Two children plus one cramped bedroom? The solution is bunk beds!

Bunk beds can be a great way to provide extra sleeping space while saving floor space, but they should be used with a certain amount of caution. A new study discovered that nearly 36,000 adolescents and children are treated for bunk bed-related injuries every year. From 1990 to 2005 about 573,000 children from infants to age 21 experienced injuries significant enough to warrant a visit to the ER. Nearly half of the injuries happened in children under 6, but there also was a surprising increase in accidents among 18 to 21-year-olds, who had twice the number of incidents as adolescents ages 14 to 17. Learn more on bunk beds.

Nearly three-fourths of the children were hurt by falls, with close to 30 percent suffering severe cuts, nearly 25 percent reporting scrapes and bruises and about 20 percent suffering fractures. Worse yet, more than one in ten experienced concussions. The study showed one half of the children suffered injuries to the head, neck or the face, and that children younger than 3 years old were roughly 40 percent more likely to get head injuries than older children. Approximately 60 percent of the kids injured were boys (not a particularly surprising statistic!) Learn more on soft bamboo sheets and comforter sets.

There are voluntary safety guidelines for bunk bed manufacturers which have been put out by both the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the American Standards of Testing and Materials. You need to find out if the bed you are considering fulfills these requirements.

1) Thoroughly inspect and test the frame of the bunk bed for durability. The best test is for someone to climb onto the bed and move back and forth, and side to side; the bed should easily support an adult’s weight without making any noise or feeling any movement of the frame. Better yet, have the salesman climb up on the top bed to show its strength.

2) Look over the whole bed from top to bottom to ensure that there aren’t any possibly unsafe parts protruding, that there aren’t any sharp edges, and that the complete construction is smooth. Be sure the bedposts don’t have knobs or finials which might snag clothing and other objects.

3) The top bunk should always have safety rails on both sides, even when one side is next to a wall. To prevent a kid from getting stuck between the rails or between the bottom rail and the mattress, no gap should exceed 3 ½ inches, therefore preventing entrapment and strangulation. The top rail should be at least five inches higher than the top of the mattress to keep the child from falling.

4) The gap between the mattress and the bed frame should not exceed three inches anywhere around the bed. If there is a gap larger than three inches, then you have the wrong-sized mattress. A kid who falls into the gap between the bed and the mattress while sleeping might be strangled, which regrettably has happened.

5) Make sure that the ladder is well made and well attached to the bed frame. A well-made ladder ought to be able to sustain a parent’s weight without moving around. As suggested above, have the salesman demonstrate the strength of the ladder by standing on it and moving from side to side. The ladder should not move at all.

6) There have been quite a few reported occurrences in which the top mattress is moved by a child on the lower bed pushing up on the upper mattress supports. The mattress supports for the top bed should be safely attached to the bed frame with bolts or screws. Unstable supports could cause injuries if something is unfastened and this kind of construction ought to be avoided.

7) Periodically examine the bunk bed for any loose or missing hardware and replace them immediately. Immediately! During the inspection be sure to check the horizontal
rails holding the top mattress and all of the hardware keeping the bed together.

You should never allow a child less than 6 years old to nap (or play) on the upper bunk. As pointed out before, one half of the accidents happen to children under 6.

9) Situate the bed away from ceiling fans and light fixtures (which should be apparent!). Also, you should make sure there is ample room between the upper bunk and the ceiling.

An alternative type of elevated bed you might think about would be the loft bed, which has an open space where the bottom bed would ordinarily be. This space could be used for a dresser, desk and chair, a TV, or even storage. The safety rules for bunk beds also pertain to loft beds and the same care ought to be observed whenever paying a visit to a furniture store. If you obtain either type of bed from an Internet dealer, make sure it follows the ASTM standards.

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