Stokke Tripp Trapp - Dangerous - Beware

[luckylori100]

Oh my Lord! I was just about to buy this. Thank you! What do you suggest for my 6 month old girl?

[nikolajmurray]

You can put wheels under then it wont topple over !

[nikolajmurray]

How about bolting the chair to the floor ? or perhaps buying a table where it isnt possible to kick/push away from the table,with their feet ?

[EandR92]

Hi James. Thanks for the video. I have just bought this chair and would like to use it for my baby who is just sitting up. I can very much see the possibility of tipping. Do you think the extender gliders are adequate? I wouldn't mind adding more to the bottom of the chair to make it safer. What would be your recommendation?

But even with modification, I'm so annoyed that Stokke would even sell this without making it safer themselves. Completely irresponsible. Thankyou for your work.

[jamestripptrapp]

@EandR92 Hi, I'm no expert but the only way I could have piece of mind is either don't use the chair yet, or position it so the baby's back is to the wall. Depends on your kitchen layout of course. The gliders are probably ok, but I'm not sure if they could catch on the edge of a tile or something, so I can't really comment.

[jamestripptrapp]

@jamestripptrapp Oops! should have said 'peace' of mind. Not 'piece' of mind.

[daxcastro]

@EandR92 This is simple Geometry. If they would have extended the legs just a 8 inches farther the baby could not have the leverage to pus the chair back. Shows that adequate testing was not done. Simple solution if you have this chair... go down to your local lumber/hardware store and pick up a 1x4 and cut two 16" lengths. Screw them with several screws on to the inside of each leg with 8" of overlap. 4 staggered screws do the trick.

[urkinolalloso]

i guess there is no ideal chair, the video shows that the tripp trapp is not for all kids, not for all ages. i know many people who are very happy with the tripp trapp (positive experiences mostly) and some who are very unhappy (messy, bulky and unsafe for under 18 months). we're planning to have a "standard" high chair with a plastic tray for starters (our baby will be 8 months soon and so far we've fed him in our arms or a car seat) an wait until he walks well before trying a tripp trapp.

[jamestripptrapp]

@urkinolalloso I totally agree with you. We put the Tripp Trapp away for a year or so and got a cheap standard type high chair. Once James got older, he started to use the Tripp Trapp again, in fact still does at age 7!! My point in putting this video online is to urge people to consider whether they want to put a small baby in the Tripp Trapp. Check your flooring surface, table height etc before making your decision. In certain circumstances, as shown, it can be a danger.

[jeffzelf]

I've scoured the entire internet for any instruction on how to attach the Stokke Tripp Trapp extended gliders and in the end (after downloading every tripp trapp manual on the Stokke.com site found that just one had actually the montage instructions!! You need to download the Newborn set version on the Stokke.com site

[msjifyournasty]

Thank you soooooo much for this video, you may have saved my sons life

[planktomable]

Thanks very much for posting this video, it really highlights the dangers. We are about to but two of these for our twins, and will take real care to place them against a wall or/and fit the leg extensions. Thanks again for posting, i''m sure your video has prevented many very serious accidents! REALLY appreciate!

[hyp72]

Why do you criticize this chair whereas any other chair would have done the same result? Do you really think it exists ONE chair in the world in which your child wouldn't risk anything doing what we see him doing on his chair? The stability of the tripp trapp isn't in cause, you could have kept using it by moving it in front of a wall maybe... My kidd's were imitating monkeys on their tripp trapp and it never moved, i think this is the most stable chair for kidds compared to other ones !

[jamestripptrapp]

@hyp72 I criticise it because it is the only chair I know that encourages you to place your child at the dinner table, rather than having a self-contained tray. This allows the child to use the table to move his body weight out over the centre of gravity, thus toppling the chair. The cause, pure and simple, is that the weight of the infant is too high in the frame, so the chair should not be used until the child is a little older and positioned lower. Simple physics.

