Drop-side Cribs

I'm keeping mine. It converts eventually into an adult-size bed, so it's more economical for me to keep it. I've never had problems with it.

I would like to know how in the world those of us who are short (I'm 5'2") get their babies into a crib WITHOUT a drop rail!?! When the mattress is up high for the newborns, that's fine, but as soon as they can roll and sit up, the mattress got lowered, and there is NO WAY I could safely place my children in the crib without the drop rail. Anyone have a brilliant suggestion?

Contact the company that made the crib to get a converter kit that makes it so the side can't move. We have a crib at my parents' house that we use when we visit that is a drop side. It was in a recall last year and we just ordered the kit which was two plastic pieces that got screwed in at the bottom of the rail.

I used one, and could not have used anything else. I am short, and with out the drop side I would have had to drop my babies in! However, I do believe you can buy hardware to convert your drop side into a standard crib.

With anything we use there is always a potential for safety issue. If you are making sure the railing is up and take procausionary measures it should be ok to use- I used these types of cribs for all 3 of my kids and nothiing happened. I even used bumper pads. Now they are not liking that either. You just need to use a little common sense.

You have to make the call for your use - you know best. I have a drop side I used for my son - now 2.5 and still in it! I wouldn't resell it. The best use afterward is to probably recycle it. OR maybe someone can use it during the day - ie a church daycare where the baby isn't sleeping in it at night or unsupervised??? Good luck

I would get rid of it. I understand the death rate from them is a very small %, but why take the risk? I'm sure the parents whose child died in a crib like that thought that theirs was safe beforehand.

i dont have a drop side crib and i can understand why you would not want to spend money on another one, but honestly a lot of people thought the cribs where safe intill the child got injured. these things are recalled for a reason, just because something looks safe doesnt mean it is

Your question just reminded me to order the replacement parts to convert our crib into one that does not drop.... Thanks!! Go to the website of the company that made your crib and there should replacement parts for it. Ours was purchased in 2006 and the parts exist. I had already been thinking about selling ours because there will be such a huge gap in between our children.... and I have to look at it daily, but wouldn't do so without replacing the parts. Best luck with your decision.

My kids stopped using our crib over 2 years ago. We knew we weren't having anymore but kept it in the garage. My husband has used it for spare pieces when he needs it, so we are still using it :). Just not for a crib!

Dont try to resell it. My auntie sold her used drop side crib, and the purchaser is now trying to sue her because the crib fell apart when her baby was in it. Her baby is alright, but she is saying that it was illegal to sell it to her and is trying to sue her.

Look up your crib model online. If they are still in business they will send you the converter kit. If they are no longer in business you can bring it back to the store for a FULL refund. If you do that I highly recommend calling the 1-800 number for the store and speaking to customer service. They will give you the number the store needs (what they would have scanned when you bought it - I believe) and what the full purchase price was. Also write down the number you called and who you talked to. Someone gave me that advice and it saved a lot of headache. It allowed me to get in and out very quickly. We had used our crib for 6 years.

I have used the same drop side crib for all my children with no problems... currently #5 (11 mo old) is in it . I highly doubt the store would give us a refund 11 yrs. after purchase, but this is the last kiddo, and it would be silly to purchase a new one now as we won't be having any more kiddos in the future (and frankly, with 5 kiddos, we can use that money elsewhere!). I am also vertically challenged, and need the drop side so that I don't have to drop my kiddo into the crib. We just keep the crib in our bedroom so we can monitor him while he's in it anyway. Hope this helps!

I'm not buying into the frenzy. Our crib has worked just fine for 2 kids now, I'm not going to run out and buy another or even convert it. Like others have said, I need to be able to drop the side to prevent me from having to "dump" baby in there. I think this crib thing is a bit ridiculous....banking on mama's fears.

I have a drop side crib but I never lower the side. I never got the hang of dropping/pulling up the side with out disturbing the baby. So I got use to placing them in with out using it.
A few of my friends have places screws at the bottom of each side to prevent it from lowering. I was wondering the same thing what to do with this crib when we are done using it.

I had three babies who slept in dropside cribs with blankets and bumper pads and stuffed animals in the cribs with them (this was in the 80's) We put them to sleep on their sides, not on their backs. They warned us not to put them on their backs because if they spit up they could choke on it. My kids all survived all this, but by the sounds of it there were quite a few that didn't. I would go with safety and not worry about over reacting... those warnings comes from someone elses lesson, please don't let it be your own.

Just get the hardware to make it not a drop-side crib and pitch it when you're done. Or if you know someone who will use it, give it away. It's perfectly safe to use, if you secure it with the hardware. That is what we did and I haven't worried since.

Oh boy, it is a tough call. My parents used the same drop side crib for all 5 of their kids, and we all made it through our infancy ok. But, there HAVE been deaths associated with them, so, even though I hate the thought of purchasing unnecessary items, it is one of those "do I chance it" moments. My answer would be, not with my own kids.

I had a Jardine crib from Babies r Us that was recalled 2 years ago. I felt horrible trashing it, so I just advertised it as "free scrap wood" on Craigslist. So that no one would be able to use it again as a crib I did not include the supports for the mattress, and I did not put it all out on the curb at the same time, but over the course of a few months. It was all taken, but I HIGHLY doubt it was taken by the same person and re-used as a crib.

