11 out of 11 people found this review helpful.
Great for a wide doorway, such as a bi-fold door
Date of Review: Apr 5, 2009
The Bottom Line: We would definitely recommend this gate to parent of infants and toddlers. Keep an eye on the rubber bumpers, however.
When our daughter was learning to crawl and walk, we were looking for ways to limit where she could go. While we endorse the concepts of healthy living and all that, we didn't want to raise a free-range toddler. So, you may have seen some of my other reviews on the Safety 1st gate, and the Super Yard.
In this case, we have a bi-fold door opening into the living room that was too wide for a Safety 1st gate. We used some string to tie the bi-fold doors open due to my fear of Jessica or one of her young friends getting a finger pinched as the doors were closed. So we found the Evenflo Soft Gate at Babies ‘R' Us.
This gate works a lot like a telescoping closet rod. You adjust it out so that both the top and bottom are a little wider than your desired opening, and then compress the spring on one end and slide the top or bottom in, and repeat for the other rod. Besides the top and bottom rails, there are two vertical rods, and then a canvas and mesh material that forms the deterrent.
[Update 4/11/09] This gate will accomodate an opening of 38 to 60 inches, and can be adjusted to irregular surfaces. Our door way is 48", and we also used in on our deck with an opening of 44". In both cases it worked perectly.
This gate is pretty sturdy. While I didn't endorse it, there were times, when I found my daughter standing on the bottom rail while holding on to the top rail. She was probably 10 or 15 lbs at the time. So it does hold pretty well, and it's pretty study.
You do need to keep an eye on the rubber bumpers on the end. We had one stick to the doorframe with out realizing it. Luckily we found it later. Without the rubber bumpers, it won't stay up safely.
All in all, we've been pretty happy with this product, and would definitely recommend it to parents.
