How To Keep Toddlers From Unplugging Cords? 7 Tips
It can be terrifying when you have electronic gadgets all over your place and your baby is learning to take their first steps. Needless to say, they will crawl or walk up to any furniture or electronics and try to hold them with their tiny hands.
To keep toddlers from unplugging cords, you can easily secure them with cord wraps or protectors. Strap down your cords to keep them in place. You should place furniture around the electrical outlets so that it is hard for toddlers to reach. Cords can also be protected from being pulled out by using outlet boxes.
One of the dangerous things that a toddler loves to do is unplug electrical cords. So how do you keep toddlers from unplugging cords? Here is how.
How To Keep Toddlers From Unplugging Cords? 7 Tips
Once your baby learns to walk, you’ll have trouble keeping up with everything they do.They will try grabbing anything they find beforehand, especially cords. Here are the tips and tricks for you to know how to keep toddlers from unplugging cords.
Block Outlet Access
Your baby can move as much as the spaces they see upfront. If you have cords and cables that are in sight, babies are bound to go and try to unplug them. You should try to use furniture to block out outlet access.
If the sockets where the cords are plugged in are not in sight, the babies can’t pull them. Try to bring the cords from behind furniture as well, so there are no wires left to be pulled out by toddlers. This will keep cords out of the baby’s reach and also block out outlet access.
Strap Cords Down
There are many downsides of having long chords all over the place. There’s a good chance your baby will trip over them. It may also damage your electronics as well as electrocute the baby. This is why you should strap your electronic cords down. This will always keep your wires in their place and not move about.
Your babies will not be able to touch them or pull them out of the outlets or sockets. You should use tape to align it to the wall. This is an efficient method to keep your toddlers from pulling out electrical cords.
Cord Wrap
An easy method you can use to keep your toddlers from pulling electrical cords is by wrapping them up. You can wrap the cords and tie them with tape or a zip tie to put them together. This helps to keep all the cords managed in one place.
With less cable lying around your toddlers will have nothing to pull. The cords may also be put together and wrapped using rubber bands and paper clips. You should make sure that the ties hold all the cords together and don’t get loose from the slightest of pulls. You can wrap the wires of your baby heaters and keep them out of reach too.
Cord Shortener
This is a similar method of wrapping up cords. Cord shorteners are designed in small boxes. They help fasten the cords and wrap them around inside them. This helps to shorten the cord lengths and keeps them from being all over the place. Your toddlers will be unable to pull or chew on a cord if it is smaller in size and out of reach.
Cord Protector
These are small rubber or plastic tube wraps that cover the entire wire from the tip to the very end. There won’t be any wire breaks or electrocution as a result of this. No matter how hard they try to bite or pull the cable-protected cord, they will stay safe from potential injuries.
The cords are made to be shockproof so the babies, even if they manage to pull the cord, are safe from potential accidents.
Self-closing Outlets
This is rather a different method of keeping your toddlers out of harm’s way. This method focuses more on the outlet rather than on the cords themselves. Self-closing outlets have windows that open up when a plug is pushed in.
Similarly, they close the sockets as soon as the cords are pulled out. This can help prevent electricity from passing through the wires when being pulled by your toddler.
Outlet Boxes
Outlet boxes are another form of protection that creates a layer around your outlet. It is a box designed to keep your electrical cords in place and then locked up. This helps not only prevent electrical shocks but also keeps the environment safe.
When your toddlers start pulling the cords, it will not pull the plug out of the socket. The box prevents pressure from the wire from entering the input. This way your cords won’t come out of the outlet even if your baby is trying hard to pull them out.
There are many ways to cover outlets so babies can’t stick objects or their fingers into the electrical cords. Let us read more to find out how we can prevent them.
How To Prevent Child From Sticking Objects In The Cord Socket?
Babies are always curious. They touch objects and their surroundings to understand the world around them. While that is amazing, it is dangerous too. That is why having electrical cords around is risky.
Even if there are no cables or electronics plugged in, a toddler may still crawl up to an empty socket and put their fingers into it. So how to stop them from sticking objects in the extension cord socket.
Tape The Outlet
The first thing you need to do if you have an empty socket is to cover it up so that your baby doesn’t notice the small holes. Taping the outlet is the cheapest way to keep your child from sticking objects. If you have an outlet that you do not use and your baby seems to always go towards it, use scotch tape.
Cover up the socket holes with it so your baby has no place to put objects or their fingers inside. This way whenever you need to reuse the outlet you can just simply pull out the tape and use it.
Electrical Outlet Caps
These are available in the market. You can buy a whole pack of them to keep around. These are used to cover up the holes in the outlet so that your toddlers do not put objects or their fingers into the socket holes. These are entirely made of plastic and come in all shapes and sizes.
The top of the outlet cap is flat which makes it harder for your toddler to pluck it out even if they try. They will be unable to poke anything inside as the holes are all closed up. They are easy to lose, however, a packet of them contains many replacements.
Furniture Placement
If an outlet is left unused and the entire wall is blank, it is best to fill it up with furniture. The furniture will block the socket holes completely and you will not need to worry about the socket at all. You will not need to worry about your baby trying to put objects or their fingers through socket holes anymore as that outlet isn’t even visible anymore.
Babies will want to move about as much as they can. So, try getting them a swing to keep them occupied and happy.
Conclusion
To keep your toddlers from unplugging cords, use tape to strap them down. You may also use wraps or cord shorteners to keep them limited and out of your toddler’s reach. Place outlet caps to block out unused outlets to keep them safe from your child.
Jennifer Crowley
I'm Jennifer, a dedicated mother passionate about writing insightful blog posts. My life revolves around the joys and challenges of parenting and brings my unique perspective and experiences to writing, with a keen eye for detail and a love for storytelling. My blog is a platform for sharing parenting tips and advice and a place where I want to be with other moms and dads, offering them a sense of camaraderie in the wonderful, chaotic world of parenthood.