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View Full Version : Car seat stages and ages



mlc1982
08-30-2011, 07:19 PM
At what age/weight do you put a child in a booster seat instead of a full straped car seat?

If a child was at the proper age/weight but they were still in a full car seat at home, would you continue to put them in the car seat or switch them to a booster while in your care?

CPST_Manda
08-30-2011, 07:29 PM
I would probably be comfortable boostering a 6 year old. I would definitely make sure it's a high back booster vs a no back booster because they tend to thread the shoulder strap properly across their little bodies. If they were in a 5pt harness at home though, I would definitely continue to do that. The TrueFit is a relatively inexpensive seat with tall top harness slots that goes up to 65lbs.

Emilys4Guppies
08-30-2011, 08:42 PM
I don't drive the children, but my initial thoughts are that I would harness as long as I could for DCKs. I mean, my 6yo is still in a 5pt harness. My 3yo turned forward facing just a few months ago. I believe in harnessing kids as long as possible and even if a parent had their child in a booster in their car, I might feel compelled to keep them harnessed longer for my own peace of mind while driving.

FS2011
08-30-2011, 10:27 PM
I actually went out and purchased a truefit for one of my overweight dcks because he technically was too heavy for a 5 point harness but was way way to young for a high back booster. Safety first here and always following the rules. I'm taking my child passenger safety educator course specifically to be more experienced when it comes to transporting my dcks. It's all ages and stages and so much to know these days!!

zen39
08-31-2011, 07:29 AM
I don't drive with my dck, but with my own children they were boostered once they were over the 40 lb mark and we have the high back boosters. One child was boostered earlier at age 4.5 because she was quite tall and weighed around 45 pounds. Where as my other child was 5 before she could be safely boostered.

mlc1982
08-31-2011, 02:48 PM
Thanks for the responses. I researched it as well and I'm glad I did. I was under the impression that kids could be boostered as early as 4 years old ... and not in the high back booster type but just the little stool basically.