After you have purchased the seat, one of the most basic and essential steps is its installation. Many people face complexities while installing the base and seats. Here is a quick and straightforward guide that helps you through it.
It is important to note that the Car Base seats are an extra piece of device fitted on the vehicle using a seat belt. It is a creative accessory, more like a gadget, that allows you to click the infant seat on and off easily.
Before installing a car seat, ensure that your seat base is compatible with the car model to fit the car seat perfectly. Once you’ve placed the seat on the base and pressed it, it automatically secures it. Likewise, there is a button to detach the seat from the base. Some chairs have indicators that show that the baby seats are correctly fitted. Some baby seats come with the base. The base stays in the car, allowing you to detach the seat.
Installing a child seat can be difficult, especially for first-time parents, and more than half of the child seats are not installed correctly. When installing a backward-facing infant carrier, make sure your child is as safe as possible by following these steps:
Contents
Installing a Rear-Facing Infant Car Seat Base(Step by Step)
- First, you need to move the front seats as far as possible to create room to work in the back.
- Recline before installing the seat, and making the seat upright will help you get the seats installed tightly.
- To install the car seat base, place the base on the center seat of the car. The bottom of the child seat should sit at an angle of 30-45 degrees if adequately mounted on the rear. If possible, use the car seat angle indicator.
- Use the vehicle’s seatbelt to secure the car seat base to the car. All car seats have a “path” to thread the seatbelt through.
- Place one hand on the base of the car seat and hold the shoulder straps of the seat belt with the other hand to fasten the seat belt. At the same time, loosen the seat belt while pushing down on the base. The seat belt secures the car seat base so tightly that it will not slip.
- Check that the base is not loose. The base must not move when wobbling more than an inch in the seat belt path—double check the angle.
- Finally, attach the car seat to the base using the “click connect” system. To do this, place the car seat on the base, with the car seat facing back.
Installing the Base Seat to the Lower Anchors(Step by Step)
- First, you need to locate the anchors of your car. You can read the user manual of the vehicle for this purpose.
- The best place to keep the seat base is the vehicle’s back seat, as it is the safest place during the crash.
- Now that you have located the anchors, you have to anchor attachments on the car base seat. The idea is to lower the anchors.
- Press down on the car seat base firmly and tighten the straps. You cannot move the bottom of the car seat from side to side or front to back more than 1 inch.
- Make sure your base is installed at the correct angle of inclination.
- The baby should roll in a semi-reclining position to keep the airway open. Most infant car seats have built-in angle indicators or adjusters to help you. As your child grows, the angle may need to be adjusted, so be sure to read the manufacturer’s instructions.
How to Perform Car Seat Inch Test?
If you want to check whether your installation is secure, you can use this inch test. It will tell you about the security of the seat.
You can do the “inch test” by giving the car seat/base a tug forward and from side to side. If it moves more than one inch in any direction, uninstall and start over
Placing the Child into the Car Seat (5 Tips)
- Dress in the right clothes for your child. Make sure your toddler is not wearing bulky garments during the winter. That’s because wearing a warm jacket next to the child seat allows children to get on and off. Bulky clothing can lead to improper placement of car seat belts and indirectly compromise their safety.
- Fasten the seat belt over the child’s shoulders. The harness must lie flat, untwisted, and pass through a slot above or below the child’s shoulder.
- If there is a gap between the buckle and your child’s groin (common for young infants), try placing a rolled washcloth or diaper in the space for a more secure fit.
- Do not place thick pads under or behind your baby unless the child seat manufacturer recommends it.
- As your child gets older than an infant car seat, switch to a convertible or all-in-one car seat and use it in the rear-facing position. These seats often have higher height and weight limits for the rear-facing position, allowing you to keep your child facing back for longer. If an infant under one year of age is older or too heavy for an infant car seat, we recommend using a car seat with a larger rear-facing size and weight limit.
Final Words
We hope this guide has cleared all your concerns regarding a car base seat and the misunderstanding related to its installation. The process is pretty simple, and this accessory is very secure as well. Just watch out for the things mentioned above, and after a couple of tries, you’ll be a pro at this.