Child Safety

Children Can Strangle On Curtain And Blind Cords

Curtain and blind cord can be a real danger to babies and young children. Since 1989, fourteen death and fourteen near-misses involving young children and blind or drapery cords have been reported to Health Canada.

Children in Canada were strangled when they got caught in curtain or blind cords. Most of them are under the age of 3.

Luckily, child safety is something that the window coverings industry has addressed within the last few years, and major manufacturers continue to develop new features to ensure the safety of your home.

Do not leave curtain and blind cords hanging. Keep the cords out of the reach of children. If you already have blinds, make sure that they are safe by eliminating any looped cords.

Cut the cords short. Tie the cord to itself. Whether the blind is up or down, make sure children can't reach the cord.

Keep sofas, chairs, tables, shelves or bookcases away from windows to prevent children from climbing up to reach the curtain or blind cord.

Use a clip, clothes pin, big twist tie, or tie the cord to itself with a knot to keep the cord out of the reach of children.

Get rid of the loop in the cord by cutting the cord in half. Then, put plastic tassels or a break-away device at the end of the cords.

Wrap the cord around a cleat that you have attached to the wall near the top of the curtains or blinds.

Child Safety Guidelines

First and foremost, NEVER put a crib, bed, high chair or playpen near a window or a patio door where a child can reach the curtain or blind cord and strangle.

If you have blinds with looped cords, you can make them child-safe by cutting the cord and attaching a new tassel to each cut end (see directions above).

Many products now come with special features which enhance product safety. If you have small children, you'll want to look for these features:

Break-Thru Safety Tassels break apart and separate when pressure is applied on them.

The Continuous Cord feature uses a pulley-like system with a single cord, keeping the cord loop taut and eliminating dangling cords.

The Cordless feature eliminates cords altogether. Blinds can be lifted or lowered by hand! Motorization features eliminate lift cords through battery operated remote controls. Shades can be lifted and lowered at the touch of a button, and should anything get in its way, the built-in Safety-Stop automatically stops the shade.

In addition to these great options, all of the blinds at Competition Window Coverings Ltd. use lead-free paint, which is one less danger you'll have to worry about. Some imported vinyl mini blinds contain lead, and when children chew on these blinds, they run the risk of lead poisoning.

No matter what choice is made for your window covering needs, please be careful and make the necessary precautions to help ensure your child's safety.