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The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has issued a mandatory safety standard for bunk beds. The purpose of the performance standard is to prevent the unreasonable risk of injury and death from children becoming entrapped in the beds structure or wedged between the bed and the wall.
This federal standard requires bunk beds manufactured or imported for sale in the USA on or after June 19, 2000, to meet these requirements.
A summary of these requirements can be viewed in this CPSC (pdf) document.
The detailed Federal requirements may be viewed by clicking here.
To visit the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission's (CPSC) web site, click here.
Toddler beds are the same size as a crib and use a crib size mattress.
We do not recommend buying a toddler bed because children outgrow them very quickly.
Although some people think that sleeping in a bed that is the same size as a crib makes the move easier, the bed is so small that it will be only a short time before you have to buy a new, regular size bed.
Youth beds are generally shorter and narrower in width than a regular twin bed but larger than a toddler bed.
Prior to the 1980s, youth beds were marketed to accommodate children who had outgrown their cribs yet whose parents wanted a smaller than standard twin size bed. Some came with their own guardrails.
While a youth bed's size is an advantage, it is also its biggest disadvantage, since your child will definitely outgrow it and will eventually need a regular size bed.
When using an old youth bed, look for one where there are no spaces (3 1/2 inches or more) between rails or bars in the head or footboard that pose an entrapment and strangulation hazard.
If you are using an older youth bed, make sure that there are TWO guardrails, that they fit snug up against the side of the bed and that will not move if your child rolls up against them.