Can I Baby Proof My Home On A Budget?

For example, a coffee table in a family room presents a number of solutions. If you leave it there, children are likely to pull themselves up and if they fall they could fall requiring stitches or possibly get a head injury, Altman says. "You could either spend $40 to pad it or you can eliminate the coffee table."

Other examples of how a parent can save on baby proofing by being flexible include solutions to cords on blinds or drapes presenting a strangulation danger to children. You can either purchase cord shorteners or tie them up yourself. Just be sure there is no loop left for a child to become trapped within.

A heavy bookshelf or other unwieldy furniture can either be taken out of the home environment or secured to the wall with brackets. Furniture with sharp edges, such as the coffee table in the example given by Altman, can be baby proofed with professional child proofing products, or covered with padding made by hand, or simply taken out of the home to completely eliminate the hazard.

Some of the most important baby proofing products happen to be the least expensive. Electrical outlet guards are cheap and easy to install. The slightly more expensive types that have a cover that swivels are a better investment because babies catch on quickly to the simpler types and learn to remove them, creating a choking hazard.

Moving harmful chemical products typically found in kitchens and bathrooms to a locked cabinet is simple and usually economical. The often overlooked hazard of toilet paper tissue (choking hazard) can be addressed by using a toilet paper roll that is meant to save on tissue use, or more economically fixed by keeping the tissue up high and out of baby's reach.

Rooms you don't want your little ones in can be blocked with simple doorknob covers inexpensively, or you can install deadbolt locks high on the door at a bit more cost and time. A simple hook- and- eye type lock can be a happy medium.

You can minimize the risk of slips and falls by installing nonslip surface flooring, or if that's not in your budget you can keep spills mopped and floors dry, and put non-skid mats under all rugs. On stairs, carpeting can reduce the likelihood of falling, but if it's not in your budget, secure rugs with rug-tape. Even simpler and cheaper prevention method: use a night light and keep stairways clear of clutter.

While you may be tempted to rely simply on gates to make your home child-safe, you cannot count on gates alone. What if another child or forgetful adult leaves the gate open, or the child figures out a way to move the gate? If you have not locked up dangerous chemicals, appliances and so on, your child will be at risk of serious injury.

The important thing to know about budgets and baby proofing is that it can be done with whatever funds you have. As Altman says, "The more flexible you are, the more opportunities you have to save money."