Buying an Isofix base when car seat is not compatible with pram?

sjg666 · 27 January 2019 at 12:20PM

Hi

I'm currently pregnant with our first baby and am torn as to whether or not to buy an isofix base for the car or not.

I was very kindly given a car seat by my sister (Silver Cross Simplicity) as her little one has now outgrown it. We had already bought our pram when she gave it to us (iCandy Peach) and so the car seat is not compatiable with the pram which seems as though a major benefit of having an isofix is lost so I'm not sure it's worth the money for the small convenience we'd actually get out of it. Obviously we're happy to take the time to learn how to install it properly with the seatbelt if we don't buy an isofix and it seems (though I haven't yet tried it) simple to do it via seatbelt anyway.

I just wondered what thoughts people with experience using them might have in light of the fact that it's not compatible with our pram? I'm concious that I don't want to waste money on something that we don't need and can't use to its full potential.

Thanks in advance! :beer:

Sagaris · 28 January 2019 at 7:02AM

As long as your seat belts are long enough, then not using an Isofix base is fine. The main thing is not to leave baby to long in the car seat (no more than 20 minutes for the first month, then gradually increase to 90 minutes maximum), and no thick clothes, eg, coats, snowsuits, when in the car seat. The harness has to be tight against the body, thick clothes will compress and the harness will not hold the baby in a crash. Also use this seat until baby has outgrown it (check on the instructions, some are by weight and some by length) and get the next seat rear facing also, until a minimum age of 4 years.
I'm a road safety officer and had a few years of car seat fitting!

rach_k · 28 January 2019 at 1:27PM

I'd hold off on buying it. You could set the money aside in case you do end up wanting it, but I think you'll probably not want to bother and then you can spend the money on something fun instead!

Seats properly installed with seatbelts are just as safe as seats properly installed with isofix so there's no safety reason to buy the base. Do make sure you read the instructions properly and find the manufacturer's installation videos on YouTube if they do them.

The main reason (IMO) to choose isofix for an infant seat is to make fitting the seat quicker, but I didn't find we removed the seat very much anyway, for either of our kids. As Sagaris said, babies should be in car seats for the minimum time you can manage so you wouldn't be using the seat in the house (and they're a bad idea when used on a pram or supermarket trolley). You also realise that baby + car seat gets very heavy, very quickly so you won't want to be carrying the baby around in it either. For the first few weeks, we did put the baby in the seat inside the house then put them both in the car, but quickly switched to leaving the seat in the car.

sjg666 · 28 January 2019 at 7:46PM

Thank you Sagaris. I will check the seatbelt length and was aware of the no thick clothing etc advice so that's already in my head to remember.

Thank you rach_k. I suggested to hubby that we wait and see how we get on without it. I've had a good read of the instructions and found the manufacturer video which is handy.

DigForVictory · 28 January 2019 at 7:53PM

We migrated each of our three out of the "baby bucket" asap as the combination got really heavy & anyway with three was a hellacious combination, just not having enough hands.

We spent a lot of time carefully buckling people in - I don't think isofix speeds that much if at all. Finally, the going home from hospital carseat doesn't get anywhere near as much use as the able to sit up carseat, so hoard your money until that wonderful time & get one you can peel the covers off & wash...

Don't be seduced by the system. Stay firmly money saving - your little bundle of joy is not cheap to equip & run but (given time & training) are a joy to have around.

sn1987a · 28 January 2019 at 8:05PM

When I was pregnant I didn't think I needed an isofix. A friend gave me hers and I am glad I had one. During summer we hired a car and we didn't have isofix so using the seatbelt was a fuff. I suggest to keep the money aside and decide if you want one later. My reasons for suggesting to buy one is for convenience.
- easy and quick to take baby in and out of car, especially when sleeping
- no need to secure seatbelt each time you take baby in and out. So it becomes more secure as less chances of mistakes. And you don't freeze/get wet while you try to secure seatbelt.

It may not sound like a big improvement in your life, but if you are tired taking care of an infant, every small luxury counts! The isofix is useful for infant carseats mainly in my opinion as older kids can get in and out by themselves. We used our infant carseat for 13 months.

Aren't there any adaptors to attach your carseat to your pram? With or without isofix, keeping a sleeping baby in the carseat and moving it from the car to the pram frame is great! Obviously following the safety rules regarding keeping babies in carseat for limited time.

emsi_b · 5 March 2019 at 4:35PM

Just be mindful of the paranoia that might come with having a baby- I am grateful for the base purely because I know it's installed properly so baby is safer. Mine has a nice little chime and light to show it's in properly. I've not taken the car seat out very much as I favour a sling in the supermarket, but knowing it's properly installed whether I'm tired or not gives me peace of mind. Do iCandy not do converter clips so you can put the seat on the base?

Kynthia · 8 March 2019 at 11:06PM

To be honest I'm not sure of the relevance of the seat not being compatible with the pram to the decision regarding whether or not to buy an isofix base? If you use the seatbelt to secure the car seat, you need to undo it every time you put the baby in and take the baby out as part of the seatbelt goes over the baby. So using a seatbelt is a bit of a faff compared to having a base, but it's a faff regardless of whether or not you then take the seat out to put on the pram.

Using a seatbelt is just as safe as isofix if you do it right. However it is nice to just click it in place.

When buying the next stage seat I highly recommend the In Car Safety Centre. They sell nothing but car seats and are fully trained in them. Plus you book a slot to be seen so no hanging around waiting for assistance and you have their undivided attention while you're there. Unfortunately there are only 3 in the country.

Buying an Isofix base when car seat is not compatible with pram?

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