block light but not airflow

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Briansol

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My son's bedroom door has a larger than average gap at the bottom. I'm guessing it was left pretty high to clear carpet?
either way, there's about an inch gap there and in the day, it's too bright in there for naps.

We have a draft stop thing down now but it's not working... it gets super hot in there too fast and the air flow suffers. Come heating season, i'm worried about the air quality.

his room and another room have a jack and jill style bathroom between them so we leave those doors cracked to allow for air now. Longer term, that's not ideal.

So, i'm trying to thing of ideas to block out light (and if sound comes with it, that's a plus) but NOT airflow.
some kind of opaque mesh i could staple to the bottom of the door?

Anyone have any ideas?
 
Block lower gap. Install this or something similar.

Amazon product

Bathroom Door Air Vent Grille 440mm x 120mm / 18" x 5.3 inch Two Sided Ventilation Cover (White)​


wtf why will the Amazon link not show up



cut a hole and put a two sided vent in the door.

/thread
 
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Block lower gap. Install this.

Bathroom Door Air Vent Grille 440mm x 120mm / 18" x 5.3 inch Two Sided Ventilation Cover (White) Amazon product




/thread


I don't think that's gonna work for what he needs. It's only 18" wide and is designed to have a hole cut in the door. Guessing his bedroom door is 30". He needs something 1"x30" give or take.

In all honesty anything you do to fill that gap is probably gonna look like shit. Probably the easiest way to solve the problem is go to your local home improvement joint and tell them you need to order a slab door. They won't have it in stock but they can come out and measure and match the door style and get exactly what you need. Then you just take the hinges off and do a quick swap. Probably have to put a coat of paint on etc. But it won't look out of place.

Just my 2 cents.
 
yeah, it's a std 30" door.

Not a great shot but you can tell the previous owners did something... It's like sanded and the paint is gone from the bottom.

IMG_20210328_173511904.jpg


Even over the thick carpet, it's a gap.

Down to the hallway hardwood, it's huge
 
What about some shade cloth from lowes or HD? If your local stores still have some it is sold by the foot (6ftx1ft is the measurement its sold by), right now my local lowes has it on clearance so you may have to search the store for it. It will look janky but should serve the purpose, its basically a thick weave screen, will block some light and some airflow but it won't seal it by any means.

unsolicited advice: leave it be. we made the terrible mistake with both of ours to block out light and noise as much as possible and it made life so much more frustrating for years after bc the little beasts would not sleep unless the environment was 100% perfect because we set the precedent. I've been to houses where the kids will nap/go to sleep in areas of light and with noise happening because those genius parents never restrained during the early years and the kids adjusted to them, not the other way around.
 
We've certainly thought about that. Right now, it's a tactical choice. we're struggling deeply with getting him to sleep. Like, it takes us 2-4 hours to get him down for 20-40 min of naps each time. it's literally killing us. he see's stuff and he's alert and wants to investigate it.

he got up at 7.
it's nearly 11 and my wife has been trying to put him down since 9 for a nap.

we're trying real hard to follow these published standards that look like this but it just isn't working, and i think it's due to the light.
Blog_-_4_Nap_4_Month_Sleep_Schedule_2x.png
 
My son always napped best in one of those motorized swings. He was always a really good sleeper though. Thru the night at 6 weeks.

Of course back then there wasn't any mommy blogs about sleep schedules etc lol. Amazed any of us ever survived without the internet.
 
yeah, the swing works, but they aren't supposed to sleep in it. SIDS risk, and can block air flow, and also can lead to poor spine shape/development because it's not flat. all kinds of suffocation warnings too.

we spent a fortune on the Snoo, and it only worked for a few weeks. we returned it. literally tried to throw all money possible at the problem and it just doesn't work. all i want to do is sleep. why doesn't he? lol
 
Our daughter has the same problem of seeing anything and she's right back awake so she requires a super dark room for naps. We've never actually had to use it, but we purchased one of these for travel and then the pandemic hit.

SLUMBERPOD

Its probably not big enough for his full crib, but if the daytime naps can be done in a pack-n-play that might be something to consider.

For sound, we have a Hatch sound machine that we have set on TV static noise and it does a good job and drowning out anything else going on in the house. We had a contractor putting a wall in upstairs and even that didn't wake her with the sound machine on.

Better Sleep for Everyone | Hatch
 
I wouldn't sweat the light too much unless the sun is literally pointing in the other side. Also some kids don't nap during the day well or schedule gets mixed up.

If we got 2 20s we were doing good during certain months. Some weeks with sleep regression at night stretched naps during the day. When crabbiness hit peak we'd go for a 30 minute drive just for the scene change. Now it's zero nap to 3 hours depending on the day. Most of the time it's 1.5 hours like clockwork.

Sleep was well tough sometimes and easy others. We'd have a couple weeks of very little quality sleep but it passed. We have a hatch light for routine sleep and waking (toddler loves it).

It's more of stimulation, tiredness, and routine. Get that kid stimulated when awake, full of food, out and about, and structure the nap/sleep routine. Scene changes throw them off but help a lot in the long run as they get used to doing things and not being home all the time.
 
you have to get away from that mommy blog type of bs. That will fuck with a post-partum woman's psyche like no other. It starts to introduce self-doubts into the equation and can make the depression so much worse. Those blogs, like most social media, make it look like everything was sooooo easy and just required you to follow the recipe to get the results they claim they got. Then when it doesn't happen it can make mom feel like absolute shit, dad too, but not nearly as bad as it does a hormone ravaged post-partum woman.

All kids are different, lifestyles are different, diets, environment, etc. If that schedule isn't working then do something different, change it to fit your life and the kids habits. If the kid isn't tired after that first 1.5 hour period then wait another half hour or an hour, eventually he will get tired and y'all can start getting a better feel for how long he takes to tire out after waking up. Ditch the books, blogs, and all that other nonsense and just go with it, whether you think it or not, you know what to do and when you don't you should ask your parents or close friends/family.
 
that's super dangerous and, well, stupid.


We actually went to the pediatrician / virtual visit last night. Looks like he might have a dairy alergy. The wife is going to stop dairy and see if things get better.
 
that's super dangerous and, well, stupid.


We actually went to the pediatrician / virtual visit last night. Looks like he might have a dairy alergy. The wife is going to stop dairy and see if things get better.
ah shit! Good catch. If you got a good pediatrician, it's great.


We did no dairy and soy for the first year. Found out 5 weeks in with the other barrage of health things. My wife is super disciplined, stuck with it, and it worked. At home, I did to support. Solved the problem (stomach discomfort and bloody stool).
 
My oldest had a dairy issue when he was a baby that caused a lack of sleep. My wife had to give up dairy because she breast fed. There is dairy in a lot of food, check all labels. My kids can not tolerate dairy to this day, except butter. If your wife breast feeds it might take some time for the dairy to get out of her system. This issue is more common than you think.

My second used to fall asleep at midnight until 7 or 8 months. I got 4 to 5 hours of sleep most work nights. He would nap several times a day. After a while he started falling asleep earlier over time, now at 3 he is a great sleeper by 8pm.

Would one of those door draft stopper things people put behind exterior doors to stop drafts work? Put it in the hallway and it won't be a big hazard for now.
 
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