[hyp72]

@jamestripptrapp Thanks for your answer. I know a lot of different tripp trapp imitations allowing baby at the diner table and i tested several ones : all of them were less stable than the tripp trapp ! So i still think it's a wonderfull chair, even if with some babies you should move the table so the baby chair is against the wall and he can't knock it over...

[batesarch]

We used the Stokke Tripp Trapp chair for our two children and never had a problem.



[onlineusername112233]

The extended gliders solve this problem by extending how far back the legs go.

[echodrvr]

I don't know if our Stokke is a Tripp Trapp, but it is model 461. We've used this chair for three boys now and will use it for our fourth as well. I'd like to point out for the record that the warning label on the back of the chair states "Do not use for child under 18 months of age." Perhaps it's only our model that says this, or the Tripp Trapp is designed for littler ones, but we've never had a problem.

[MegaDeb66]

i too didn't buy this chair after seeing this video. i did recently buy the leander chair by danishbydesign. very similar but seems to be a smarter design. thank you for posting these videos.

[chiomiii]

Good to know! Thanks for sharing.  Perhaps I'll wait till my daughter is a bit older before letting her use ours.

[mlbartholomay]

Wow. Thanks. I was thinking about getting one of these. I think I'll pass. Really appreciate it!

[dgzebb]

The chair is missing the foot rest and the safety extensions at the back of the chair, that prevent it from tipping. Those pieces are in the box and if the instructions had been followed appropriately during assembly, the chair would not tip. We had the same issue, contacted the manufacturer, found the missing pieces that we had neglected to put on the chair and never had that problem again. We have used the Stokke Tripp Trap for both our toddler and our 6 month old.

[bwdelaney]

I'm not reading all of these posts. I just want to thank you for posting this video. My wife and I appreciate that you took the time to share this information and make us aware of this safety issue.

[neeov]

I'd just like to point out that the chair in the video is missing its foot rest. I found my daughter woudl push against the table in her old high chair but not in the tripp trapp because she can place her feet on the foot rest.

[jamestripptrapp]

@neeov Hi again, as you saw in the other video you commented on, we have tried this with and without the footrest, makes no difference, he wants to do it and that's that. The extenders, which weren't around when this was made, sound like the only solution, or else positioning the chair with a wall behind it.

[jazzcj]

I had the exact same issue. I noticed that my one year old baby was able to tip the chair one night when we had family over for dinner, so I moved closer just in case. Everyone laughed thinking I was being too cautious, but then she started to go over... Thankfully cautious Dad was there to catch her. On a separate note, the seat slips out of the slots. As nice as it looks, I cannot recommend this chair, and this video is no joke.

[jamestripptrapp]

Hi, thanks for your comment. No, the tipping issue is definitely not a joke. Glad you caught her!

[lensbells]

Hello, Thank you for the post I was going to buy one of these but I have now changed my mind. Can I just say that I can not believe some of the coments you have been receiving. Do these people take a comission from Tripp Trapp? They are unnecessary and a little harsh. I can see and appreciate the purpose of this video.

[jamestripptrapp]

@lensbells Hi thanks for your comment. I too am constantly amazed at how annoyed some people get if you question the 'brilliance' of the Tripp Trapp. I actually do think this is a good chair, just not for babies. James went back into the Tripp Trapp when he was 3 or so, as the seat is set lower, which pretty much takes away the risk of toppling like this. Also I believe there are now extended gliders available, I've not seen them in Ireland, but if they're out there, they should be used.

[mommy2superhero]

I am laughing so hard right now because this video about a dangerous chair is filmed in a room where there is a Big Ol' Bottle of booze in plain site, very accessible to a toddler, and are those paint cans on the floor ? Heehee, keep up the good work on your child's safety. BTW, I have two of these chairs for nearly 3 yrs and have never had a tipping incident, my boys are pretty wild and crazy at times but have never, ever tipped their chairs.

