Doing baby laundry safely is one of the essential skills for parents. As your child grows, so does the curiosity about everything that defines the child’s environment: it has to touch and play with all exciting things. And which area would your little one most like to discover? The laundry area, of course!
Lots of electrical appliances, detergent products, and colorful accessories – the baby-safe design of your laundry room is an important aspect of a child-safe home.
For useful tips on baby safety in the laundry area of your home, read on!
Install the baby gate or child safety device
The first step in avoiding accidents is to put a door latch in the laundry room at adult height or a baby gate at the entrance to keep your little one away from the laundry area.
When attaching a door bolt, ensure that you can unlock the bolt from the outside if your child has been locked in.
Keep detergents out of the reach of children
While they use the best laundry detergents to keep your laundry clean and soft, especially after your child has been outside exploring the world, you should always keep laundry detergent away from your child. Remember that detergents should never get near your child’s mouth or skin.
For babies and toddlers, detergents, especially washing capsules, can appear irresistible candy with their bright colors and jelly-like consistency. Therefore, your child may be tempted to put a piece of it in their mouth, especially during teething.
- While the plastic wrap on the outside of the capsules appears to be sealed to protect your child, the wrap is water-soluble and will dissolve once it gets wet. This means that your child could be exposed to the strong detergent it contains through their sticky fingers or mouth. Since the detergent in the capsules is in a higher concentration, this can lead to serious illness.
- Therefore, you must keep the detergents away from your child, high up or locked out of sight and reach.
- Choose products with child-resistant packaging. Some detergent products, such as Ariel PODS, have a child safety lock. The child-resistant packaging often closes with a click system, but some may work differently. Always follow the instructions to make sure the detergent closes appropriately.
- Keep the bottle cap and cap tightly closed. Even if the product does not have a child-resistant locking mechanism, keep the detergent lid, cap or flap closed when you are not using the product.
- Store detergent products in the original container with the label intact. This way, you ensure that you don’t confuse the detergent with something else and that you don’t accidentally keep it within reach of your child.
- Keep detergents out of the reach and sight of children. Store detergent high up or in child-proof cupboards. Just because the product has childproof packaging doesn’t mean it is 100 percent childproof. It is, therefore imperative that detergents and other textile care products are stored safely out of the reach of children.
- Handle the detergent capsules with dry hands. Since the foil on the tablets can dissolve in contact with liquids, you should ensure that your hands are dry.
- Wash your hands after washing clothes. Wash your hands and all utensils that have come into contact with the detergent, such as the dispenser or dispenser. This will prevent your child from coming into contact with a detergent that has been transferred to other surfaces.
- Keep washing machine, dryer and cupboards closed Children are naturally curious and play with everything – the washing machine, especially with all its buttons, digits, and flashing lights, is no exception.
Here are some tips on how to keep your child safely away from your washing and ironing equipment and linen cupboards:
- Keep the washer and dryer doors closed. Some models already have a childproof lock function, or you can also attach a childproof lock to the door yourself. Always use these functions when using the washer or dryer unattended.
- If you have a separate laundry room, keeping the door closed at all times or installing a baby gate to block this area is considered extra security.
- Lock all cupboards in which you keep detergent. Having child locks in the closets where you store laundry detergent or similar products is a great idea. However, it is always safest to keep detergent high up, out of the reach of children.
- Keep irons out of the reach of children. Never leave your child unattended near the iron, especially when the iron is switched on or has not cooled down. The iron’s electrical cord can also be dangerous. When you have finished ironing, unplug the power cord, wrap the cord properly, and stow the iron high up, out of the reach of children, or locked in a child-proof cupboard.
- Keep laundry and ironing equipment out of the reach of children. To prevent accidents, keep devices such as clotheslines, ironing boards, clothes pegs, dosing aids or closures, and any other device or accessory used in the laundry room locked and out of the reach of children.
Never let your child play near the laundry area. Make the laundry area a restricted area for your child.
Your checklist for a child-safe home
Use this handy checklist to make sure your home is baby-safe, and your child is safe regardless of age:
Child safety checklist in your home
0 to 6 months
- Remove all items from the crib, including toys and blankets.
- Never leave your baby unattended in the bathtub or on a higher surface.
6 months to 1 year
- Install the baby gate at the top and bottom of the stairs.
- Install child safety locks on the doors of unsafe areas and base cabinets.
- Keep medicines, detergents, and cleaning agents out of the reach and sight of children.
- Remove small objects such as coins from the floor.
- Equip the sockets with child safety plugs.
- Choose detergents and cleaning agents with child-proof packaging.
- Keep the door of the washing machine and dryer with child locks closed.
- Tie back cables and lines and secure them.
1 to 2 years
- Make sure that the handles of pots and pans are inaccessible.
- Attach corner protectors to the furniture corners.
- Secure the furniture against tipping over.
2 to 3 years
- Ensure your child has not yet joined the washing process or light the fire.
- Never let your child play near the laundry area or the kitchen.
Every age
Close the package of detergent capsules until you hear it click and keep them out of the reach of children.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you install a baby-safe cabinet lock?
You can attach child safety locks to a regular closet or buy a closet with a lock and key. Most hardware stores offer child safety locks. They should also have installation instructions.
When should the house be baby-proofed?
You can take several steps to ensure a baby-safe home before your child is born. A little later, before your baby learns to crawl, which usually happens around 7-10 months of age, double-check your home to ensure it is baby-safe. You should recheck your home later to ensure it’s child-safe for when your curious toddler begins to run and explore other areas of your home.
Conclusion
By following these baby and child safety recommendations in the laundry area and a baby-safe home for the rest of your home, you can rest assured that your child will be able to safely explore the designed areas of your home as they grow and develop.