Technical question and seat check vent

[MommyG]

First off, I LOVE the seat techs that have helped me in my county.

They are so nice and accomodating.

But whenever I have had "help" I come away more confused than before....and everyone seems to say something conflicting.

2 years ago, they complimented me (it was dh though) on the solid installs, but we hadn't connected the top tethers (we didn't know we needed top tethers, then....the car seats had em...we just didn't use them) and they didn't say anything. Also, they told us to lock the unused seat belt behind the seat (but not through the seat) if we were using LATCH, cause it posed a strangulation hazard.

Now today, the techs told us that our harnesses only go up to 40 pounds (even though I have GNs), and that they have never heard of the strangulation hazard thing. And they said if I was concerned about that, to lock the belt in back of the seat and not behind it, because it looked like it was interefering with my LATCH. (But I don't trust my two boys in the third row not to play with the belt in the back, as it angles funny into their space.)

They installed 6 car seats in two cars. So we drove home one car empty after their install of course. (We only have 4 kids.) When I got home and went to put dd into the one they installed.....the harness ripped out! How could you accidentally hit the piece where the harness attaches when you are installing it to the point where it pulls out? Is this common?

So dh is all upset that we even went....cause now he has to do it again and they gave funky advice anyway. And just fyi, I live in one of the wealthier counties in the country from what I have read.....we must have good resources/training, etc, right?

So....and I do have a question here......

What is the right answer to locking off an unused seatbelt.

And, since I want to double check this advice they gave.......

I have two older boys in turbos in the third row. At rare times when my second row is empty because my little ones are off with Daddy, etc would it be okay to put the big boys in the GNs, even though the harness isn't technically fitted for them and the top slots are just below their shoulders? (They are nowhere near 65 pounds, btw.....which is the correct harness weight for those seats....not 40 like they said, right?)

What would be safer?

Thanks!

[papooses]

What a disappointment :thumbsdown: Your description of the harness is frightening -- I suggest you contact your local SafeKids coordinator & explain this to him/her.... Scroll down @ http://www.usa.safekids.org/ (state search box on the bottom right)

What is the right answer to locking off an unused seatbelt.Some vehicle manuals state which way they prefer. I can't remember at the moment if any carseat manuals specify, too. HERE (http://www.carseat.org/Resources/646_L-S_belt_warning.pdf) is the warning by SafetyBeltSafe USA.

I have two older boys in turbos in the third row. At rare times when my second row is empty because my little ones are off with Daddy, etc would it be okay to put the big boys in the GNs, even though the harness isn't technically fitted for them and the top slots are just below their shoulders?If they're at the slots then it's safe. "At" can mean 1/4 inch above or below because kids are capable of shifting a bit even when properly tightened up.

If the shoulders are clearly above the slots then it's not safe.

[Defrost]

Sorry you had a frustrating experience with the techs. Did you call them to let them know about the harness? It's important that they know about it - they cannot learn otherwise, and it would be awful if the mistake was repeated. :(

As for your questions, the issue with the seat belt just depends. Buckled seatbelts can interfere with LATCH anchors/straps, but it depends on the vehicle. Does your vehicle manual say anything about it?

And no, your older children should never use the harness on the GN if they have outgrown it - even though they are below the weight limit, there are other risks. When the shoulders are above the harness slots, the forces in a crash will cause spinal compression, leading to severe spinal injuries.

[Mommy2Marcus]

Just a question, but when you say the harness ripped out, do you mean like they broke the shell of the seat or simply that they somehow detached the harness from the seat somehow? I was just thinking that it would be something for it to have broken the shell. Sorry..just wondering!

[MommyG]

Just a question, but when you say the harness ripped out, do you mean like they broke the shell of the seat or simply that they somehow detached the harness from the seat somehow? I was just thinking that it would be something for it to have broken the shell. Sorry..just wondering!

Nope. One side of the harness just came out of the seat in my hands when I was trying to adjust. The loop had come off the metal piece where it attaches in the back.

Is that a weird thing to happen or what? It doesn't seem like they could have accidentally hit it? It seems like you would have to actually deliberately unattach and forget to reattach. But why would a tech need to reattach that part anyway?

I am still so confused!

Do you think my seat could be defective?

I am so nervous now.

[Defrost]

I do know that the GN has a smaller splitter plate than other carseats, so maybe that's partly why it happened. I can think of a number of reasons it could have happened that have nothing to do with a defect in the seat - most likely they simply made a mistake. Everyone makes mistakes; the important thing is that we learn from them, but these techs won't have that opportunity if they don't know about it. :thumbsup:

[azgirl71]

Our Dodge Rams require you buckle the seatbelt and lock it if it is not being used for the installation. It should say in your owners manual if you need to do this.

