How to choose a safe Bunk Bed for children

Children love bunk beds. Bed manufacturers have capitalized on this market and now have a vast range of bunk beds to choose from. As a bunk bed is often a childs first bed after sleeping in a cot, it is important to know about bunk bed safety.Due to the upper bed usually been a considerable distance from the floor, safety has to play a major part in the design of bunk beds. Many factors have to be considered for safety as there can be less obvious but potentially very serious hazards in the structure of a bunk bed. Guardrail Syma s107 upgrade spacing When choosing a bunk bed make sure the space between the guardrail and mattress or the bed frame and mattress is small enough not to allow a young child to slip through. Deaths and injury have been reported when children became suspended by the head in these Air Swimmers spaces and strangled.Guardrails which are attached to the bed by hooks and remain in place by their own weight can dislodge, allowing a child to become entrapped under the guardrail or fall. Check with your bed supplier that these rails are secure before purchase.If there is a risk of guardrails causing injury, attach additional boards to bunk beds to close up any large gap between the lower edge of the guardrails and the upper edge of the bed frame.Use of the bed without rails on both sides - Most bunk beds are used with one side located against a wall and are sold with only one guardrail for the upper bunk to prevent falls from the side away from the wall. Deaths have occurred when very young children have rolled off the bed and become trapped between the wall and the side of the bed not having a guardrail. It is worth noting that this hazard is not unique to bunk beds. Regular beds can present the same hazard and should be carefully checked before allowing your child to sleep in them.Dislodg-ment of mattress foundation - The standard matress on many bunk beds rests on small Air Swimmers ledges attached to the bed frame. The mattress can dislodge and suffocation deaths have occurred when mattress foundations fell on children playing on the floor or occupying the lower bunk.Fasten additional cross ties underneath the mattress foundation of both beds to avoid the mattress moving excessively.Bed structure Make sure the bunk bed ladder that is secured to the bed frame and will not slip when a child climbs on it.Always use two side guardrails on the upper bunk. Keep guardrails securely in place at all times no matter what the age of the child. Finally, it is a good idea not to permit children younger than six to sleep in the upper bunk of bunk beds.