Kids sure have a way of sprouting up overnight at times, don’t they? Sometimes it can happen so quickly that we don’t even realize how much they’ve grown until we happen to catch a glimpse of them a certain way. Just like clothing sizes need to be adjusted as a child grows, a child’s car seat also needs to be adjusted in various ways to accommodate their growth.
Every car seat is different, and each one has different rules when it comes to adjusting the harness, the buckle, removing inserts, etc so it’s critical to review your manual periodically. This article will specifically address how and when to adjust the height of the harness.
The vast majority of car seat harnesses will adjust for height in one of two ways.—They’ll either have a “traditional rethread” harness, or they’ll have a “no rethread harness”. Again, please review your manual for your specific seat.
Traditional Rethread Harness: Car seats with this style harness will have various slots in the shell (frame) of the car seat which the harness is threaded through, and a metal piece called a splitter plate to which the harness is secured. The splitter plate is attached to one end of the harness adjuster “tail”, which comes through the bottom, front of the car seat and is what is pulled on to tighten the child’s harness.
To decipher where the harness should be, one needs to look at where the child’s shoulders are in reference to the harness slots, and take into account whether the child is rear facing or forward facing. (Remember: Any time that a child is rear facing, the harness must be level with, or below the child’s shoulders; when they’re forward facing, the harness needs to be level with or above the child’s shoulders. Additionally, some car seats have restrictions on which harness slots may be used for each direction so again, it’s critical that you refer to the owner’s manual for the seat.)
Often the easiest way to adjust the height of the harness is to uninstall the car seat, loosen the harness a bit, and turn the car seat over so that you’re looking at the back of it. Slide one side of the harness off of the splitter plate and pull the strap through the front of the car seat. Ensure that there are no twists in the strap and then route the harness strap through the appropriate slot, taking care to place it through the same layer of fabric/padding as the shell of the car seat. Fully re-attach the harness strap to the splitter plate as specified in the manual. Repeat for the other strap, ensuring that both straps are at the same height. After the seat is re-installed, double check that the harness is now at the appropriate height for the child. If you’re unsure if it’s at the correct height, a helpful tip is to place a butter knife or popsicle stick on the child’s shoulders and see where the tip is in relation to the harness slots.
Pro Tip: The harness should always be at the closest slot to the child’s shoulders which is also appropriate for the direction in which they face.
No Rethread Harness: Car seats with this type of harness often adjust by squeezing a handle at the top of the head rest, and pulling the headrest up/pushing the headrest down. As the headrest height changes, so does the harness height. Frequently, this type of harness can be adjusted without having to uninstall the car seat.
Sometimes it can be difficult to gauge exactly where the harness is in relation to the child’s shoulders. Since this style car seat doesn’t have harness slots, the “popsicle stick test” described above isn’t as useful. Instead, what I often advise caregivers to look for is how the harness looks on the shoulders themselves.—Is the harness curving over/around the shoulders (which is what we’d look for when a child is rear facing), or is it angling upward by the child’s shoulders (which is what we’d look for when a child is forward facing)?
After the harness is adjusted to the appropriate height, the caregiver should ensure that the head rest is locked into place so that it’s not “between” adjustment settings.
These are only two examples out of many. The car seat which you have may adjust in a different way altogether. The car seat manual will always explain how and when to make adjustments. If further clarification is needed, caregivers can contact the car seat manufacturer directly. Meeting with a certified Child Passenger Safety Technician is the best way to ensure that your child’s seat is not only adjusted correctly, but installed correctly as well. You can schedule an appointment with Super Car Seat Geek via Facebook, email, or the “Contact Us” portion of the website.
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