Do car seat bases expire is a top query for many parents.
The safety and comfort of our little ones is an area parents of all ages should always prioritize. And riding with your baby in a car is no exception.
Yes, infant car seats may be safe, but top it up with car seat bases, and the safety of your child will be your least concern.
Plus, it’s convenient, and it’s much easier and faster to secure the infant’s car seat in the car.
All You Need To Know About Car Seat Bases
A car seat base is a semi-permanent device fitted in your vehicle using the seat belt or ISOFIX system.
It allows you to click the infant seat on and off the base easily.
Latches in the base automatically secure the seat once you place it on top of the seat base and press down.
Similarly, there is a button or a handle that you can use to detach the seat from the base. Car seat bases have indicators that show if the infant seat is fitting correctly.
As mentioned, car seat bases either have the ISOFIX, seat belt fitment system or even both. The former being the safer option and much more convenient.
Some infant seats come with a base that stays in the car. However, depending on the brand you may have to buy it separately.
It’s vital to ensure that a car seat base is compatible with your vehicle before using it. Not to mention the car seat has to fit perfectly to the base.
1. Do Car Seat Bases Expire?
Like many baby products, car seat bases do expire. Similar to car seats, bases have to meet manufacturers testing limits.
So eventually, they are bound to wear out after years of use.
Most have the exact expiry date as listed by the car seat they come along with.
However, if you acquired the car seat base separately, it’s best to check the sticker located primarily at the bottom of the unit.
Alternatively, you can consult with the product’s manufacturer for the expiry date.
Typically, the majority of car seat bases expire between 6-10 years from the manufacture date.
If an expiry date doesn’t appear on one of the labels, the alternative option is adding the useful life (usually found in the manual) and adding to the manufacture date.
Using a car seat base after its expiration date poses a safety risk to your little one.
For instance, the locking functionality may become obsolete, failing to grip and secure the infant’s seat as expected.
More importantly, you don’t have to always stick to the instructed expiry date to know when the car seat base is no longer helpful.
It may start exhibiting signs of malfunctioning or attrition even before the expiry date.
So regularly inspect and replace it especially the car seat base doesn’t secure effectively.
Related Post: How To Stop Toddler Escaping From Car Seat
2. Why Do Car Seat Bases Expire?
There are plenty of reasons as to why to trash car seat bases and buy new ones. For starters, normal wear and tear after years of use.
Exposure to sunlight or the hotness inside a car and the temperature fluctuations between seasons affect the car seat base.
Most of these units consist primarily of plastic. Heat affects plastic’s toughness bit by bit, ultimately breaking it down.
Also, in this fast-paced modernization era, many brands frequently update their car seat base features.
Due to frequent changes in vehicles and safety technology, replacement parts might be out of stock at one time.
Other causes that can affect a car seat base performance include:
- Food particles, toys or other small gadgets might get stuck jamming the latching technique.
- Constant latching and unlatching make the springs wear down.
- As your baby comes of age, the weight continues to compress the base.
- Willful kids’ behavior may cause small cracks.
The truth is, car seats do expire. However, what many parents don’t know is whether car seat bases expire.
After years of service, these convenient products are bound to wear out.
Therefore, it’s vital to check for any damages regularly and if a car seat base is up-to-date before reusing your car seat base for another kid.
Mo Mulla is a work from home dad who enjoys reading and listening to music, He loves being a dad and husband to a growing family. He also loves writing about his passions and hopes to change the world, 1 blog post at a time!
