Car seat for motorhome

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ntjpm

Guest
I am new here and am hoping you can help me. We own a motorhome and I have a son who is currently three and 35 lbs however this June we are taking a trip to Indiana (live in WA state) He will turn four in April and I am going to need a new car seat that will work in the RV. There are only lap belts available and I have been looking at the Britax laptop but am wondering about the safety of them. Does any one have any information or sugestions? Thank you so much Tracy in WA
 
ADS

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
I have a review of the Laptop in the reviews forum if you are looking for more information. If your buckles are on a long stalk and tend to buckle in your lap rather than to the side of your hips, the Laptop may not work for you at all.

A harnessed carseat with a higher weight limit would also be a reasonable choice. The Britax Marathon, Wizard and Husky are options, as is the Nania Airway- especially if you have a top tether anchor available.

Whatever you choose, I highly recommend a visit to a certified technician!
 
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ntjpm

Guest
Laptop problem

Ok I went ahead and bought the Laptop off ebay. However when I put it in the RV there is a problem. The buckel meets in the middle. The Laptop users guide states that the bucket must meet on the side. Now what? There is absolutly no place to tether a carseat and no shoulder belts at all. What on earth do other people do? Any help would be so appreciated! Tracy in WA
 
Last edited:

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
Hi-

You cannot use the Laptop with those type of buckles:-( That is why I gave the warning about them in my previous post.

Unfortunately, motor homes are not very child friendly. In some instances, there may be no safe way to transport a child in some models. I assume people either use other transportation or let their kids ride unsafely in some cases.

I would suggest that you visit a local technician to see if they can offer you any advice in person. You can find one near you using the resources at the "Free Carseat Inspection" link under the top banner.

Without a tether, you best options would probably be a Britax Marathon/Wizard, Nania Airway or the discontinued Fisher Price Futura. Those will install with just a lapbelt, though again there can be incompatibilities.

Good luck!
 
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ntjpm

Guest
thanks for the prompt response. Apperently I can not read very well. I guess it is back to the drawing board. I have a call into the Rv manufacture to see if they can install a shoulder belt anywear. We'll see how it goes. Thanks again, Tracy in WA
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
Let me ask this- Is the belt on one side of the buckle long enough such that you could pull the buckle completely off to the other side? If so, you may be a workaround, but it would require an experienced technician to help you. It involves a special heavy duty locking clip to cinch the belt on the other side. If you have a technician in your area, I can refer them to the appropriate information on this if you find no other solution.

My apologies on the warning, I should have been more clear and given it more emphasis.
 
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ntjpm

Guest
Ok I talked to the manufacture and they have no way of installing a shoulder belt. Wall is not designed nor saftey tested for such thing.
So question for you if I get the Marathon or husky do they have to have a tether? My son right now is 35lbs and 39 1/2" tall. I have until June to figure this out and driving him around in an unsafe way is just not an option for me. So if anyone has any other bright ideas I would be forever grateful.

Ps do not feel bad about the warning I think the Laptop will work great for my truck and for sending him off with grandma. So it is not a total loss just nof the fix I needed.

Thanks again, Tracy in WA
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
I would not recommend the Husky, since it does require a tether once the child is 50 pounds. The Marathon, Wizard and Airway do not require a tether, though they do recommend one, of course.

You may also be interested in this organization:

http://www.saferidenews.com/html/indexhome.html

They also happen to be located in Washington state. More importantly, if you contact them, they may be able to send you some information on installing a custom tether anchor into your motor home. They wrote the book on the topic of tether installations, so to speak:)
 
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ntjpm

Guest
wonderful I will give them a try. I also called the NTHSA from this websites info and they gave me a number for a police officer in my area that helps with Car seat instalation. He is going to come by on Monday and take a look to see if he can think of anything. Thank you so much for your help I can not tell you how much I appreciate it.

Tracy in WA
 
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ntjpm

Guest
Ok well after about a million phone calls (it sure seems like it) I have the answer. According to the law if you are in a vehicle that only has lap belts available and your child is over 40 lbs they can by law be buckeld up in the lap belt with out a car seat. Also any convertaible car seat with a harness workes with a lap belt only until your child is 40lbs that is the point were the shoulder belt is required. Called Britax and they do not recomend a Belt shortening Clip for the Laptop. So here is what I am left with. I understand that in a huge accident with the RV that any car seat is not going to keep him safe. So my goal is to keep him as safe as possible for more normal things like a sudden stop or minor fender bender, And according to everyone I talked to my only option is the vehicles lap belt itself.

The officer I talked to is still coming over on monday so if he comes up with any other ideas than i will let you know.