[jamestripptrapp]

@mommy2superhero As long as we keep you amused, that's the main thing. Maybe I should let him fall all the way so you can really laugh it up. The 'paint' is SMA milk powder and the 'booze' is olive oil. Talk about missing the point. This Tripp Trapp evangelism is surreal. Another person who claims that, because their child never tipped their chair back, it can't happen. Do you think I set the whole thing up to entertain you? Go patronise someone else. By the way, I don't have any toddler.

[mommy2superhero]

the humor is not from your child tipping, it is from the irony. "Tripp Trapp evangelism", guess you joined the cult since you have named yourself after the chair. Never missed your point, simply commented on your ahem "olive oil" storage. Oh from the dictionary "A toddler is a young child who is of the age of learning to walk,[1] between infancy and childhood. At 14 months your child was a toddler.Maybe have a nice glass of "olive oil" on the rocks & take it easy, you seem a little tense.

[jamestripptrapp]

@mommy2superhero If you want to bring your argument down to petty comments about whether I have olive oil or paint in my kitchen, we're at an impasse. I'm simply saying there is a danger with this chair that people should be aware of. Whether I have a collection of shotguns and a chainsaw running in the background is totally irrelevant to the fact that this chair as it stands is not suitable for children the age of my son. You can cast aspertions on my parenting all you like. It changes little

[mommy2superhero]

And I was simply saying you should keep your Irish Cream up out of the reach of your children. Perhaps if these comments upset you so much you should disable the option to do so. Have a nice day.

[jamestripptrapp]

@mommy2superhero I'm not upset in the least, I enjoy this discourse. You are, I have to say, the first to imply that the overall safety of my kitchen somehow contributes to the centre of gravity issue I raised with the chair. You're correct about the Baileys bottle (sorry, I thought you meant the bottle on floor by the 'paint'). The child in the video does not 'toddle' yet, and all dangers will be dealt with at the appopriate time. I'm glad your boys never fell back. Mine did.

[mommy2superhero]

"You are, I have to say, the first to imply that the overall safety of my kitchen somehow contributes to the centre of gravity issue I raised with the chair." Again, I never brought up the safety issue of the chair, never mentioned gravity at all,you too can miss a point I suppose. I am thinking that if your child could not crawl or walk while holding furniture at the age of 14 months it is impressive that they had the leg strength to push themself off the table so well.

[jamestripptrapp]

I said you 'implied' it. By stating that your boys, despite being wild and crazy, failed to tip their chair, you cast doubt on whether my son did. You attempted to reinforce your argument by again 'implying' that the environment presented in the video was inherently unsafe, due to the presence of paint and alcohol. As for your views on my son's leg strength, well what can I say to that one?

[chetopuffs]

So I read through most of your comments, but did not see the answer to my question.

Stokke sent you a "safety strap to attach the chair to the table." My question is did you install it, and if so did it fix the problem?

[jamestripptrapp]

@chetopuffs Yes, we tried the strap, but it was too short, and just wasn't a viable option when it came to getting him in and out of the chair. We simply put his back to the wall for a while until we got a replacement chair. Once he got about a year older, he moved back into the Tripp Trapp, then positioned lower in the frame as he'd grown. No tipping problem then,

[katebefore30]

thanks for your video, I'm still looking into buying this product, but now know to test it first on various flooring.

Funny, but before seeing this clip I was thinking that 'tripp trapp' sounds like a hazardous name! trip.... trap! oops!

[shyler76]

Irrespective of gmercado's comments, I'm keeping well away from any baby product with such a glaringly dangerous design fault. Thank you jamestripptrapp for posting this, I was thinking of the Tripp Trapp for my baby but will now stay well away!

[gmercado]

i dont have to read the rest of the comments to see that you can read a manual but not follow directions. never had a problem with the 2 tripp trapps. you have to keep adjusting the chair as the child grows...this is fascinating and stupid. duh!

