Still having trouble BLVD

[stephie1012]

i posted a few days ago i cannot get the straps on my BLVD tight...its really hard to do. I used this seat FFing with DD and had no troubles. Its so0 hard to tighten then when i get it tight its seems to loosed. Someone said to make sure the lever thing is down but how if im pulling up to tighten? is there something wrong with the install? heres some pics
eww i need to clean my car lol oh incase u need to know its an 05 Chevy equinox the seat is outboard passenger side..DD's regent is outboard drivers side
http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h191/cwm731/062-1.jpg
http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h191/cwm731/063-1.jpg
http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h191/cwm731/064-1.jpg

its a rock solid install it doesnt move at all...im just confused!
TIA

[Jeanum]

It may not make a difference with the difficulty you're having with the harness adjuster, but the Blvd. does appear to be over reclined based on the red recline angle line on the side of the Blvd. and the front of the Blvd's base appears to be slightly lifting off the vehicle seat in your photos. :twocents: If you're using the top tether to pull the rear facing Blvd. into a more steep recline angle, that could be what's causing the over recline and it can also potentially damage the Blvd's recline mechanism so that it won't stay in the mechanical upright mode for forward facing when it's time to install it forward facing. You can reinstall the Blvd. more upright rear facing by pushing down more on the front part of the Blvd. near where the child's feet would dangle when you tighten up the lower LATCH straps, and/or by scooting it a bit farther away from the vehicle seat crease (the "bight") before you tighten up the installation. Then just remove any slack from the top tether strap without pulling the Blvd. into a steeper rear facing recline. An acceptable recline angle would be between 30 and 45 degrees, with more upright (i.e., closer to 30 degrees) being more appropriate for an older baby/toddler with good head control, and more reclined up to 45 degrees being more necessary for a younger baby with floppy head control whose airway could be compromised by being more upright.

Trying to tighten up the harness by pulling on the harness adjuster strap in a more straight down direction, as much as possible any way with the Blvd. installed rear facing, might help. You could also double check to see if the harness is snagging on anything behind or underneath the Blvd. FWIW, it may work more smoothly after the Blvd. is reinstalled more upright. :)

[LISmama810]

You might already know this, but in case not: The adjuster on the BV ratchets rather than pulling in a nice, smooth flow. So rather than one nice pull, you need to do several short tugs.

[Defrost]

Do the lower anchors in your car stick out that far? I can see almost the entire LATCH hook, it almost looks like it's undone. But then, I'm used to the lower anchors being hidden in the crack.

[codex57]

Might not be overreclined. Could just be angle of the photos. Some cars have a very steep incline to their seats, so you gotta tilt the car seat just to make it level.

[Jeanum]

To me it seems more than just the angle of the photos or the vehicle seating surface's angle, although it is difficult to fully "diagnose" an installation from photos alone. It really looks like the top tether is pulling the front of the Blvd. up from the vehicle seat bight and compressing it deeply into the front edge of the vehicle's seating surface at an over reclined angle. :twocents:

[tiggercat]

When tightening RF seats, sometimes it helps to use one or two fingers to push down on the splitter plate on the back of the seat while pulling on the adjustor strap with the other hand.
Also, while rearfacing the rubber HUGS pads on the harness are optional. Removing them might allow for a tighter harness fit. Just make sure not to lose them, as they are required for forward facing.
One more thing, make sure you pull all of the slack out of the hip area before tightening (or after the initial pull on the adjustor strap). If you don't do this, every time you check for tightness, you will pull a bit of the slack out and it will take forever to tighten up.

I also think it looks a bit overreclined. Can you unattach the tether anchor, and push down on the Blvd where the baby's feet go while tightening the LATCH straps? Then reattach the tether and only pull out the slack, don't overtighten it.

[stephie1012]

thanks for all the tips...yea the latch sticks out far in my car its not burried in the seat crack at all, my little brother has an 08 mercedes and his a burried so far in the crack i couldnt find them at first!
Im going to try and reinstall today i think it maybe over reclined....DH like everything to be pulled super tight and i know he tightened that tether so it was like not movable at all

[mimieliza]

My Boulevard is difficult to adjust, too. It seems to help if I just buckle the chest clip, tighten the straps as much as I need to, and then buckle the crotch buckle.

[SafeandSecureBaby]

Make sure that the headrest portion, which also adjusts the harness, is lowered so that the harness straps are below the baby's shoulders. Please note that this isn't where the straps come out of the cover. You need to put your finger inside the hole where the harness comes out of the cover to actually feel where the harness is coming out of the shell.

Assuming that the harness is correctly positioned at or below the babies shoulder, next lower the hugs (the rubber type thingys that are supposed to keep the harness from twisting). Sometimes the Hugs can be too high and prevent the harness from getting tight. Once you have cinched the harness in short tugs, re-adjust the Hugs so that you can get the chest clip to be across the baby's armpits.

At this point, you shouldn't be able to pinch the webbing between your fingers. It should be tight.

[stephie1012]

thanks so much! it finally is working right! i think the straps were too high up for him, but we took it out of the car brought it in took the hugs off sat him in it inside adjusted the straps, installed it just pulled the slack out of the tether and it looks much better, the red line is where it should be.
thanks again for the help