I'm confused by terminology / weight limits for car seats once the child is in a FF convertible. Where can I look for guidelines on weight/ height for this.
Before that, it's easy. Bucket seat until 30 inches. RF carseat until age 2 (or beyond if you can stand it). Then FF carseat until......???
wonderful pomelo / 30692 posts
Your manual will have the details for your specific seat. What seat are you using?
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
@Adira: That's the point, we need a new seat so I want to do some research ; ). I see people using terms like "harnessed booster" and have no idea what that means.
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@winniebee: http://thecarseatlady.com/booster-seats/
M is in a harnessed booster. basically it's a booster with a back that has a 5 point harness. Then you can use it as a booster with back and the car's seat belt then a backless booster with the car's seat belt.
I plan to keep her in it with the 5 point harness until she is at least over 4 and over 40 lbs.
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
@regberadaisy: Thanks! But it still doesn't say when your child can go from a convertible seat to a 5 point harness booster?
wonderful pomelo / 30692 posts
@winniebee: Basically you should use a car seat with a 5 point harness until your child grows out of it, but the longer, the better. The suggestions in our state are to use a harness until age 6-7. So a car seat with a higher weight/height limit, you'll be able to use for longer.
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
@Adira: we have a diono radian birth to booster in both of our cars for T - but we need to get THREE seats for R. One for each of our cars and one for the nanny. I want to get 2 more diono radians for us, but something else for the nanny. I'm thinking of a cheaper seat for T for her car and then put R in the spare Britax currently in her car.
wonderful pomelo / 30692 posts
@winniebee: A booster with a 5-point harness is essentially the same as a forward-facing convertible, so assuming your child meeting the requirements to use one, I think you can go for it whenever you turn them forward-facing.
ETA: The difference is that eventually you remove the harness part of the harness booster and then just use the booster portion.
http://csftl.org/harness-or-booster-when-to-make-the-switch/
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@winniebee: that differs between the car seats. Depending on the height and weight minimum of each harnessed booster/combo seat.
For example for th Graco Nautilus it's a minimum of 20lbs. It's basically a convertible that has the ability to switch to a booster.
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
@regberadaisy: Ah, I see. So she's still in the "carseat" but it switches to a booster eventually? That's the same deal with the Diono we have.
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@winniebee: yup, exactly! I was going to say I think the Diono is the same way but wasn't positive. Had I know when I was a FTM I would've just bought these instead of a Britax Marathon for M!
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
@winniebee: Did you decide on the harness to booster? I've got both the Britax Frontier and the Graco Nautilus and I have to say, if you're going to spend the money, get the Britax with the Click Tight technology.
As you can not use LATCH forever, it's your best bet at getting a seat belt install, it's changed my life.
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
@looch: Ok that's my next question...how do you know when to stop using LATCH? I'm looking for a website or something that explains all this! T won't be in a booster with belt probably until age 7. He's 3.5 and only 27 lbs!
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
@winniebee: In some instances you have to go by the car manufacturers, in some instances you need to use the car seat rules, because the manufacturers defer to the car seat people...but what we do is to follow the 40 pound rule, meaning, do not use LATCH after 40 pounds.
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
@looch: gotcha. thanks! T probably won't be 40 lbs for another 5 years, LOL. He gains probably 2 lbs a year at this point.
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
@winniebee: my son just hit 40 pounds and he's almost 5. We hovered at 38 pounds from 3.5 to just this past month.
wonderful clementine / 24134 posts
@winniebee: @looch: remember the LATCH weight is usually listed as a combined car seat + child weight. So if the seat weighs 18 lbs, your child can't weigh more than 22 lbs before you have to switch to the belt Ibstall.
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
@T.H.O.U.: For the Britax harness to booster, it's actually combined at 65 pounds, I just checked.
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
@T.H.O.U.: there is so much to remember...you'd think there would be better guidelines out there.
nectarine / 2018 posts
For best practice, which most likely doesn't line up with your state laws, a child should be rear facing until a minimum of two but ideally to the max limits of the seat, then harnessed until a minimum of five but closer to six or seven for most kids due to maturity, then a high back booster until its limits, then a no back booster until 10-12.
A combination seat, which is a seat that can be used forward facing with a harness and transitions to a booster, is just as safe in harness mode as a convertible seat.
Car seats made after February 2014 should have the latch weight limits printed directly on the seat!
wonderful clementine / 24134 posts
@looch: that's good to know. We already switch because she is over 40 lbs!
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