When our drop side was recalled a little over a year ago, Walmart took it back and we got our full purchase price back as a refund. I am not sure if the is an option at this point. We also felt ours was safe, but I would never have forgiven myself if on the off chance something did happen so we got rid of it...

Contact the manufacturer to see if they have any suggestions about converting it to a non-drop-side crib. They might have a hardware kit available. I don't know about where you live, but we have "bulk trash" pick-up once a month here. When you are done with it, you might put it out at the curb for bulk trash pick-up and I'm sure it will be gone my morning. In order to ease you mind about someone else using it and their child getting hurt, take it apart and put parts of it out at 2 or 3 different times. People reuse all sorts of things in tons of different ways. One man's trash is another man's treasure!!

I've thinking this over in my head too. We have a really nice expensive drop-side crib that my 23 month old is still sleeping in. I am due with my next baby in April so my plan was in a few more months to mover my toddler out of the crib and into bunkbeds with her older sister. Then the baby will now have the crib. I know they say the drop downs aren't safe but I feel mine is. I've never had a problem with it and where I'm pregnant right now I uses the drop down in order to get my toddler in and out safely without bashing my tummy. So call me crazy but I plan to still use my crib.

I'm battling the same issue with out crib. My son is 16 months old and we will move him to a toddler bed but not until he is 22 months. So in the mean time we are just checking the crib everynight and making sure our hardware is the updated stuff from after the many recalls. I would just go out and buy another crib but we arent planning on having any other kids so that would be a bad idea for us. I think you need to do what is right in your head for your family. I know that is a generic answer but your gut will tell you what to do.

We are in the same boat. Our 3rd is due any day now. We bought a beautiful Italian solid wood crib for our first--in 2003. Now it's been recalled. My husband is an engineer and looked at the mechanics--he sees how it *could* potentially fall, but also sees that the parts are in good working shape. It is also a nice tight fit, between the mattress and the rails, and the various sides of the crib. It's a very solid crib, and we've had no problems. Is there the potential? I suppose so. But I can't quite imagine just dropping my baby in--my kids sleep poorly enough as it is, and what with all we do to "protect" our children these days, I sometimes feel there needs to be a little more reason. We are keeping our drop side crib and planning to use it.

The news I have read does say that the crib should be fine "with the repair kit" preventing the side from going up or down. Like another poster mentioned, I am short and without the drop side crib I would have been unable to put my baby inside one, especially when I became pregnant again. The issue here seems to be more of "Plastic equipment and cheap materials" rather than the issue of a drop side. I think it is unfortunate that all drop side cribs have to be banned because big companies take the cheap way out and use plastic. If you are comfortable with your crib, I would say get the repair kit and continue using it. As for when you are finished with it, plan on a big trash pile or start thinking of ways now that it could be recycled as anything else but a crib.

as far as the not being able to reach into a crib that is not a drop side - people need to look at the new cribs out there. they are made so that this isnt an issue. the height of them is shorter (which is also good for those kids who learn to climb out of the crib) and they sometimes have a panel at the top that does fold down, but doesnt cause the safety issues that the normal drop sides do.

for me? we burned the thing. that way no child is ever in danger again. the one we had for our son was not a drop side, but i used one when i was doing child care that was a drop side. think about it this way. you might have to buy one more crib; day car providers everywhere have to by more than one (likely)....

cribs arent even that safe in GENERAL because it puts a separation between baby and mom; you cant hear baby if theres a problem. more babies die in cribs that are in another room than anything else. babies regulate their very heartbeat and breathing based on yours, so keep your baby close, even if baby is in another bed. we had our son in our room in his crib for close to 3 years. best thing i ever did. but i know each child is different, and each family is also different, so dont feel like im judging you or pressuring you to do something that wont work for you. just a thought i wanted to share.

but as far as the cribs safety, honestly, i would burn it and try to find another safe one via craigslist or freecycle.org (i think thats the site anyway). its not about the crib seeming sturdy, its about preventing deaths. even i dont want harm to come to your baby. i know its a huge expense and its an inconvenience to have to get another one, but how much can inconvenience and expense matter when we are talking about the life of a child? i think its a big deal, and i would never let my child sleep in something that is deemed unsafe, or recalled (until fixed) but ESPECIALLY not something that has been banned. the answer is really an easy one when you really gather your thoghts and think about it. could your child be the next statistic?
but i think people are like you for the most part and will continue to use and pass on these cribs, and there will be still more deaths. its not because people are stupid or selfish, but people cant afford a new 100$ crib. its rediculous. luckily, there ARE better cribs out there that have been used, and they are a "limited time" item: and what does a person do with them when they are done with them? they pass them on or get rid of them. ask your friends who have older kids what kind of crib they had, check craigslist (and BARTER with the sellers - a lot of sellers are willing to take lesser offers!) and also check freecycle or even bookoo. there are many many options.

end result? if you KNEW your kid was in danger (which they are according to cpsc and the parents of many babies who have died) wouldnt you do something? better safe than sorry. you would never forgive yourself if something did happen.

good luck and be safe! :)

Our crib has been through 7 children (only 2 are mine - I think the first is a teenager) and I'm not about to replace it for my 7 month old. Now I don't know how I'm going to get rid of it once we're done, but I'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

I skipped the whole crib thing on my third. He has kept the Pack N' Play as his bed. He started out in the craddler, then when he could sit up he went to the bottom. It is firm not excessive padding and perfectly safe. Alot of people that were in my mama group opted to do this over cribs that are constantly being recalled and it has worked great.