Had our Boulevard installed today many ?s

[Edensmum]

We installed the seat ourselves, afte much struggle only to have the police remove in and install it again at the safety check we went to and then remove it and ask us to install it again! LOL My fingers hurt from pushing on those stupid lock offs. THey are impossible to close! The cops were ready to leave them open and say forget it. Is it like this for everyone?
Anlso he said that at 40 lbs the 5 point harness is no good anymore and you need to remove those straps and use the seat belt to secure the baby? If it is holding hte seat in how do you do this? I have never seen a Britax installed like this.
I also noticed using hte seat today the the clips that buckle her in do not make a nice strudy sounding click. They often don't seem to click at all, is there something wrong with my clip?
I hope not. I am not ever moving this seat. It was a nightmare to put in. The police were so frustrated with it and struggled with it for nearly and hour. It kept leaning to one side so they left the belt slack and used a clip and it is finally in very tight. Ugh! Wat a PIA!
Eden 9/04

[uccomama]

It sounds like they made a complete mess of installing your seat and had no clue what they were doing. The RF lock-offs can be a PITB to do up, if you are installing with a lap/shoulder belt, you can use either or both lock-offs depending on what is easier. I found when I was installing my WZ and MA (exactly the same as the Boulevard when it comes to installation) was to make sure the lap and shoulder belt were lined up exactly to get the lock-offs closed. If your car seat belts lock then you don't need to use the lock-offs at all.

The cop was completely wrong about not being able to use the seat past 40 lbs. The Boulevard is rated to 65 lbs and is NOT a belt positioning booster, so can NEVER be used without the harness.

The buckle only makes that click sound when the second harness is engaged. This is perfectly normal and okay.

Finally, you cannot use a locking-clip with a Britax car seat (Julie please correct me if I am wrong). You need to take the seat somewhere else to get re-installed, if you are not able to do it yourself.

Anyway, I am sure Julie will be here soon enough to give you some more help, she has installed more Britax's than I have had hot dinners!

Deborah

[DebbieJ]

Oh, I hate these bad seat check stories! Misinformed police officers!

Two things:

1. The Blvd is rated to 65 pounds! Maybe he's thinking of the Roundabout, which goes to 40. And no, you cannot then use the seatbelt on the baby! Where do they come up with these things???

2. The "click" when you buckle her in. You should hear it only once, when you insert the second buckle. If you do not hear it, do it over. You will not hear it when you insert the first buckle, only the second.

HTH!

~ deb
DS 12/03

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/user_files/10029.gif

[Edensmum]

They used the lock off clip because the seat would lean towards thecenter of the car because the shoulder belt was pulling up on the body of the seat when it was taught. They installed a locking clip right were the seat belt comes trough on the side where the belt buckles. Both of the lock offs on the seat are being used.
It was really tough to get this seat in this car.
It is in now and VERY tight. Barely any movement at all. The tethers just made it even better and adjusted the angle to be a little better too.
You really recommend to remove the clip? I don't know how to have the seat sit right in the car otherwise.
Eden 9/04

[Joolsplus2]

They really mucked things up. No, never can you use a locking clip, and you'd never need one...you lock the lockoffs and then don't pull the shoulderbelt all the way out, then it's done.

I'm sorry they put you through this nightmare, you probably had it fine before you went there, and now you'll have to do it again. If you want me to write up my standard instructions, I'll do it tomorrow, and it'll be So easy to get it in right.

I can't believe they completely failed to read the manual and made up all that crapola :(
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[Edensmum]

What do you mean you don't pull the shoulder belts all the way out? I have the lock offs locked and I did before they removed it, but the seat was being tilted by the belt. Is the seat unsafe with the clip? It is in very securely now, I am loath to take it apart again as it really was a major issue to get it in, but I will do whatever is safest. Thanks for whatever info I can get. This was the group that does it for our whole county. I don't know if I can go elsewhere here. There is one # for the area.
Eden 9/04

[murphydog77]

Oy! Were these cops just trained by any chance? To be fair, many police officers don't see Britax seats often, so they just aren't familiar with them. They should have spent an hour reading the manual, not installing the seat.

Deborah is right, you need to uninstall the seat and remove the locking clip (metal piece they put on the seat belt). You never use one of those with a Britax seat (it says so in the instructions). It sounds like they locked your seat belt and that's why your car seat is tilting. What make/model/year is your vehicle?

Here are some tips for installing the seat:

1. Lift the cover off the car seat over the belt path. This makes it so much easier to see where the seat belt goes and you won't have to fight with it getting in the way.

2. Open the lockoff on the side away from the buckle and run the seat belt through the belt path. Put the seat belt under the comfort foam. Buckle it. DON'T LOCK THE SEAT BELT.

3. Grasp the shoulder belt right by the buckle. Sometimes I don't have enough room to do it right by the buckle so I grab it just inside the belt path, but still as close to the buckle as I can get.

4. Put your other hand on the edge of the car seat by the buckle. Pull the seat belt tight while pushing down on the car seat. Repeat as often as necessary. Once you feel it's very snug, keep tension on the seat belt and pull your hand down the seat belt and run it under the lockoff. Do what you can to get the lockoff closed. Unlike Deborah, the only way I can get my lockoff closed is to make sure my lap and shoulder belt don't overlap very much and they have to be pretty flat--if they get bunched up, it will be impossible to close.

5. Test for tightness. You want less than 1" of movement right at the belt path. If you can't get it tight by pushing on it with your hand, then use your knee or your foot or lean over the back of the seat or have a friend help. I like using just my hand because I don't pull muscles that way ;), but it takes a little practice.

6. Attach the tether and snug it up to the angle your baby needs, but not more than 45 degrees.

HTH!

Heather, CPS Tech
http://www.CarSeatSite.com

[Joolsplus2]

Thanks, Heather...just what I would have said, but way better formatted for readability :)

To the OP: The lockoffs take the place of the locking clip AND locking the seatbelt. Once a lockoff is clamped (yes, it takes effort to make sure they aren't completely overlapping or crinkled in the lockoff), the seat will stay completely in place, and the shoulderbelt won't be tugging the seat up sideways. When the tether is a little off to the side, that will cause a little tipping, but it's not dangerous.

:)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[Edensmum]

So I do not need to lock the excess belt into the the car? The belt stay slack after the lock off on the side away from the buckle like when there is a locking clip? The directions said to do that. I am so confused. Should I not drive the car until I get to redo this? I need to have someone to watch her while I mess with it.
Eden 9/04

[Joolsplus2]

Really, you can leave the shoulderbelt slack, and the built in lockoffs will hold the seat completely in place. Sounds completely weird, I know, and the car manual will tell you to lock the belt, but *they* don't know you have a built in lockoff that does the same thing.

:)


Julie CPS Tech and mom to 2 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx