#Tr outlets babyproof code

'Research has showed that small children can still pull them out of the socket and also they're very small so children who like to mouth things have been known to put them in their mouths and choke,' she said.

'We may wish to do that as homeowners, just to ensure it's a safe surrounding for children.'īoxell said anyone intending to do this should call an electrician if they don't have the skill and training to do it themselves.Īnd for those who choose not to make the change, she said they can continue to use the plastic covers - although they're not ideal. 'The cost of actually installing one of these receptacles is very, very inexpensive,' he said in an interview. 'Because at the stage of development where they're curious and they're exploring these types of things, like what object fits into what slot, it's beyond their level of cognition to actually do that.' 'Inexpensive' replacementĪnd although it's not required for existing homes, Stephen Brown, director of electrotechnical codes and standards for the Canadian Standards Association, said homeowners may wish to replace their receptacles. 'We know from the research and obviously child development, and such things, that children don't do that,' she said. The shutters will open only if two prongs are heading into the holes at the same time.īoxell said it would be unlikely for a child to stick two pins into an outlet at the same time. The new receptacles have a built-in shutter system that prevents anything from going into just one hole. 'So we're very, very pleased that finally there's technology that would be permanent on the wall and would have an automatic shield closure, which is what we've been asking for for quite some time to prevent these kinds of injuries.'

'The great thing is that finally we have some technology that's actually passive - it doesn't rely on the parent to actually make sure that there's any covers in place,' said Denyse Boxell of Safe Kids Canada.

#Tr outlets babyproof code

The updated code requires new homes to have tamper-resistant receptacles, designed to prevent children from inserting objects like hairpins, keys and nails that could cause them to receive a shock. New parents who babyproof their home normally place plastic covers over the electrical outlets, but revisions to the Canadian Electrical Code announced Thursday mean that some day that will no longer be necessary.