When to make the move from car seat to booster seat?

[NanceXToo]

My son is going to be 5 in about two months.

 

He's still riding (very comfortably) in his Britax Boulevard 5-pt harness car seat. He's not too tall for it. He weighs about 39 lbs. I don't foresee having to move him out of it anytime very soon, but my husband asked me the other day when we were going to put him in a booster seat instead and I just said "I don't know."

 

When did you/When would you? (I don't even remember when I moved my nearly 10 y/o out of her car seat but I'm sure it was earlier than this point. For some reason, I became more carseat conscious by the time I had my son and he stayed rear facing a lot longer, etc).

 

P.S. When I do move him, it'll be into a highbacked booster seat, possibly a Graco Turbo Booster as I still have the one my daughter used and it's in very good shape (although I guess I have to research whether a well-kept booster seat "expires" like car seats do. We've owned it since May of 2007 and it's been unused for the past two years, just being stored. It's in very good condition. No-one's ever used it but my daughter, no accidents etc. I think it should still be fine, but I'll take thoughts on that, too, please. LOL. Thanks!

Edited September 2, 2010 by NanceXToo

[Crimson Wife]

I moved my 7 y.o. out of a 5 pt. harness seat only when her 4 y.o. brother got too tall for his toddler seat. I would've left her in it longer and gotten another harness seat for DS except we have an economy car and it's tricky getting 3 seats to fit in the backseat.

 

ETA: I should clarify that the now almost 8 y.o. was moved to a high-back booster. I'm planning to leave her in that until she outgrows it (goes up to 100 lbs. so it'll be a while).

Edited September 2, 2010 by Crimson Wife

[Mom2J112903]

You move a child to a booster seat when they can be responsible for their own life. Meaning they must be mature enough to sit properly-no moving, slouching, sitting like a prince/princess for the entire length of the trip.

 

The BLVD's top harness position is approx 16.5", so make certain the harness is always above his shoulders. If the harness comes from below his shoulders, he has outgrown the seat and must be moved immediatly.

 

Graco's expire in December of the 6th year after Date Of Manufacture. There should be a sticker or stamp with a "DOM" on the bottom of the seat. All seats expire as plastic degrades over time no matter what condition or elements they have been in. Of course they do not automatically implode but they do become brittle over the years and must never be used past their life spans.

 

Hope that helps :)

[Mom2J112903]

And the child must be 4yrs AND 40lbs before they can be out of a harnessed seat. Before this a child is at HIGH risk of submarining and this causes severe, potentionally life threatning injuries to the child. Even in a low-impact crash the child can suffer the metioned injuries.

[Carrie12345]

My 7yo's seat was 5-pt until we took the harness out about... 6 months ago? Maybe a little longer. (It has the built in clips for the shoulder belt.)

 

She's a peanut compared to the rest of my kids. At 7y2m, she's 46lbs. Her 5pt-harness was only good for up to 40lbs or something like that. Still, it's the same seat, so there was nothing overtly "special" about the change.

[Dinsfamily]

My 6.5yo is still harnessed in his Graco Nautilus. We'll keep him harnessed until he outgrows it by height. It goes up to 65 lbs in the harness but I doubt he'll reach that before he gets too tall. He still has another slot to grow into so it shouldn't be anytime soon. He's tall for his age but all of his height in on his legs LOL.

[leighp]

When he outgrows it?

 

My dd is almost 7, 43-ish lbs, and in a Britax Regent. In our other car she can ride in a high back booster. I started that when she turned 6, 41-ish lbs. Never on the interstate though.

 

My 14 month old just moved into a new, still rear-facing Britax Marathon 70 a few days ago. Before that he was in a Graco SnugRide 32. I'm praying this one seat will get him through until it expires or he is 5-6. If it does, he'll go to a booster from there. He's already massive compared to my dd at the same age.

[Caitilin]

You should, for maximum safety, keep your dc in a carseat, harnessed if possible, as long as he/she is within the height/weight limits for the seat. Thus, if your ds is still light enough for his current seat, leave him in. :D My 2-yo rode rearfacing till after his 2nd bday, and his seat will allow him to be harnessed up to 55 lbs; I am hopeful that he won't get too tall before he gets too heavy.

