It is time to make sure your entire house is safe for your child once your baby starts to crawl. According to the National Institutes of Health, childproofing your home is super important because of common pediatric injuries like drowning and poisoning from cleaners or medications.
We baby-proofed our house probably almost a year ago now, but it seems like every day, our toddler is getting into something new. Wanna know about her latest obsession?
The oven, yes!
It makes sense since she loves to explore. Undoubtedly, climbing on the oven or oven drawer is unsafe, but the oven drawer could be full of filth, which can make your baby sick, right!
I understand you don't want your baby to hang out in there because I don't too!
I researched how to baby proof an oven drawer, and here I am going to reveal 5 simple ways.
The oven drawer is a strange storage area, but keeping the baby out of it is pretty simple. Let's find out how:
Table of Contents
1. Strap Latches
Simple Strap latch like this one on Amazon is the most definitive solution of all time to baby proof oven drawer, in fact, any drawer in your home. They're not always attractive," says Dann, "but they are a necessity."
Six products will come in a pack of Strap Latches and with them you can secure not only your oven drawer but also your kitchen cabinets, doors, windows, refrigerator, oven door, freezer, toilet, fridge, trash can, and even washing machine.
Just use a hairdryer or dental floss to remove.
2. Use Magnetic Locks
Using magnetic locks is one of the most popular ways to baby proof. Oven Lock works by mounting the hardware inside the drawer. Magnetic locks will not unlock until you open them with a magnetic key or any magnet in case you lose the key.
Magnetic locks are secured with high-quality tape to keep the locks in place. It will come in a pack consisting of one magnetic key and numerous locks. If you need to remove them, you can rest assured that they will not damage your cabinets or drawers.
You'll be wondering how you managed without these essential kits.
3. Gate off areas that might be unsafe
According to child-safety experts, children should be kept out of the kitchen because no amount of childproofing can make a kitchen safe for babies.
All kitchen entrances should have a safety gate to keep children safe out.
They are also good for doorway, hallway and bottom of stair use. You can quickly remove the baby gate out for easy storage.
If you don't like the gate's looks, you can stain or paint safety gates to match your kitchen or your baseboards. The safety of your child is the foremost thing.
Please be sure to measure your opening before purchasing a gate to ensure proper fit.
4. Fill Oven Drawer With Non-harmful Stuff
Designate one floor-level drawer or cabinets for the baby. Instead of other objects, fill the drawer with plastic storage containers, wooden spoons, parchment paper, and other items with what baby can safely play while you're cooking.
As your child grows older and you feel comfortable with their access to the drawer, you can organize the drawer for easy snacking and lunch-making.
Most importantly, keep the drawer clean.
5. Keep oven Drawer Empty
Keeping your oven drawer empty and clean is the easiest and most straightforward way to baby proof it. And your baby will get bored with it pretty soon when he/she doesn't find anything in it to play with every time they get to open it, and eventually, they will forget about the drawer in no time.
You can shift all the products from here to the other upper cabinets out of reach of your kids.
That's probably the most cost-effective solution, as baby-proofing devices can add up price-wise.
Final Advice on Baby proofing
When it comes to baby-proofing, your kitchen requires extra attention. A little prevention can save you in the long run. Luckily, baby-proofing your oven drawer is not so complicated. Just pick one of these five options I've mentioned here, according to your preferences.
