Hi! I'm Sheena Hill. As a CPST (Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician), I have spent countless hours working with car seats in all kinds of vehicles. I've been at this for over 8 years! Best of all, this means I can help you navigate the process—no stress, guaranteed.
Hi Sheena. How can I tell when my baby has outgrown his infant car seat? It is getting heavy to carry him around!
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Sheena H.
Hi Azalea, how old is your baby? You always want at least an inch from the top of your seat's shell and the top of your infant's head. For this reason, most car seats are outgrown by height before weight, so many infant seats are outgrown between 7-10 months old. In fact, many infant seats on the market have weight limits of 30 or 40 lbs! 30 lbs is the average size of a 3 year old, so your child will never reach that limit in their infant seat. Seat manufacturers tend to inflate those upper weight limits, knowing that your child will not reach them! |
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Sheena H.
I just noticed that your baby is 8 months, Azalea. So, now is a great time to switch. |
My 4-year-old is still in a convertible car seat. At what age or weight can they be transferred to a booster?
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Sheena H.
Hi Bridget, your 4 year old may still have time before maxing out the height and weight limits of your convertible, depending on which seat you have. Are they already forward facing? |
Hi Sheena, my 2yo twins are rear facing in Dionos and constantly complain the straps are too tight (although I honestly think they don't pull tight enough). Regardless, they start about an inch or two below and behind their shoulders. Is that causing discomfort? The next height up to move the straps is a couple inches, bringing the strap to shoulder height and not below it. What's safe?
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Sheena H.
Hi Janel, we definitely want the harness to be routed through the slots that are closest to the child's shoulders (while remaining at or below shoulders RF). the gap between the "slanted" lower 3 sets of slots and the "straight" 2 upper sets is pretty big on Diono seats. If the next available slot is above the shoulders, you are using the correct one. |
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Janel That's super helpful - I'll check the crotch buckle next time they're in the seat. Didn't even notice there were other places to put that buckle! Sometimes I have to pull on their shoulder straps from the back of the carseat while pulling the long cord in the front in order to get it tight enough! If the next shoulder slot up is AT their shoulders, is that ok? I think that's where it hits. |
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Sheena H.
At shoulder level is fine. |
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Janel Thanks so much for this info - will check it out asap! |