Cabinet Locks vs Corner Protectors: Childproofing Priorities

Quick answer

Buy child safety cabinet locks before corner guards for furniture in almost every home. Cabinets hold medicines, cleaning sprays, knives and other items that cause serious harm in seconds, while a bumped corner usually causes a bruise. Fit locks to low and mid-height cabinets in the kitchen, bathroom and under-sink units first, then add corner protectors to coffee tables, hearths and any furniture at your toddler's head height.

Why these two jobs are not equal

Cabinet locks and corner protectors solve different risk levels. A lock stops access to a hazard; a corner protector softens an impact with a hard edge. That difference should drive your childproofing priorities when time and budget are limited.

Start with the rooms where a child can reach something genuinely dangerous. In most homes that means the kitchen, the bathroom and any low cupboard storing cleaning products, medication, batteries or sharp tools. Corner guards come next, aimed at furniture with sharp or low edges in the rooms your toddler spends the most floor time in.

How to choose cabinet locks that actually get used

The best lock is the one adults will re-close every single time. Magnetic and adhesive locks are quick to fit and leave no drill holes, but they rely on the adhesive holding on your specific cabinet surface. Screw-fixed locks take longer to install and need a drill, yet they suit heavy daily use and wonky or older cabinet doors.

Check the door style before buying. Handleless push-to-open doors, glass-fronted units and cabinets with a wide frame all behave differently, and some lock types simply will not sit correctly on every profile. If your cabinet has an unusual frame, measure the gap and the door thickness first rather than guessing.

• Low and mid-height cabinets: lock these first, whatever the room.
• High wall cabinets: usually lower priority once your child cannot reach them.
• Under-sink units: treat as urgent if they hold cleaning products.
• Drawers: a separate lock type is usually needed, so plan for both.

When corner protectors earn their place

Corner guards for furniture matter most at head height. A toddler learning to walk falls forward and sideways constantly, so a sharp coffee table corner, a hearth edge or a low sideboard is a real target. Foam or silicone guards absorb that impact and are cheap to fit.

Be honest about the trade-off: protectors are visible and can be picked at by curious fingers. Clear or low-profile versions blend in better, but any protector needs to stay stuck. Clean the surface, let it dry fully and press the guard on firmly, because a loose corner guard becomes a toy rather than a safety product.

The rest of your home baby proofing checklist

Locks and corner guards are two items on a longer list. Work through each room and write down what a crawling or cruising child can reach, then match a product to each hazard rather than buying a generic kit and hoping it fits.

Two jobs people forget until later: fixing furniture to the wall, and managing the everyday mess that comes with a newly mobile baby. A hands-free nappy bin, for example, keeps a crawling baby away from waste and smells while you deal with the cabinet you have just locked. It is not a safety device, but it removes one daily hassle from the room you are already childproofing.

Fitting around awkward skirting and walls

Skirting boards and sloping walls cause more failed installs than any other issue. If you are adding a safety gate alongside cabinet locks, a wall and skirting kit creates a flat, vertical surface so the gate sits properly instead of being packed out with offcuts.

Check the dimensions before ordering. A kit that fits over skirting up to a stated maximum height and width will not suit every home, so measure your skirting first. If your skirting is taller or deeper than the kit allows, you need a different fixing approach rather than forcing the fit.

Decision rules: what to buy first

• Rule 1: Hazard before bruise: If a cabinet or drawer holds anything a child could swallow, burn themselves on or cut themselves with, lock it before you buy a single corner guard. Locks first in the kitchen, bathroom and under-sink units.
• Rule 2: Head height beats floor level: Fit corner protectors to furniture with edges at your toddler's head and face height, such as coffee tables, hearths and low sideboards. Floor-level edges matter less. Measure the edge height before ordering guards.
• Rule 3: Match the fixing to the surface: Adhesive locks suit smooth, flat cabinet doors and rented homes where you cannot drill. Screw-fixed locks suit heavy daily use and uneven or older doors. If the adhesive fails within a week, switch to a screw-fixed option.
• Rule 4: Check the fit before you commit: Measure skirting height and depth, cabinet door thickness and the gap around the door frame. A product that does not fit your specific profile will not protect anyone. Order once you have the measurements, not before.

Products that support this plan

• Fred Safety Universal Wall & Skirting Kit - Pure White: The Fred Safety Universal Wall & Skirting Kit provides a flat, vertical surface designed to be fitted over skirting and sloping walls, and fits skirting up to a maximum 18.5cm high and 2.3cm wide. Useful when you are adding a gate to a childproofed room and your skirting or wall angle would otherwise stop the gate sitting flat.
• Korbell Plus 26L Eco-Bin Nappy Bin Bundle - Pure White: The Korbell Plus 26L Eco-Bin Nappy Bin has an ergonomic foot pedal for hands-free disposal, and both the trap door and access door automatically lock. A hands-free bin keeps you from bending into a crawling baby's reach while you are mid-way through locking cabinets, and the auto-locking doors add a barrier a curious toddler cannot easily open.
• Baby Brezza SuperQuick Steriliser Dryer: The Baby Brezza SuperQuick Steriliser Dryer kills 99% of germs with natural steam and dries with hot air in just 10 minutes, holding up to 8 bottles, 2 full pump part sets and accessories. Frees up worktop space and time in the kitchen you are childproofing, so you are not leaving hot sterilising equipment out where small hands can reach it.

Who this plan suits

Best for

• Parents of crawling or cruising babies who need to prioritise spending
• Renters who cannot drill and need adhesive cabinet locks plus removable corner guards
• Households with low cabinets holding cleaning products, medication or sharp tools

Not for

• Homes where all cabinets are already locked and the only remaining risk is furniture edges, in which case go straight to corner guards
• Families who need a full gate and stair setup, which requires a separate fitting plan and the right wall or skirting kit