Best Window treatments for Child Safety

Best Window treatments for Child Safety

September 26, 2022 By Christine Bucks

Window treatments that have operating cords (cords that you use to raise and lower the window treatment) are a potential home hazard. That’s because those operating cords—especially long, dangling cords—can present a strangulation risk to infants and young children.

 

Making window treatments that are safer for homes with infants and young children has long been a top priority for Hunter Douglas. And with October being National Window Covering Safety Month, we urge you to use only window treatments with cordless operating systems or inaccessible cords if you have infants or young children in your home.

 

To help keep your little ones safer—and afford you peace of mind—please consider the following options.

Control Options To Consider

Control Option
PowerView® Automation
Pirouette in Shantung Ballet
Pirouette Window Shadings with PowerView Automation, in Shantung Fabric  Color: Ballet

Automated window treatments are inherently free of operating cords. And with PowerView® Automation, you can adjust them with the press of a button, tap on your mobile device or with your voice (when integrated with another smart home system).

 

You can even schedule shades with PowerView Automation to move automatically at certain times of the day. (For example, you could schedule them to automatically close during the afternoon, for your toddler's naptime.)

Control Option
LiteRise® System
applause-kinship-beach-glass-85732048
Applause® Honeycomb Shades with the LiteRise® System, in Kinship™ Fabric  Color: Beach Glass

With the LiteRise® system, simply push the shade or blind up to raise it or pull down to lower it—no operating cords required. This feature is available on a variety of styles, giving you lots of choices when it comes to a design aesthetic.

Control Option
SoftTouch® Motorization
Designer Banded Shades in Dobby Coconut Milk
Designer Banded Shades with SoftTouch® Motorization, in Dobby Fabric  Color: Coconut Milk

SoftTouch® Motorization, which is battery powered, allows you to raise and lower shades with a wand. Gently pull down on the wand to lower shades and push up on the wand to raise them. Operation is intuitive and easy with our unique “click and walk away” feature.

Shutters

NewStyle in Hybrid Polar White
NewStyle® Hybrid Shutters in Polar White

Shutters are completely cord-free, and are a classic solution for any room in a home. Our shutters are available in real hardwood, as well as vinyl and composite.  

Other Safety Features

pirouette-satin-metallic-copper-47703003
Pirouette Window Shadings with the UltraGlide® System, in Satin Metallic Fabric   Color: Copper

Our UltraGlide® system features a retractable wand or cord (depending on your product choice) to raise or lower your shade, eliminating long, dangling, operating cords. The wand or cord always remains a constant length when raising and lowering your window treatments. When you’re not using it, it retracts fully or to a minimal length.

 

We also offer a cord tensioner, which is designed to work specifically with products that have a continuous cord loop operating system. When properly installed, the tensioner holds looped cords taut, so the loop doesn’t become a hazard. (If the tensioner isn’t installed properly, the window treatment won’t function properly.)

Retrofit Kits

 

While the safest solution for infants and young children is to replace window treatments that have operating cords, you can reduce cord access on certain older products by ordering free retrofit kits from the Window Covering Safety Council.

 

You can order the kits here.

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