Baby Gates

[Abigail]

Over the years baby gates have not changed very much. I'm trying to find the perfect baby gate for me. I'm not sure where exactly I'll have the baby gate yet (top/bottom of stairs or just in a doorway).

I really want a mounted gate because I don't mind drilling holes into the wall and will definitely need to use the baby gate often. Does anyone have any pro's and con's on a wall-mounted baby gate?

Secondly, I need a gate that is w-i-d-e because I'm short and always have to turn sideways to fit my hips through which is difficult to do when holding a big infant and also if it's at the top of the stairs. Any ideas?

[Christian Mother]

My husband had to custom build a gate for the upstairs for my daycare. It mounts to the wall and the railing. It works great at the end of the day the hinges come off so you can take the door off. If your husband is handy or a family friend or someone you know of that is a carpenter can help you with this that would be the best bet bc I don't know of anything off hand that you can purchase at the store. Hope you find what your looking for!

[QualiTcare]

i think wall mounted is the way to go for sure. one that latches and swings open kinda like a gate that would be on a fence outside of a home.

with my own kids i used the gates that slide and adjust to fit in the doorway and i HATED them.

[Christian Mother]

The wall mounted is perfect as it is stationary...it doesn't fall over and it's super safe. My DCP even have a tough time trying to get it open..heheh!! I like to call it parent proffed also. If you both lived in AZ I'd send my husband to make one specially for you. He loves creating metal art so any chance he can get in making things he loves it...he's super handy!!

[heyhun77]

Is it for your apartment now or for when you get a house? If it's for later I'd wait because every house is just a tad different and you may end up having a ton of gates that don't work for your house/setup. I also had to have one of our gates custom made because of how our house is (mostly because it's OLD).

The best practice for gates is hard-mounted on stairs (top and bottom) not tension. Wide gates are hard to come by in something that actually works in our house. I have one very wide opening and there is only one specific gate that works so when ours broke I paniced and finally found one after calling pretty much every store in town.

[Zoe]

I use the Retract-a-gate for the bottom of my stairs. It's a retractable wall-mounted gate that tucks safely away when not in use and is sturdy to withstand kids pushing on it. I have 2. One for my kitchen and one for the bottom of my gate stairs. They cover wide areas and will obviously open all the way for you so you don't have to turn sideways when you're holding a little guy!

Ok, so that's my endorsement.

[SilverSabre25]

We use these in several places and in the past have used them at the top/bottom of the stairs. I love them because you can just lift up and slide them out of the brackets for when you don't need it or want it there, and it's only 30 seconds to get them back in. I got ours second-hand from Once Upon a Child, and they've moved with us twice now; they are still in perfect condition. One note though; they MUST be installed directly into wood or into a stud--but you'll find that with most wall-mounted gates.

[AnythingsPossible]

Do you have a Pamida near you? We aren't to far from your state and have them here, so thought you might as well. I bought my last gate there. It is a wall mount that retracts, there isn't a "gate" opening within the gate. They are the only gates our Pamida had, they are plastic, not wood. Unfortunately I'm not sure of the brand If you want, I will take pictures later and post them.

[lil angels]

I have had a wall mounted for years. But the last one I bought from target and it looks just like a wall mounted one and I have it up all the time but it is preasure mounted and it has worked very well(with out the holes). and it is a bit decorative to it is a black iron.

[Blackcat31]

We bought an old door and my DH made a half door. It has a door knob and a lock. Easy for me to use and impossible for the kids to get around or over, plus since it is solid, no one wants to hang out by the gate cuz they can't see anything....

[AnythingsPossible]

We bought an old door and my DH made a half door. It has a door knob and a lock. Easy for me to use and impossible for the kids to get around or over, plus since it is solid, no one wants to hang out by the gate cuz they can't see anything....

Very neat idea, if it would work for your area.

[jen]

We bought an old door and my DH made a half door. It has a door knob and a lock. Easy for me to use and impossible for the kids to get around or over, plus since it is solid, no one wants to hang out by the gate cuz they can't see anything....

That is awesome! I would LOVE that!

[Abigail]

WOW, I got a lot more responses than I thought I would!

My husband had to custom build a gate for the upstairs for my daycare. It mounts to the wall and the railing. It works great at the end of the day the hinges come off so you can take the door off. If your husband is handy or a family friend or someone you know of that is a carpenter can help you with this that would be the best bet bc I don't know of anything off hand that you can purchase at the store. Hope you find what your looking for!

LMAO....I wish. My dad is our family handy man, but he lives 240 miles away. I already told him my "wishlist" for a toy shelf and book shelf and showed him the magazine asking $300+!

i think wall mounted is the way to go for sure. one that latches and swings open kinda like a gate that would be on a fence outside of a home.

with my own kids i used the gates that slide and adjust to fit in the doorway and i HATED them.

The gates that slide and adjust drive my nuts as well! They're called pressure mounted. Since I will eventually have my own child I'm fine with making more permanent child-friendly changes.

Is it for your apartment now or for when you get a house? If it's for later I'd wait because every house is just a tad different and you may end up having a ton of gates that don't work for your house/setup. I also had to have one of our gates custom made because of how our house is (mostly because it's OLD).

The best practice for gates is hard-mounted on stairs (top and bottom) not tension. Wide gates are hard to come by in something that actually works in our house. I have one very wide opening and there is only one specific gate that works so when ours broke I paniced and finally found one after calling pretty much every store in town.

It is for when I get a house. I'm not going to buy now, but I'm having a very hard time finding a wall-mounted gate that actually opens most of the way and am willing to even buy online when the time approaches. I just need the wide walkway for my hips, . If I have a wide opening I would have someone build a wall extension or half-way to make up the difference.

I use the Retract-a-gate for the bottom of my stairs. It's a retractable wall-mounted gate that tucks safely away when not in use and is sturdy to withstand kids pushing on it. I have 2. One for my kitchen and one for the bottom of my gate stairs. They cover wide areas and will obviously open all the way for you so you don't have to turn sideways when you're holding a little guy!

Ok, so that's my endorsement.

Do you have a picture of a retract-a-gate? Are they expensive?

Do you have a Pamida near you? We aren't to far from your state and have them here, so thought you might as well. I bought my last gate there. It is a wall mount that retracts, there isn't a "gate" opening within the gate. They are the only gates our Pamida had, they are plastic, not wood. Unfortunately I'm not sure of the brand If you want, I will take pictures later and post them.

I go to Pamida every summer when I'm in the Turtle Mountains, , I'll look when I go. It always brings back memories of being a kid every time I go to Pamida because we use to go often while on vacation and live in the toy aisles because at home we were only brought to Walmart and were familiar with everything they had.

[Zoe]

It's a little pricey, but like I said, I've got two of them and have had them for a couple years now. They're fabulous! They say you can use them for the top of the stairs, but I'm a paranoid person and personally wouldn't use a mesh gate at the top.

Here's the link http://www.retract-a-gate.com/index.html