Furniture Safety Tips

Anchor tip-prone furniture

Dressers, chests, bookcases, and tall media units should be anchored to the wall with the supplied restraint kit, no exceptions — this is the single highest-impact safety step for homes with young children. Look for compliance with ASTM F3096-23, the current stability standard for clothing storage units, when shopping our bedroom furniture and entertainment furniture collections, and anchor the piece the same day it's delivered, before it's ever loaded.

Load and use pieces as designed

• Store the heaviest items in the lowest drawers and on the lowest shelves to keep the center of gravity low
• Never let a child under six sleep on a top bunk
• Open only one drawer at a time — multiple open drawers shift a dresser's balance point forward
• Supervise children and pets around power recliners and adjustable bases while they're in motion
• Use only tempered safety glass for tabletops, shelving, and cabinet doors

These habits matter in every kind of household across Maryland, but they're especially worth reviewing before furnishing a kids' room with bunk beds, loft beds, or youth storage pieces.

Bunk beds and kids' furniture

Beyond the age-six rule for top bunks, check that guardrails run the full length of the top mattress on both sides, that the ladder is secured and stable, and that the mattress size matches the bed frame exactly — an undersized mattress leaves a gap a child can slip through. Re-tighten bunk bed hardware on the same schedule as your wall anchors.

Power recliners and adjustable bases

Power mechanisms in reclining sofas and recliners and adjustable bases move with enough force to pinch small fingers or catch a pet underneath. Keep the area beneath the footrest and behind the reclining back clear, and supervise young children and pets any time the mechanism is in use — a quick habit that prevents nearly every reported incident.

Glass and hard surfaces

Use only tempered safety glass for coffee tables, curio cabinets, and shelving — tempered glass is designed to break into small, blunt pieces rather than sharp shards if it fails. If you're unsure whether an older piece in your home meets this standard, ask an associate at any Gavigan's showroom in Catonsville, Glen Burnie, or elsewhere to take a look.

Check it periodically

Re-check anchors, bolts, and bunk-bed hardware a couple of times a year, and again after any move or rearrangement — hardware loosens gradually with normal household activity, and a five-minute check twice a year catches most issues before they become a hazard.

Anchoring: The Fifteen Minutes That Matters Most

Tip-over incidents almost always involve an unanchored dresser, chest, or bookcase and a child climbing an open drawer. Anchoring is the fix, and it takes about fifteen minutes per piece. Use the tip-restraint hardware packed with the furniture, locate a wall stud rather than relying on drywall anchors alone, and keep the strap taut so the case cannot rock forward. Our delivery crews install these anchors as part of standard setup, but if you move a piece to a different wall later, re-anchor it before you refill the drawers.

Two habits reduce risk further: load the heaviest items in the bottom drawers so the center of gravity stays low, and never place a television on a dresser that was not designed to hold one. A media console with a rated top surface is the safer home for a screen, and it should be anchored too if the television is not wall-mounted.

Recliners, Glass, and Everyday Hazards

Reclining sofas and theater seating have moving footrests and scissor mechanisms that can pinch small fingers and pet tails. Teach children not to play underneath a recliner, keep the footrest closed when the seat is empty, and choose power models over manual handles in homes with young kids — a power seat only moves when someone presses the button, and many include a child-lock function.

Glass table tops should be tempered, which breaks into blunt granules rather than shards, and should be secured to the base with the supplied bumpers or adhesive pads so the top cannot slide. Keep area rugs from curling at recliner and dining chair paths, check that bunk bed guardrails sit at least five inches above the mattress surface, and reconfirm bolt tightness on bunks and platform beds twice a year. If anything on a piece of Gavigan's furniture ever feels loose or unsafe, call the showroom that sold it — service is handled locally by our own team.