Children are little explorers. Specifically, kids love to sneak into places they don’t belong. Unfortunately, when it comes to cabinets, there’s plenty to worry about. We’ve discussed baby proofing your home many times on the Child Safety Store Blog. Whether it’s keeping kids away from slamming doors or dangling window blind cords, we try to cover as many angles as possible.

Today, let’s talk about cabinet safety.

Beware of Dangers Lurking in Your Cabinets

Let’s face it, a small child can have all the toys in the world… but there’s no greater thrill than exploring the unknown. According to crawling babies and toddlers, cabinets often seem to hide the best secrets. At least, that’s certainly what it seems like to them. 

While some overturned cereal boxes can be relatively harmless messes, parents should take cabinet safety seriously. Many of these compartments can hide far more dangerous household objects, such as poisonous chemicals, sharp kitchen utensils and more. Even without the hazardous chemicals and dangerous items, cabinet doors can close tightly on little fingers. It’s better to play it safe. The key to cabinet safety is safety locks!

Types of Cabinet Safety Locks

Magnetic Locks 

Magnetic locks are a great cabinet safety solution. These devices are easy to use and relatively simple to install.

Typically, a magnetic cabinet lock will come in a set, along with a magnetic key. During installation, the locking mechanism is mounted to the inside of your cabinet. When properly connected, it will not open without the use of a special key. How does this magnetic key work? It’s actually quite a simple process. An adult can simply hold the key in front of the lock to gain access.

This KidCo Magnet Lock Set is an excellent example of this product. It protects your child from getting into hazardous places without damaging your furniture with screw holes. This magnetic lock system mounts firmly to any surface with an adhesive. 

If you’d like to see it in action, check out our full video review:

Swivel Locks 

Another type of cabinet lock is a swivel lock. These are hardware designed to be mounted directly to the furniture. Fortunately, these are usually mounted inside, out of sight. A prime example of these are the KidCo Swivel Cabinet and Drawer Locks. These feature a swivel arm that allows for the lock to become disengaged when it is not needed.

If you’d like to see it in action, check out our full video review:

Additional Cabinet Safety Tips 

Now you understand how to lock up your cabinets. However, that’s not all there is to know about cabinet safety. Here are some additional tips.

Lock in Secret

On the whole, our young children love to imitate adults. They are always watching. That’s great for behavior and language development, but in this case it can be dangerous. Put simply, they can watch you and learn how to disable the locks. 

To prevent this, never deactivate your locks while your little one is around. Always try to obscure their vision. Strive to keep the secret of the cabinet locks.

Active Supervision is Key

Above all, keeping a close eye on your child is crucial. Locking up the cabinets is an extra added layer of safety, but it can’t compete with an attentive adult. Using cabinet locks and other baby proofing products, such as child safety gates, are excellent helpers. That said, they work best when combined with a watchful, responsible adult.