So what do you do with them?
Our baby is two and we find ourselves on the phasing out side of car seat usage, finally. We have one child completely out of any type of car seat, two that are big enough for boosters, and one who needs nothing. It is nice to not have the hassle of seats to move and buckle.
Have you noticed those date stamps on car seats? Some have the manufacture date. Some say don't use after some date, as if car seats expire? I don't get that. Admittedly, I have paid little attention to those dates. Though there is an almost eight year span between my children we have used the same car seats for them all.
So here is the dilemma, what do you do with old car seats? Our infant car seat has been in storage for sometime now. We have another one we could get rid of too. You can't sell them and you can't even give them away. Ours aren't nice ones like Britax and they do show the wear of four children, but they are still sound. It seems so wasteful to just throw them into the trash, but what else is there to do with them?
15 comments:
Crisis pregnancy center, or women's shelter (if you had to leave home in the middle of the night, you might forget a carseat, too!)
My understanding is that they expire because the plastic warps after a while and just isn't quite as safe anymore. So, if they are really past an expiration date (which is usually five years after it was made) they should just go in the trash.
Alison,
The plastic warps? I've never heard that before. Obviously I haven't done my research. Thanks for the info!
I would send them Goodwill if you don;t want to store them anymore and there is nothing wrong with them. if they have ever been in a car accident though, they need to go in the trash!
I would send them Goodwill if you don;t want to store them anymore and there is nothing wrong with them. if they have ever been in a car accident though, they need to go in the trash!
I don't know the answer to this (my niece is one year younger than my daughter, so we just pass ours along, and it becomes their problem). But, since nobody really knows, why don't you write to the manufacturer and find out what they recommend?
Try Freecycle. There are always people needing the things we are no longer using. Just tell them if it's expired and let them make up their mind as to whether they still want the item. Many times people accept items and use them for something other than the original intended use.
I've been lucky (?) enough to still be able to use them for the kids I babysit. The infant ones and our high chair didn't go in our garage sale one year and Goodwill won't accept them (so they don't have to worry about any recalls). We ended up setting them out for free that evening and they all went!
Topaztook,
Hmm that is a good idea.
Nancy,
Yep Freecycle probably would be the best way.
Molly,
I didn't think Goodwill would take them, and Heather confirmed that.
Heather,
You are so lucky. :)
Setting them out here probably wouldn't work though. Not too many curb shoppers drive by our place! ;)
Big sigh... I've been thinking for quite some time about a non-profit that might take these unwanted car seats and send them to third world countries. Why must this idea keep nagging me? Doesn't it know I have a lot of other things on my plate??? :)
I hate that they have expiration dates and the conspiracy theorist in me says it's just to make us run out and buy new ones. I hope you can find a good place to donate it. IMHO, an expired car seat is better than no seat at all for many people.
I've read about the plastic getting brittle, but I think the main reason for not using a seat more than five years old is that the state laws and standards change in that period of time. Some states won't let you use an old one, either.
Found your blog and found this entry interesting. Both of my kids are out of car seats (yeah!) but I remember when we were planning on passing my daughter's down to my son. My husband is a state trooper and got me in touch with the safety trooper for the department. She said that they do indeed expire-but explained it was because over time (especially in warm climates) the plastic and straps can become brittle and will not provide adequate protection in the event of an accident. We actually saw that happen when we pulled out our daughters 6 year old Evenflo booster and when my son sat down in it the top/bottom seam just cracked! Glad it was a 'test run' and not on the road!
One more thing...she said that after the five year mark you should throw them away. However...separate them-throw the plastic shell away one week, the padding the next, and the straps the next so that no one digs them out of the trash and tries to use them.
Shulburt,
Thanks so much! Glad to know the logic behind the five year date!
Just happened upon this and wanted to comment. The infant seats can be donated to day care or families to use for babies in the home. A safe place to put the baby when you need your arms free and a sling is not practical, eg cooking.
Also, if you have a community theater near you, they often are looking for props. I donated a infant car seat to a theater who needed it as a prop in a play.
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