[NanceXToo]

The BLVD's top harness position is approx 16.5", so make certain the harness is always above his shoulders. If the harness comes from below his shoulders, he has outgrown the seat and must be moved immediatly.

 

Next time I buckle him in, I'll take a look at that specifically as I haven't really paid a lot of attention to that. I'm pretty sure he's still fine in that regard, but I will double check. Thanks!

 

So I see a few of you were able to use a 5 pt harness til your child was 6 or 7 years old! I'll take a look at where the harness is compared to his shoulders and make extra sure he's still fine height/torso wise. I know he's still fine weight-wise and seems to fit comfortably. So as long as he's not too tall I'm guessing there's no reason to move him out of it during his fifth year and that I can re-evaluate when he's more like 6 (I don't foresee him becoming too heavy for it, he's pretty lean. So I just have to keep an eye on his height).

 

Thanks for the responses!

[smrtmama]

Keep him in that seat until he maxes it out. The more secure the seat, the safer the kid. If they made a 5-point harness carseat in my size, I'd ride in it.

[leighp]

Keep him in that seat until he maxes it out. The more secure the seat, the safer the kid. If they made a 5-point harness carseat in my size, I'd ride in it.

 

lol! When I was in highschool, my dad and I restored this old pickup truck. It had a funky paint job that changed colors depending on the light, had ground effects, a sound system, and even some nitrous oxide that I was never allowed to use except on the race track. The seats had to go, so we ordered race car seats and we were harnessed in. Even though everyone at school loved the truck, I was always embarrassed by my harness. I had no idea, just how safe I really was in that thing!

[MorganClassicalPrep]

My 4.5 year old DD will be harnessed in her Britax Frontier until she outgrows it. Every time you step up in seats, you lose some safety. I bought the Frontier with the purpose of having a high weight limit harness.

 

Since she is currently holding at 45 pounds (and has been for almost 2 years now!) I'm thinking it'll be awhile until she goes up.

[FO4UR]

My 7yo is 47lb and in a 5pt harness. His is a Britax Regent, and he's got plenty of room to grow. I have no plans to put him in a booster in the near future. He buckles/unbuckles himself. There is no reason to move him to a booster!

 

 

This is a crash test clip. The dummie on the left is in a booster, the one on the right is in a 5pt harness. This video helped me in my decision.

[sheryl]

My son is going to be 5 in about two months.

 

He's still riding (very comfortably) in his Britax Boulevard 5-pt harness car seat. He's not too tall for it. He weighs about 39 lbs. I don't foresee having to move him out of it anytime very soon, but my husband asked me the other day when we were going to put him in a booster seat instead and I just said "I don't know."

 

When did you/When would you? (I don't even remember when I moved my nearly 10 y/o out of her car seat but I'm sure it was earlier than this point. For some reason, I became more carseat conscious by the time I had my son and he stayed rear facing a lot longer, etc).

 

P.S. When I do move him, it'll be into a highbacked booster seat, possibly a Graco Turbo Booster as I still have the one my daughter used and it's in very good shape (although I guess I have to research whether a well-kept booster seat "expires" like car seats do. We've owned it since May of 2007 and it's been unused for the past two years, just being stored. It's in very good condition. No-one's ever used it but my daughter, no accidents etc. I think it should still be fine, but I'll take thoughts on that, too, please. LOL. Thanks!

 

I did not read all of the replies but you MUST check with your state's laws regarding this. And, double check with federal law. Each law used to vary somewhat, unless that's been changed. HTH. Sheryl <><

[homeschoolally]

If they made a 5-point harness carseat in my size, I'd ride in it.

:iagree: LOL I've thought the same thing!

I agree with the others--don't be in any rush--the longer you keep them in 5 pt(as long as you're ok with weight) the better.

 

I consider this one of the extra perks of homeschooling too--when you aren't age-segregated there is so much less chance that a child will protest being too old for whatever carseat option you've chosen because there aren't dozens of other kids to compare with.

 

I made my oldest ride in a booster until it was almost embarrassing to my spouse--no complaints from my kiddo though! :lol:

[Terabith]

Maxing out the seat is not the only thing to think about. You want to make sure it hasn't expired. It's probably fine, but Britax seats expire after six years, I think.