Childcare Person Lives on the 3Rd Floor? Safety Issues?

There are a number of different things you can get. These seem good http://www.amazon.com/Guardian-Angel-Window-Guard-wide/dp.... I lived in NYC for 7 years and saw things like this in many windows. I didn't have children until the last year I lived there and then I lived on the first floor so I haven't used them.

Install safety bars in the windows. Do not rely on someone to leave the windows closed, only open them a little, etc. You can get window guards in any hardware store, Home Depot or Lowe's. They screw into the window frames and have a quick-release mechanism in case of fire. If your parents bought the condo they should have no problem with being able to install these as they are a safety item and inside their house. If they are renting, they may need the landlord's permission but they should have no problem getting agreement because they are a safety item.

I lived in a 3rd floor apartment for a couple of years when my oldest was a toddler and was very paranoid about fires as well as widow falls because you can't just jump out of a 3rd story window if the doors and stairwells are blocked. So I made sure that I had those fire escape ladders (one in every bedroom, stored under the bed) as well as fire extinguishers, smoke alarms, and fire blankets (which can be used to put out small kitchen fires, etc.). I hope I didn't make you more nervous, but I think that these are legitimate concerns for living above the 2nd floor and having these items made me relax about living higher up.

We have a two story house as well and I had your same concern, like another poster mentioned, we installed guardian angel window protectors. We have them installed on 5 different windows, same thing as you, very low windows. they are expensive but worth it, the screen will not hold the child back and it could happen in a second. When I was putting them on, I thought i was being overprotective, but sure enough, the kids are up on the window, with their bodies and heads looking out. My kids are 2 and 3 years old.

When we moved in our new house my daughter's room was on the second floor with a big low window. I was worried and did teach her window safety but I needed added safety. I found angel guardian's to work the best for us. They were expensive but easy to install and easy for an adult to remove if there was a fire. I also found used ones on Craigslist. Good luck.

Maybe ask your parents what they think they could do to prevent an accident. Someones when people think out the solution themselves, rather then being told what to do, they really see how important it is to resolve the problem. You could always add suggestions & let them think it's their idea. LOL. Once they have the home safety proofed, you could inspect.
Also, there are people who do this for a living. You could hire someone to come in and look at the home, talk to your parents, and share their the reccomendations for safety.

Hi Tiffany,

We have put bars along the bottom of our windows and this works. We also have the locks on the windows. We have 2 little ones (one 6 and the other 17 months) and we started doing this when our oldest on started crawling and we've had no problems. Good luck!

I. K.

Well, I lived on the 3rd floor for 4 years with my babies/toddlers. We just didn't open windows and had safety locks on them, and for you and your parents to teach window safety.

My 1 yr old went to a pretty good in house child care and they lived on the main street of town. A very busy, busy road. They too were very cautious of the road. Your parents will be cautious too. YOU can't beat parents loving on your child vs child care centers. :-)

is there a possiblity the windows can be opened at the top (pulled down at top instead of up from teh bottom? ours are able to do that which is nice in the kids rooms.

Hi,

I understand! I would buy window locks, bars to put on window so he won't try to climb out. Most of all, teach your child the safety precautions and don't let him play around the window. GL

M

I don't think you are being over protective at all. Get those windows protected AT ONCE.

I think your parents would need to agree not to open the windows, or open them only with the child safety locks on (newer windows have this). That is a perfectly reasonable request. We do this in our home because of the kids and the cat :) Also a good time to teach your child some window safety. He is not too young.

If you think you can trust your parents to follow this rule, I think it is a manageable situation. There are proabably things you can put in the windows, but in some ways that is riskier because they have to be put on every time or installed correctly.

I would think that as long as the windows are closed while your child is there, he would be safe. I'm not familiar with safety devices, but there may very well be something. Good luck

I would research, with your parents, the types of protective devices you might be able to install. It sounds like some other people on here have given you some good advice on that. Then, you could be responsible for the cost of purchasing and installing those devices.
Also, since your child will be cared for in a third story apartment, you may want to look at options for 'entertainment' while with your parents. Is there a nearby park where the child can be taken for exercise during the day? Or other facilities where they can go with the child to avoid being totally dependent on what's available indoors? Are your parents able and willing to just go for walks around the block with your child? We have found some of the best times to help the children in our care learn is when taking a walk and observing things just in our own neighborhood.
Safety is a big issue, but the develepment of good learning skills is also essential.