[jamestripptrapp]

I won't argue with such a dizzying intellect. Suffice to say that the manufacturer Stokke did not share your view when they sent me the safety strap to attach the chair to the table. They then brought out extended gliders in some markets to overcome the flaw in the design. But heh, what would they know? I guess, because you had no problems, anyone who did has something wrong with them.

[lows100]

I am surprised at how ignorant some of these people are. The 'counterbalance' argument is ridiculous. I've used this chair on a lamintate floor and it just slides when my son kicks away from the table. I used in in my parents' house on a tiled floor and it tips. It doesn't matter how you set the chair up, if the floor isn't right its damn dangerous. Just make sure your chair slides over the floor before you put your baby in it. Credit to James for making the video to warn others of the danger.

[gmercado]

nice name james triptrapp

[jamestripptrapp]

it amazes me how many people who post comments DONT read the previous posts. General etiquette here on the Internet is to read a thread before you go making a point which is rendered maningless by that which has come before. Very briefly: I did read the manual, did speak to the manufacturer, they did admit the issue by. sending me a strap to screw the chair to the table, oh look, do me a favour and read the rest of the threads on here. Read about other kids who DID get hurt. Or don't. up to you.

[gmercado]

it amazes me how many people who own things DONT read manuals! we've never had this problem with our stokkes! Like an earlier response said the foot of the chair acts as a counterbalance. We owned "other" high chairs and returned them, they were big, bulky and bad for the kids posture!

[babybluehm56]

I have two of these chairs one for each of my daughters and they frequently push back from the table in them. However, they never tip over because Stokke gives you little feet that you're supposed to put on the end of the chairs that prevent them from tipping like your son did in the video. I hope you didn't throw them away on accident because they do look like junk or not part of the chair.

[TheLouboutinLover]

This is amazing!

Thankyou for sharing such vital information.

Its great to see parents posting things like this so others can make a more informed decition on what the purchase.

[olafuro]

Hello, we had our 11 month old son do this same stunt to night, he was extreamly lucky because the chair fell onto a windowsill and the boy came out unharmed but very statled. This is a very dangerous chair and Stokke the manufacturer should be alerted !

[QueenVictoire]

Hi James' Dad. This is very useful. Have seen both vids and read all threads and we are holding off purchasing tripp trapp for our extremely energetic and acrobatic 7month old minx. Several friends have the chair and have recommended it to us. None have reported any probs. Never say never though. We are playing around with my friend's chair tomorrow to check this out (we were going to buy on-line) Thank you for posting this. PS. I can't believe how hostile some respondents have been!

[jamestripptrapp]

Hi and thanks for your comment. I always open my new comments with trepidation, ready for some other Tripp Trapp evangelist to tell me I'm a lying cheat. What you are proposing is a great idea, get your little chap to take it for a test run. Try to make sure the floor in the kitchen is similar to that in your own house. James is now 5, and uses the Tripp Trapp all the time. But we have a new 'minx' on the way, and he/she will not be using the Tripp Trapp for a couple of years. Best of lick!

[jamestripptrapp]

Another physics major, I see. Your 'counter-balance' claim is nonsense. The chair is assembled properly. See the other video if you want to see the foot plate. I'm neither ignorant nor negligent, as you'll see from the rest of my posts on here. I have taken every step including contacting the distributor and Stokke themselves. Why did they intoduce extended gliders if this chair is, as you wrongly and foolishly claim, impossible to tip over. What are the extended gliders for, pray tell?

[rmleslie1975]

We have a tripp trapp and have had no safety issues - in fact we think it is one of the best designed on the market and love it. BUT it has to be assembled according to the instructions which are pretty precise. Unlike ours, this tripp trapp does not have extended gliders attached to the back legs of the chair (which help it glides rather than pushing over) and the footplate seems to be absent. The instruction emphasise this is essential to prevent a child pushing themself off a table.

