ang79
04-03-2014, 04:17 PM
DH thinks I'm paranoid, so I want to see what others think :)
BIL is having his first baby this summer and they said they will take any baby stuff we have that we want to get rid of. They are on a tight budget, paying back large school loans. And I highly doubt they are the type to research safety standards and baby gear like I am. Our crib and mattress were gifts from DH's side of the family and he wants to pass both to his brother. We have a drop side crib and mattress that was used by both girls while they were in the crib (we never did toddler beds, just went straight to twin beds when they were old enough). So the set is almost 8 years old. The crib is a mid-level brand that we bought from a boutique furniture store, not from a warehouse type place. I researched a lot and it was a recommendation in the Baby Bargains book (can't think of the brand off the top of my head). It has not been recalled to my knowledge and it has the metal interior hardware on the drop railing, not the plastic hardware that was breaking and causing all the recalls a few years back. We actually had DD2 sleeping in it when they started all the bad press about drop side cribs, but because there was no recall on it, we checked it frequently and kept using it. I would have no qualms about using it again if we had another baby, so I told them they can have the crib, but I'm hesitant to pass on the mattress (DH thinks its fine). It has been stored in our house, but on the floor (underneath one of the twin beds). It has the plastic/vinyl coating on it that most crib mattresses that I've seen have. My girls have slept on it a few times when they want to sleep together in the same room. They are thin and the oldest weighs around 46 lbs. I think. I've just always heard you shouldn't buy used mattresses and I honestly don't know if its due to possible germs, or not being as firm as a new one or what. But since this one is 8 years old and has been slept on buy older kids (always with a sheet or sleeping bag), I'm hesitant to pass it on. What do you think? I'm supposed to be taking all baby stuff to give to BIL and wife to MIL's this weekend to store, as we're trying to declutter to sell our house.
Also, input on ages to use a Maclaren Volo stroller and Cosco Scenera car seat? I thought I remembered that the Volo is only for babies 6+ mos., but I remember the straps not fitting my youngest daughter well until she was older than 1 yr. And the Scenera is an OK seat for an infant rearfacing? I told them they could have it as a spare and that it is good for air travel, but I have a sneaking suspicion they may try to use it as their full time seat because it is free. It has an exp. date of 2015 stamped on the bottom, does that mean Dec. 2015? All my other seats have been Graco and they are always a Dec. exp. I think.
Updated info! Finally had time to pull out the crib manual and mattress to take a closer look. The crib is a Childcraft Legacy single dropside crib w/ drawer, model 29001 or 29011 (actual crib is in attic so haven't checked the exact model). It has a hidden hardware system on the drop rail and I am pretty certain it is metal hardware. I have all the parts and owners manual with directions. It is currently unassembled in my attic, but before that it was assembled in one of the bedrooms for about 5 years til we moved DD2 to a twin bed. Of course Childcraft had already gone out of business when the recalls started in 2010 (while DD2 was still using it), so no replacement parts were ever issued. I googled for Childcraft Legacy recalls and neither of these models are part of the recalls that I found.
The mattress is a Sealy Natural Rest with a 20 year limited warranty. It has 204 heat tempered innerspring coils, all around heavy gauge steel border rods, non-allergenic layer, and vinyl binding to resist mildew, moisture, etc. It has always been stored in one of the main floor bedrooms, either in the crib or underneath one of the twin beds on a carpeted floor. It has a bit of give when I press down on it, but it bounces right back.
BIL is having his first baby this summer and they said they will take any baby stuff we have that we want to get rid of. They are on a tight budget, paying back large school loans. And I highly doubt they are the type to research safety standards and baby gear like I am. Our crib and mattress were gifts from DH's side of the family and he wants to pass both to his brother. We have a drop side crib and mattress that was used by both girls while they were in the crib (we never did toddler beds, just went straight to twin beds when they were old enough). So the set is almost 8 years old. The crib is a mid-level brand that we bought from a boutique furniture store, not from a warehouse type place. I researched a lot and it was a recommendation in the Baby Bargains book (can't think of the brand off the top of my head). It has not been recalled to my knowledge and it has the metal interior hardware on the drop railing, not the plastic hardware that was breaking and causing all the recalls a few years back. We actually had DD2 sleeping in it when they started all the bad press about drop side cribs, but because there was no recall on it, we checked it frequently and kept using it. I would have no qualms about using it again if we had another baby, so I told them they can have the crib, but I'm hesitant to pass on the mattress (DH thinks its fine). It has been stored in our house, but on the floor (underneath one of the twin beds). It has the plastic/vinyl coating on it that most crib mattresses that I've seen have. My girls have slept on it a few times when they want to sleep together in the same room. They are thin and the oldest weighs around 46 lbs. I think. I've just always heard you shouldn't buy used mattresses and I honestly don't know if its due to possible germs, or not being as firm as a new one or what. But since this one is 8 years old and has been slept on buy older kids (always with a sheet or sleeping bag), I'm hesitant to pass it on. What do you think? I'm supposed to be taking all baby stuff to give to BIL and wife to MIL's this weekend to store, as we're trying to declutter to sell our house.
Also, input on ages to use a Maclaren Volo stroller and Cosco Scenera car seat? I thought I remembered that the Volo is only for babies 6+ mos., but I remember the straps not fitting my youngest daughter well until she was older than 1 yr. And the Scenera is an OK seat for an infant rearfacing? I told them they could have it as a spare and that it is good for air travel, but I have a sneaking suspicion they may try to use it as their full time seat because it is free. It has an exp. date of 2015 stamped on the bottom, does that mean Dec. 2015? All my other seats have been Graco and they are always a Dec. exp. I think.
Updated info! Finally had time to pull out the crib manual and mattress to take a closer look. The crib is a Childcraft Legacy single dropside crib w/ drawer, model 29001 or 29011 (actual crib is in attic so haven't checked the exact model). It has a hidden hardware system on the drop rail and I am pretty certain it is metal hardware. I have all the parts and owners manual with directions. It is currently unassembled in my attic, but before that it was assembled in one of the bedrooms for about 5 years til we moved DD2 to a twin bed. Of course Childcraft had already gone out of business when the recalls started in 2010 (while DD2 was still using it), so no replacement parts were ever issued. I googled for Childcraft Legacy recalls and neither of these models are part of the recalls that I found.
The mattress is a Sealy Natural Rest with a 20 year limited warranty. It has 204 heat tempered innerspring coils, all around heavy gauge steel border rods, non-allergenic layer, and vinyl binding to resist mildew, moisture, etc. It has always been stored in one of the main floor bedrooms, either in the crib or underneath one of the twin beds on a carpeted floor. It has a bit of give when I press down on it, but it bounces right back.