What does a retractable baby gate do?

A retractable baby gate, like other type of child safety gate, is designed to keep small children (or pets) out of unsafe or inappropriate areas of the house, such as stairs, living rooms or kitchens. Baby gate products come in many designs, but the hardware mounted and pressure mounted gates are the most conventional types.

How is a retractable gate different from the other types?

Hardware and pressure mounted baby gates use bars and rails of plastic, aluminum, wood, or some other rigid material to close off passage to children. When adults want to walking through these gates, they press or squeeze a release latch, and the gate swings inward or outward on its hinge. Hardware mounted gates are fastened in place by having their brackets screwed into the wood or drywall. Pressure mounted gates are install with bolts that screw out and brace against walls and other framing elements.

With retractable models, the key difference is that instead of using a rigid material block access, a mesh screen is stretched across with passageway and latched into place. The design is like a window shade mounted sideways: a screen pulls out of and winds back into a roller. Some brands wind back automatically when unlatched, but most wind back manually with a knob on the roller.

Why would I use a retractable gate instead of another type?

Retractable baby gates are easy to remove and reinstall in new places as circumstances change. Unlike a hardware mounted gate, which is embedded into the wood, a retractable gate can be moved from the living room to the bedroom to the kitchen, depending on the activity.

When not in use, retractable gates are easier to get out of the way. Usually, when an adult needs to pass, he or she unlatches the screen, then puts it back when the entrance is crossed. If the baby is out of the house for a few hours, and the gate isn’t needed, the roller can be detached from its mounting bracket and stored in smaller spaces than a pressure mounted baby gate could.

So why wouldn’t I use a retractable baby gate?

Since retractable gates use screens that are taught, but flexible, they’re more vulnerable to breaching than a hardware mount gate. In most cases, this isn’t a big deal, but a gate that can’t be guaranteed to break a baby’s fall can’t be recommended for use a the top of stairs, where the length of a potential fall is too dangerous. In fact, only hardware mounted brands can considered full-fledged stair gates. For any other place, however — even the bottom of stairs — a retractable baby gate is a great way to childproof your home.