[MommyG]

Our Dodge Rams require you buckle the seatbelt and lock it if it is not being used for the installation. It should say in your owners manual if you need to do this.

Because lots of people said to recheck my manual, I did. But I doubted it would say anything because it is a 2002 and I was correct. I do not think this issue was on the radar until 2005 (see the article papooses referenced above) so I would be quite surprised if it is listed in any manuals before 2006.

If listed in your manuals, I am curious as to when your car was manufactured. If it is an older car, I am really pleassantly surprised that the manufacturers thought of that!

Thanks for the reassurance on my seat, Debbie. The weird thing (and why I am worried though) is that they didn't seem to change the harness settings. So why on earth would they even be using the splitter plate? I am almost wondering if it managed to work itself out somehow with our routine use and just failed after the inspection as a coincidence?

[papooses]

Because lots of people said to recheck my manual, I did. But I doubted it would say anything because it is a 2002 and I was correct. I do not think this issue was on the radar until 2005 (see the article papooses referenced above) so I would be quite surprised if it is listed in any manuals before 2006.You're right that the vehicle manuals started mentioning this only within the last couple years....

Thanks for the reassurance on my seat, Debbie. The weird thing (and why I am worried though) is that they didn't seem to change the harness settings. So why on earth would they even be using the splitter plate? I am almost wondering if it managed to work itself out somehow with our routine use and just failed after the inspection as a coincidence?
If I were these techs, I would definitely want to know what happened as well & would hope to reschedule you for a more in-depth look. Then, together, we could decide whether or not it's an issue with the seat itself that needs to be reported to NHTSA or whether the tech just needs to me more aware of being more thorough :)

[azgirl71]

Because lots of people said to recheck my manual, I did. But I doubted it would say anything because it is a 2002 and I was correct. I do not think this issue was on the radar until 2005 (see the article papooses referenced above) so I would be quite surprised if it is listed in any manuals before 2006.

If listed in your manuals, I am curious as to when your car was manufactured. If it is an older car, I am really pleassantly surprised that the manufacturers thought of that!

We have a 2001, 2005, and 2006. Iknow it is in the 05 & 06 manuals. DH lost the manual for the 01, so I do not know if it was in there.

[Sceason1972]

I think locking the unused seatbelt is more of an issue with rf. If a rf child get ahold of that belt - they could get it caught around their neck. I don't see how a ff child could mess witht eh belt as easily.

Obviously the techs did not realize that the GN is a higher weight seat - sounds like they need ot go to the stores to get more familair with what's new.

[MommyG]

I think locking the unused seatbelt is more of an issue with rf. If a rf child get ahold of that belt - they could get it caught around their neck. I don't see how a ff child could mess witht eh belt as easily.

And I would have thought that, too, until my now 3.5 year old grabbed the dangling belt while otherwise safely buckled in to his Britax one day. (Forward facing.) I admit I ignored the earlier tech warning until then but have been locking them off since.

I really hate that there are so many discretionary decisions like this in car seats. :(

But I know, that's life and we have a thousand little parenting decisions we make in a day. Somehow when it's about car seats, I want one right answer. Seriously irrational, I know.

[azgirl71]

My DD can't even reach it RF, but FF she could depending on what seat she is in. It is really more of a FF issue IMHO.

[mish]

My car is a 2008 pontiac torrent and it says to buckle the seatbelt behind the seat. My husband's 2001 Silverado says nothing, and it has latch. My 2002 grand am didn't say anything about it.

[fyrfightermomma]

What do you do with locking the seatbelts if you have locking latchplates, not retractors (06 dodge caravan)

My oldest can get to it somehow but even if I buckle it the shoulder part (that she can reach) is still free moving and she could still get it. Anything I can do for that??

[azgirl71]

What do you do with locking the seatbelts if you have locking latchplates, not retractors (06 dodge caravan)

My oldest can get to it somehow but even if I buckle it the shoulder part (that she can reach) is still free moving and she could still get it. Anything I can do for that??

If your seatbelt do not lock at the reatactor there is less of a possibilitiy of this happening. The concern is a child pulls the seatbelt all the way out and gets it locked in ALR mode after it is around thier head. It will only continue to get tighter and tigher the more they try to get out. With a ELR only retactor even if the child gets it over thier head they should be able to pull it right back off.

ETA: sorry I have no solution that comes to mind as far as preventing her from grabbing it in the 1st place.

[Defrost]

What do you do with locking the seatbelts if you have locking latchplates, not retractors (06 dodge caravan)

My oldest can get to it somehow but even if I buckle it the shoulder part (that she can reach) is still free moving and she could still get it. Anything I can do for that??

If the retractor doesn't lock, the strangulation risk is different. I suppose the child could conceivably wrap the shoulder belt around their neck, but it's not going to be tightening itself while it child is doing so.