Thanks again for your help, Tracy in WA
 

bazanna

Senior Community Member
While I will agree that in just about any motorhome, there is no safe seating except for the driver and one passenger, I'm wondering why you couldn't put him in his current harnessed seat? If he's only 35 lbs, just about any harnessed seat should fit him. Installing any seat into a motorhome, however, is another story and frankly, I'm not conviced there is any safe way to do that. Is the seat you are thinking of a captain's chair type seat or is it side facing or rear facing? What kind of seat are you wanting to have him ride on?
 
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ntjpm

Guest
If he is still under 40lbs when we leave that is what I will do. However we are not leaving for our trip until mid june so there is the possibility he will have gained that extra 4lbs or so by then. Plus what am I going to do when he is 5 and 6. The seat he would ride in is the dinete which is forward facing. This is actually really frustrating and I wish the car seat companies RV manufactures and law makers could all get together and find the safest soulution. although I think that the RV manufature does not even have a clue that this is a problem. Another thing I will be talking to them about when we get back there, Thanks though, Tracy in WA
 

bazanna

Senior Community Member
I wouldn't expect a 3-yo to gain 5 lbs in 4 months. They really grow slowly at that point. A forward facing seat in the MH is a plus. I guess the next thing I'd be checking is the actual seatbelt anchors themselves....are they anchored to plywood or metal? ...with actual bolts or just staples? Then I'd be thinking about the dinette table there in front of him....can it be removed and secured for while the MH is in motion? You don't want him flying into a hard table in a crash...or vice versa. If you can answer those questions to your own satisfaction, I'd say you might be good to go for this year. Personally, I don't think I'd allow my own kids to ride in a motorhome for some of the above reasons. I would not be satisfied with transporting him in a lap belt only, either. I know that throws a monkey wrench into your trip(s). :( Just my personal ramblings.
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
ntjpm said:
Ok well after about a million phone calls (it sure seems like it) I have the answer. According to the law if you are in a vehicle that only has lap belts available and your child is over 40 lbs they can by law be buckeld up in the lap belt with out a car seat. Also any convertaible car seat with a harness workes with a lap belt only until your child is 40lbs that is the point were the shoulder belt is required. Called Britax and they do not recomend a Belt shortening Clip for the Laptop. So here is what I am left with. I understand that in a huge accident with the RV that any car seat is not going to keep him safe. So my goal is to keep him as safe as possible for more normal things like a sudden stop or minor fender bender, And according to everyone I talked to my only option is the vehicles lap belt itself.

The officer I talked to is still coming over on monday so if he comes up with any other ideas than i will let you know.

Thanks again for your help, Tracy in WA

While it may be legal to use only a lap belt, it is not safe. The injuries sustained by kids from wearing lap only belts are horrible- lacerations to organs in the lower abdomen, septic shock from torn intestines, lower spinal fractures and worse. So much so that emergency room surgeons have given the symptoms a name, "Seatbelt Syndrome." If you can find any other option, including a custom tether anchor, your child would be much safer.

Incidentally, if you consult with SAFE RIDE News, ask them about the belt shortening clip and the laptop. The editor of this publication is very knowledgable, and was the one who recommended this as an option to a parent in a similar circumstance on a CPS mailing list some time ago. The direct links are here, though you may have to subscribe to see them:

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/CPSPList/message/1300

If this works as a last resort, it is likely to be much safer for the child than just a lap belt, though of course you would have to make the decision to do something not advised by a Britax customer service agent.
 
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ntjpm

Guest
Yep that is my delima. In truth being a passanger in the motor home is just not safe for anyone. I am hoping that the officer who comes on monday can help me out. The person I talked to about the Belt shortening clip said they could only help me with one if Britax signed off on it. So I guess it is a problem of the lesser of two evils. Not sure what I am going to do maybe just pray he does not reach over 40lbs by then LOL. I don't know I wish I had an easy answer or that more people could tell me what they have done. Tracy in WA
 
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ntjpm

Guest
CPSDarren Said
"Incidentally, if you consult with SAFE RIDE News, ask them about the belt shortening clip and the laptop. The editor of this publication is very knowledgable, and was the one who recommended this as an option to a parent in a similar circumstance on a CPS mailing list some time ago. The direct links are here, though you may have to subscribe to see them:

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/grou...st/message/1300"


Actually I did contact them and they said they had no idea and sent me on to "the Saftey Restraint Coalation" and they are the ones that told me what the law states and that there were really no other options unless Britax would sign off on the Shortening clip. which they didn't. I feel like I am going around and circles with this problem.

bazanna said
"I'd be checking is the actual seatbelt anchors themselves....are they anchored to plywood or metal? ...with actual bolts or just staples? Then I'd be thinking about the dinette table there in front of him....can it be removed and secured for while the MH is in motion? You don't want him flying into a hard table in a crash...or vice versa"


The seatbelts are attached to metal braces and are bolted the the braces while the braces are bolted to the RV floor. the dinete table can be easily put in the down postion so that is not a problem. thanks for the thougts though, Tracy in WA
 

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