lbs, so a kid could easily outgrow that

Comments

[silence182]

I did see this a few weeks ago and posted it on Facebook...but then honestly I completely forgot about it. I think Evelyn might be approaching the max weight with her Britax Boulevard. So do we just install the carseat using the seat belt now? We have only ever used LATCH, so I don't even know how else to install it!

[littlecindy]

yeah, you use the seatbelt instead. and you probably need to lock the seatbelt first. the car seat manual should give you instructions.

[abeonde]

I think you can keep the latch and add the belt too, right? That's my plan, but i need to figure out quickly because we're likely close to the limit. :(

[littlecindy]

i would check your manual. but i guess you could probably use the latch still if you use the seatbelt to attached the seat to the car. i don't know if there is always room to do this. with our booster, probably not.

[teacher_jessica]

I did NOT know that. Yikes. We've got the latch system on both kids right now and I bet they're both over. Thanks.

[landr02]

Our latch system in the car is kind of a pain to access, so I only ever use the seatbelt. And our second car is so old, it doesn't even have latch! ;-)

But this is still good to know! Thanks for the heads up.

[littlecindy]

yeah, before doug got his new(er) car, we had a minivan from like 1997. which had its own seatbelt issues, actually. apparently a bunch of chevy and plymouth cars from the 1990's had seatbelts that could easily just come unlatched!

[bevny]

I think I need to switch A's Graco Nautilus to use as a high-back booster with the seatbelt (instead of harness). Instructions say not to use the LATCH but I can't see how it would hurt if I'm using the seatbelt too. I feel like the LATCH would keep it from shifting around when the kids get in/out.

Good thing G is still only 22 lbs! Although the Nautilus (she has one too) is damn heavy...

[fsb2005]

I would use Latch -- it just has to be safer because that way the booster isn't an additional force pushing against the child.

[littlecindy]

i can't find a good explanation as to why some carseats say not to use the lower latch anchors when using the seat in booster/seatbelt mode. here is a list of those that do allow you to use both

[littlecindy]

and yet consumer reports says "The LATCH manual concludes that the more anchorage points used to attach a child restraint, the better."

and it sounds like using the top tether is generally a good idea with boosters:

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/babies-kids/baby-toddler/booster-combination-car-seats/higher-weight-limit-seats/index.htm

[fsb2005]

I switched Katie's to a seatbelt install a few months ago. It's funny, I think people think that LATCH is more safe, but it seems like seatbelt might be more safe, as long as you can get a tight install.

Carseat stuff drives me crazy -- so complicated and a lot depends on what car you have and what seat you have. Like recently I had decided I was going to switch Katie to booster mode rather than harnessed because tlew12778 had mentioned that some people think it's safer when forward-facing because there is less head excursion with a seatbelt (in Europe/Sweden/somewhere-that-seems-smarter-than-us they keep them rear-facing a lot longer). But then as I started to do it I re-read the manual for the Radian and it said you couldn't use it in booster mode until the child is 50lbs, and I weighed Katie and she's like 47lbs. Despite the fact that in general they say a child is physically ready for a booster at 40lbs.

So anyway, carseats are annoying!

[elaine77]

"some people think it's safer when forward-facing because there is less head excursion with a seatbelt"

I had never heard that -- care to explain a little more? I generally find all of this stuff really, really confusing!! I have two boys in Frontiers with the 5-point and neither one is even 40 pounds yet -- but I'm curious about the head/neck theory with the 5-point, if you have a chance to elaborate. Thanks.

[fsb2005]

I know so little about this, but the idea is that a seatbelt has a lot more give than a harness, so it allows the body and neck to move forward before stopping, whereas a harness is more rigid and holds back the chest so that only the head and neck move forward. Sorry for the morbidness, but someone threw out the term "internal decapitation" to describe what can happen when only the head and neck go forward in an accident.

Of course, if the kid isn't mature enough to sit in a seatbelt and leans all over the car, takes the shoulder strap off, and isn't in the proper position during an accident, then a booster isn't as safe as a harness.

Also you kind of have to stick with the 40lb limit here because that's what the manufacturer's require.

I guess in Europe kids stay rear-facing and harnessed until 4 or 5, and then switch to a forward facing booster (that is latched into the car with "rigid latch," whatever that means) -- they are never harnessed forward-facing at all.

[littlecindy]

yeah, i think that's the same principle behind not using the lower latch anchors on the booster seats as well. the seatbelt allows for some movement of the child and you want the booster seat to move with your child.