Child Safety Cabinet Locks

How important are child safety latches on your kitchen, bathroom and garage cabinets? Do kitchen cabinet door locks really play a vital role in keeping your child or children safe?

According to Safe Kids USA, more than one million children, ages five and under, are accidentally poisoned each year. More than forty percent of these are from prescription drugs or over the counter medications. Other things children are poisoned from are cleaning chemicals, plants, pesticides, art supplies, cosmetics, and alcohol that can easily be mistaken for their glass baby bottle. According to the Centers for Disease and Control (CDC) 72 percent of poisoning deaths in the United States were unintentional and 10 more percent were of undetermined intent. That means around 27,000 children die each year when they do not have to, and the number rises each year. There are simple ways a parent or guardian can reduce the risk of unintended poisoning. Many of the children who are poisoned have access to medications and household cleaning products. In today’s market there are many different types of cabinet and drawer locks that can be installed to prevent these types of accidents.

One of the child safety latches a parent might consider is the interior swivel/swing drawer and cabinet lock. This lock is designed to be screwed to the interior side of a cabinet or drawer. It has a simple, one-hand adult operation. To disengage the lock, simply press down on the latch while opening the drawer or cabinet. It also automatically locks when the cabinet is closed, so a parent does not have to worry about whether they replaced the lock like they do when using other cabinet lock styles. Most of these child safety locks can be installed with a Phillips or flat head screwdriver or drill.

Another kind of child safety cabinet latch is the exterior cabinet slide lock. This is used on cabinets that have knobs on the outside. The lock slides open to go over both knobs on each door, then, it slides tightly together to make a secure fit. The upside of these locks is that there is no visible damage to the cabinet from screws. The downside is that a person has to remember to put the lock back on each time he or she unlocks the cabinet.

A cabinet safety lock which is kind of new to the market is the magnetic safety latch. Most magnetic safety latches work by having the locking mechanism positioned on the inside of your cabinet or drawer where it can’t be seen. When closed, it automatically locks in place. To release, you simply place the special magnetic “key” on the face of your cabinet door or drawer, and the latch will stay open until you remove the key. Magnetic locks can also be permanently unlocked. Many people like these since they do not have to remember to put the lock back on themselves and if a person buys one that uses adhesive to attach the locking mechanism to the inside of the cabinet, there is no lasting damage from screws. Also, extra magnetic keys can be bought in case one is lost.

Another lock that is fairly new is the lazy susan cabinet lock. The lazy susan cabinet lock is great for keeping your child safely out of the toddler-attracting lazy susan. This type of lock also works well for people who want to keep their pets out of their lazy susan too. It installs easily with screws on the inside of the cabinet where the holes will not be seen later when the lock is removed. Most also include an adhesive backing that lets a person check the alignment before drilling the holes. A dual locking mechanism helps keep your baby out, but allows for quick access by you.

There are many different types of safety equipment on the market that when utilized properly, can greatly reduce the risk of harm to loved ones. Some of these are toilet locks, appliance locks, stove knob covers, baby safety gates, window screens and guards, door knob covers, fireplace covers, outlet covers, and fire detectors. Most accidents can be avoided completely if some thought is put into prevention.