[jamestripptrapp]

Maybe, if you have time, you could read the other comments. There were no extended gliders with our chair in 2005. We did 2 videos one with the foot plate, one without. Man, I'm so tired of being patronised about this. I spoke to Stokke, followed all the instructions, they even sent me a strap to screw it to the table. Oh look just read the previous conversations if you're interested.

[rmleslie1975]

If you're fed up of being patronised, why not delete the posting?!? May be after 4 years it's time to consign it to the archives!?!

[jamestripptrapp]

There are still lots of people out there buying standard Tripp Trapps. Other people have had this happen, and there are kids who've been hurt. Check google and the other comments. I'm glad you had no issues, but I will not delete the post simply because your kid(s) didn't encounter this. Why do you think they came up with extended gliders? As a workaround for a flawed design. I am in Ireland and these extensions are not available to my knowledge. Guess Ireland isn't litigious enough yet.

[jammydevil]

we have used our triptrap on both our children with no problems at all

but when our children could stand and climb out we removed the baby set this allowed them both to climb out when they wanted to removing the risk of pushing against any table

they where about 13-14mnths old by this time luckily both our kids have been great climbers and steady

still a scary vid though !

[suuupersarah]

Whats that "white-glue-tape-thing" under the chair? That might have something to do with it.... D-AA...

[jamestripptrapp]

I believe that the manufacturers, Stokke, call this a glide strip, intended to help the chair slide better on the floor. Its purpose is the exact opposite of "white-glue-tape-thing" that you imply. I do not know what "D-AA" means. Perhaps you could explain.

[3214468]

this video scared the hell out of me! im so glad you court your little man before serious damage was done.

just a not though on the online manual it says that there is a danger of this happening if you have a deep edged table as it looks like you do as it means they can put their feet on it. we have a slim edged table and have never had his problem (and believe me he has tried!)

glad james now enjoys his tripp trapp now he bigger!

[munkychang]

Thanks for posting this, James. My 14-month-old son tipped his Tripp Trapp over backward today, too. Stokke does clearly state in the instructions that there is a tipping hazard if the chair is on carpet or if the table has a "skirt" that the child can push off of with his feet. Nevertheless, it seems as if carpet and table skirts are common enough that this situation could happen frequently, and it's unclear to me why this chair is so popular.

[tjsimons]

My daughter, 15 months, toppled her Tripp Trapp completely this am while I sat with her at the table. Unbelievably she is unscathed but we were horrified. It happened in an instant. The chair is set up correctly and she was tucked up close to the table. She had been bouncing up and down which had shuffled the chair backwards on our wood floor. Like James, she put her feet on the table and pushed it over.Our chair is 7 months' old and we were unaware that the product has been modified.

[GirlieGurl]

Thank you for posting!

[jamestripptrapp]

If you had read the previous dialogue on this topic, you would not have made these points.

1 - Wrong. He was not up too high. Verified with Stokke and manual.

2 - Wrong. Physics dictate that, if the base was deeper, it would not be possible to tip the chair. This is why they have apparently introduced extenders.

3 - Wrong again. Not that rare. Try google. See how many babies bashed their heads. How many such incidents do you regard as acceptable?

[sumayyajamil]

hey james maybe they invented it for new models because of ur complaint :) good work! i think u should get it asap if ure still using the tripp trapp, demand for a free one! i just bought our daughter's chair this week and the extension was included!

[jamestripptrapp]

I must look into that. Thanks.

[sumayyajamil]

hi - if u use the tripp trapp extended glider which is provided with the chair in a little box, the chair does not tip backwards. its to be attached at the base of the back 'legs' - we're having no such problem with ours as a result - good luck!

[jamestripptrapp]

Hi. Thanks for the suggestion. This did not exist when we got our chair in 2005. Maybe it varies with whichever market you are in. I'm in Ireland and have not seen or heard of this extension.

