Childproofing HVAC Floor Vents and Returns
- Feb 2, 2018
- 2 min read
Last week, when dropping my son off at daycare, I realized a toy was thrown down one of her floor vents. While looking to see how they managed to get a toy down there, I realized her vents were screwed into the floor.
Why didn't I think of this?!
I recently had my son take his floor vent off of the floor and throw it down into the duct sideways...yes he did this at the age of 2. I was so nervous because the hole was big enough for him to fall into, so we tucked the vent under the rug so he couldn't do it again. And I began to think... how can I make this safer so that he doesn't fall in next time? When I saw that his daycare screwed them into the floor, I thought "Brilliant!".
So, that brings me to this post: making your HVAC vents and returns safer for your children. There are some simple steps you can take in order to child proof your vents.
Here's How:
Screw or Nail the vents into the floors. This is a secure way to keep the vents from getting lifted up by little hands! But, this will put wholes into your floors. If you do not want to put wholes into your brand new hardwood flooring, we have another solution for you.
Double-Sided Tape the vents to the floor. Although this does not guarantee that those little hands will not be able to lift the vents, it does prevent having to put wholes in the floor.
Velcro the vents to the floor. If you are unsure about how secure double-sided tape is, this can be another alternative.
Although this post was originally intended to help prevent children from lifting up the vents and either falling in or getting cut; I came across some other brilliant ideas to help prevent toys or other objects going down into the abyss of HVAC vents. So I thought this would be nice to share as well!
Here's How:
Screen material can be put underneath the vents in a U-like shape to prevent things from falling through.
You can also close the vents that are commonly clogged with toys or other objects (playrooms, bedrooms, living room, etc.). Although this could lead to a cold room during the winter, its a great alternative if you do not feel comfortable putting material under the vents.
Now you have options to help prevent those little hands from getting hurt or hurting the HVAC vents! Keep in mind, you can always reach out to us if you would feel better about having a technician securing the vents for you.
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