Car seats and coats in this cold weather

[Anonymous]

I just warm up the car and give the kids fleece blankets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just warm up the car and give the kids fleece blankets.

Just make sure nobody's in the car when you're warming it up. Kids have died from CO poisoning when a dad was clearing snow around the car, and the kids were inside with the engine and heater running, but snow was blocking the exhaust pipe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Tell the shamers that it's actually better for the kids immune system to be a little cold.

Please define "little".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"I stick a blanket in the dryer for a few minutes before we leave the house to warm it up."

OMG. Every time?

One kid, I guess, right?

The person you are responding to. Yes - one kid. Yes - every time. It takes me 3 seconds. Laundry room is right next to the kitchen so it is not a big deal. Obviously, if the laundry room wasn't as convenient, I wouldn't do it. Why the snark? I was just sharing what I do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"It's about the coat compressing, which makes the belt not tight enough"

If you tighten the straps, and let the coat compress against the straps, you're in the same place you were without the coat. You're fine.

In any case, I have a hard time believing that the inch or so of coat thickness is really going to make any meaningful difference in car seat strap effectiveness. Certainly not so much of a difference that a kid is going to hit the seat in front of them solely because they're wearing a coat. Good God!

Again, this whole thing is a myth.

What I was saying in my comparison to seatbelt functionality is that seatbelts will always yield a couple of inches before they lock. So no matter what, (coat or no coat) the car seat straps, already being firmly in place, are going to better restrain the occupant.

If the chest clip breaks, which is what it is likely to do in an accident (they are a “pre-collision positioner” and are NOT meant to hold a child in the seat), an inch might make a difference depending on velocity, point of impact, and force.

[Anonymous]

We do a thick fleece for the car. We rarely drive anywhere that’s not going straight inside after so it’s not an issue. We also have no garage but I purchased a remote start aftermarket gadget so I can warm up the car without leaving my house and it’s ready for us when we get to it.