Kid friendly!

I was cleaning my rental today (what fun) and thought to myself "this house is so not kid friendly".

Whether you have children or will have them in the house you are currently building, here are my tips to making a kid friendly house:

1. Most parents can relate to this one. You have just put the kids to bed, sat down to watch tv with a glass of wine when you hear "Mum, can you turn the toilet light on?"
Tip: Make all bathroom and toilet light switches 1/2 m lower.

2. Any room you don't want your toddler getting into put round door knobs on and lever handles on their bedroom.

3. Have locks on your screen doors so when you have just got them dressed nicely to see Nanna they don't go out and start playing in the mud!

4. Mixer taps should only be in the kitchen for safety and if you can have temperature regulators in their bathroom.

5. White gloss cupboards should be banned!! They look fantastic but are a pain to clean fingerprints off everyday.

These are my tips, any more?

Jet

Don't fit carpets

Pave the entire perimeter of the house so they don't bring in so much mud and it also gives them a track to ride their tricycle around.

Send the kids to live with Grandma and get a cat??

Because cats don't shed fur everywhere???

I have a small light that stays on while there is no direct lighting shinning on it.
It just plugs into the power point, it throws enough light out to do the job in the bathroom.
These are bought at hardware stores.

This is a good post Jet…….

Also NEVE put a lock on a door that can be locked by children from their side of the room! Not sure if they make them anymore, but they are very unsafe.

I disagree with the gloss paint, if you use anything but GLOSS, you will have to scrub the paint to get marks off, therefore damaging the paint work. Gloss is the only way to go, if you paint doors…….

Bathroom taps are VERY important…..flick mixers are BAD!
Never use a flick mix for the bath!!! In fact…I’m not a fan of flick mixes unless you have Arthritis, then they are a valuable tap to have. Other than that, they are too easy for small children to get wrong!

Who else has tips????

Safety in the home for children is a very important factor of design!

I think ALL kitchens need to be able to be LOCKED off some how, grates across the doors is the best way to go. This is the one space in a home where most accidents happen with small children…..NEVER have a toddler or crawling baby in the kitchen while you are cooking!!!

A hairless one then...

That doesn't eat or go to the toilet....

Beware of chunky kitchen counters with square edge overhangs. They are usually at perfect head-gouging height for kids. Likewise in some bathrooms.

Stairways which use the trendy thin-wire railings. (Good for climbing and falling through).

Unfenced retaining walls near play areas.

Huge TVs balanced on the edge of flimsy "entertainment" units. (Anyone recall the tragic death of a footballer's child who was crushed by one of these....)

Unsecured tall shelving units.

Lamps with danging power cords.

I'll take 2. Do you deliver?

Sorry guys, i haven't made our house all that kid friendly... i think it depends on the kids....and what they are and aren't allowed to do in and around the house.

We have timber boards going in, but i would say a darker colour carpet doesn't go astray.... for children and adults alike.

Also adequate toys / recreational equipment for them to utilise their time better....

No bald kitty cats with corks shoved up anywhere for me.....thanks
I'm a doggy person....

One of the most dangerous things in the home for window dressing has been resolved!

Cords dangling from Vertical blinds…..10 points to the makes of the binds for seeing this issue and fixing it!!!

Re cat…….I miss my cat…..she was my best friend. I didn’t care how much hair she lost!

AND….she didn’t talk back and give me lip!

We were at a friends place and they have some magnetic system installed on all their kitchen cupboards and drawers - you cant open them without the magnetic opener!!

Over the top???? or a wonderful innovation to protect the children? ....who will grow up not knowing what a cupboard or a drawer is for

They come in doggie style too



lol

uuuuuuuuuuuuuuummmmmmmmmmm no thanks..... that's not my cup of tea either.....

And there I was thinking this was a serious thread about child safety

I remember that one of the points for sustainable house was to see the kids play area when you are in the kitchen and that the walk way between kitchen benchtop and the wall should be bigger than 1.2m.

also there was something about lockable cupboard with no easy access for kids.

Mattwalker - I love your ideas and that is why I have two furry rugs at home - maine coons.

cheers
kate

I'm a dog groomer and those hairless things are more hassle than their worth. I used to have a hairless cat come in once a week for an oil rub down!!! That's right the cat got a weekly massage and they feel horrible to touch. I will take kids and cat fur any day of the week.

Back on topic....... Thanks guys, your giving me heaps of other things I haven't thought of.

Re those magnetic things... Great till your child hides the magnet and you have to rip off one of the doors to get into the cupboard, then miraculosly they appear with it in their school bag (talking from a very frustrated experience)

Another tip, put stickers on large glass doors leading to outside. I ran through my aunties glass sliding door when I was 10 trying to catch my cousin, expensive and painful experience.

Haaa that reminds me….we had our glass in our back door replaced ages ago….NO STICKERS came with the glass….(that’s illegal now!)

Anyway I had a Carpet Court drinkies night at my place, cleaned the doors and said to my partner “I hope no one walks into the doors, their so clean!!!!”

Who do you think nearly knocked herself out!!?? Yes ME!!!! I was sooo embarrassed!!!