[westkan]

I read a post of yours in another forum. You mention that now that your son is 4 you use the chair and have praise for it. You might consider posting a vid. of your son safely pushing away, if he does so. May get the manufacturer off your case as well. I find it odd they even name a high chair tripp trapp. :)

[plasticmanc]

(sorry - double post) If I find do find tipping is possible on our floor then I imagine possible measures (rather than rearranging furniture) include: - table to chair attachment (as in the strap Stokke incommunicatively sent to you) - chair base extensions - candle wax on the pads (works a treat on stuck draws but perhaps a bit rash to trust our childs wellbeing to this)

Either way, thanks for public spiritedly sharing your experience in a clear visual way. I'm glad James was OK!

[jamestripptrapp]

Thanks for our comment. Back when I was angry about this I did decide the only true solution was, as you suggest, to extend the base. This would deal with the tipping, but presents a new trip hazard for pregnant Mammies and grannies etc. I think this design is suited to Scandinavian living where timber floors are the norm. But in Ireland, UK etc, it would not be unheard of to have a carpet in a dining room. There is NO way the Tripp Trapp is going to slide back on terrain like that.

[plasticmanc]

Hi James,

Just bought the chair for our baby today, and then seen your video (typical!).

Good of you to post the video, and since it appears you've reasonably stated that the chair is good for older children it's a shame Stokke got sulky with youtube.

Try as I might, I can't get our chair to tip on varnished floorboards (haven't tried with added weight of baby though).

[jamestripptrapp]

If it works on your floorboards, great! Just watch out for the day when it snags a newspaper on the ground, a sticky patch where someone spilt orange juice the day before etc etc Seriously though, I'm sure you'll be fine as you've the right surface to place it on.

[o0LumberJack0o]

Hi James (and parents),

I have got two questions,

What is your replacement chair and is that a second Tripp Trapp in the background?

That's a very acrobatic son you've got.

[jamestripptrapp]

Hi, I see what you mean. No, that's not a second Tripp Trapp, it's just the shape of our kitchen chairs. This video was made in 2005, so James is 4 now, and can use the Tripp Trapp again, (and likes it, I might add). In the interim, we just got a no-name old type high chair with a tray. It was fine. And it was safe.

[jamestripptrapp]

Hi. To be honest, I would say, for a 3 year old, the chair is fine. An older child will have the seat positioned lower, and will never be able to tip it back, at least not without a massive effort. Just beware, and do a little testing in the shop, but it should be fine for that age. My issue is really with this chair being used for babies, where they are positioned higher, and lack the realisation of what will happen if they fall back.

[jamestripptrapp]

It WAS being used as it was meant to be, verified with Stokke and the manual. Stokke even sent us the little strap, so they know about the issue. If you google tripp trapp and words like topple, tipped, backwards, you might be surprised to find that I'm not the only person with this problem. One tale tells of a baby's head being smashed off a radiator. I say this product is dangerous, because my son nearly got hurt. You say it's not, because they've sold loads of them. Let's agree to disagree.

[jamestripptrapp]

My agenda is as a parent, warning others about a potential danger, and illustrating this danger clearly. What's yours? Stop telling me to adjust the seat. I told you I've tried EVERY possible setup, and have spoken to Stokke. There is NO footrest position which will prevent this. He pushes away from the table with his hands, then pops his feet in against the table edge to finish the job. The design allows the baby to shift the centre of gravity out over the rear edge of the base.

[jamestripptrapp]

The second video should be visible now. It shows the seat with the footrest in place, and seat as far back as it will go. Makes no difference. Watch how little effort it takes for him, using only his toes, to topple the seat. This is NOT our fault. It is a flawed design. It should not be possible for a consumer to do this. What if he fell all the way back? (shudder)

[pvk25]

Thanks for the warning.

[jamestripptrapp]

Thanks for your reply. Believe me, we set this up every which possible way, as instructed by the manual, the store, and Stokke themselves by phone. As can be seen in our second video, with the footrest in place, he was still able to topple the chair as, obviously, the footrest has no bearing on the physics required for this. I'm glad your 3 kids had no problem, but people are entitled to know that mine did. This is a flawed design.