When Is Too Old to Use a Baby Monitor?

At the time my second daughter was about to be born, we were still using the baby monitor in my oldest's room...she was going on 5 yrs old.

There is no right or wrong age to stop using a monitor. It's whatever you feel comfortable with. =)

I would say just because its a different floor of the house and to keep you from being worried would say age 4-5 but thats just me I have a paralyzed 6 will be 7 in 2 weeks and I still you a moniter for him because if he falls out of bed (which he does) we cant hear him and he cant get back into bed by himself...im no a paranoide mother by any means but it makes me feel better at night...

Depends on what you are comfortable with. My sons are 4 and 6, and have been sleeping on a different floor for the past 2 years. We stopped using monitors when they became old enough to come up stairs if they had a problem. (around age 2)

when ever you feel you dont need one. there is no wrong age. I will say however that when I read this it did strike something w/ me and boy did it make me a bit angry.....my mom hid one under my bed when i was in HS!!!!! to spy on me. now that I must say it totally wrong, I wont get into it but I will say I was a good kid, did nothing wrong but she had issues and that is why. just had to say that but I am sure you are not asking for your teen LOL.

I am not familiar with any sort of "baby monitor police" so I would say whenever you want to stop using it. We stopped routinely using ours when my DD was about 2, but we live in a small apartment (one floor) where she is literally in the next room. I still use it on occasion if my daughter is sick or I want to do something in the yard while she is taking a nap. (she's almost 4 now). Who says you can't hide that thing in your 16 year old's room so you know whats going on in the teen years....lol. Its a cheap way to listen in and it probably puts your mind at ease---no need to dump it til your ready =)

You can use it for as long as you want.

My kids are now 7 & 3.5.... and I actually use it now, as a one way intercom.... and for when I have play-dates and the kids are all over the house so that I can HEAR them when they go downstairs.
Its very useful for other purposes.

In your situation, yes, I would STILL use it, because the kids sleep on all different floors. And just for safety. Hopefully there are no doors down there that leads to the outside????? That is another reason to use the monitor for him... what if he opens that door and goes outside? That happened to a friend of mine. Make sure you have a kid proof lock on that door.... ie: putting a latch on it, that is HIGH above the ground like 5-6 feet high.

all the best,
Susan

You should remove them promptly after they graduate from college or move out of your house...whichever comes first.

I think there's no right answer here, whatever you're comfortable with is what's right for you. Personally my youngest is four and I still use one. She often wakes up at night and my six year old that's in the same room has bad dreams quite often. I'm just more comfortable leaving it on so I'm sure I hear them. Do whatever works for you and don't worry about what anyone else thinks. :)

We used our monitor for several years until it stopped working. Mainly because our room is on the other side of the house. I don't think that there is an age limit. You do what you feel comfortable with. I had a friend who had it on when her son and daughter (twins) were a pre-teens...she learned a lot when there were sleep overs. (lol). You are the one who is responsible for the safety of your child(ren) if this is a tool you can use to ensure it. By all means use it - especially if it eases your mind and soul. Happy mother's day!!!

My daughter is 4 and she still has one in her room. She doesn't get out of her bed at night, so if she needs something in the middle of the night, we wouldn't hear her either (she is upstairs, we are down and bedroom doors are closed at night). I'm not sure at what point we'll take it out. I guess if she asked us to. We have one with a camera (that is in my younger son's room) and one of my friend's joked that it would come in handy when they are teenagers! LOL!

I plan to quit using mine when it goes from "monitoring" to "spying". :) Or when it quits working, but if that happened soon, I'd probably go buy a new one. My son is 2 1/2 now. Our house is small and he can come in my room if he wants (and he often does) but I still like knowing I can hear him immediately if he needs me.

You don't say how old your children are, but if your children are aware of it and don't like it, then I'd stop using the monitor. I agree with other posters, if your kids can come and tell you their concerns or ask for help of their own initiative, that's also a sign that a monitor may not be necessary. Only you know your children, and if you think you need to use one, there's probably a good reason to use it. And if your child is old enough to object, that's probably a good reason to stop.

My daughter is three and we never stopped using it, just changed the degree of use. I think we used it to monitor night time activities till about 1 yr. Then we used it to monitor day time naps as hubby (the primary caregiver during the week) would do a lot of yard work and be unable to "hear" her otherwise.

Our second child arrived when she was about 2.5 yrs and I am back to monitoring night time noise in the nursery room. I am not worried about her, she just comes into our room if she needs either one of us.

Use it as long as you need to. It doesn't hurt anything.
~C.

Hi B. -
I have a 5 yo and a 3yo and still use both of mine - both monitors are have 2 receivers - so we have 1 each in our bedroom for nightly emergencies and 1 each downstairs. The downstairs receivers I keep on during the day. It is really usefull if they are upstairs playing in the bonus room (they pick up that noise well) or in their rooms -if they start fighting, then I can take care of it quick. My son often closes his door with her in his room (to torment as brothers oft do!), which I have to yell up there that doors remain open. It has been helpful when they are in the bonus room and one of them falls or gets hurt wrestling. I agree that when it is viewed as "spying" that that might be the time to retire the monitor, though. My boy is still young enough that he sees it as a reassurance that I will come running if he needs me.

my son is 3 1/2 and we still used ours until it quit working. i am debating buying another one! just because, he can't open the bedroom door (it sticks) but insists on sleeping with it closed because he doesn't like the cat in his room...also it's handy for when we are working outside or in the garage during naptime...! i don't know how old your child is but until they are old enough to get up and do what they need to do (and be trusted not to get into trouble if left alone for a little while, if they wake up before the rest of the house) i'd say go for it....

When they leave for college? :)

I don't know when we'll disconnect them. My kids are old enough to play together in either of their bedrooms, while I'm on the first floor. However, fights break out often and it helps to know if I need to head up there...or if they are working it out on their own. But I never, ever use them at night.

Oh, I suppose you shouldn't put one in your married children's homes... :)
I don't think there's a point at which you SHOULDN'T use one.

My son is 6 & I still use the monitor! I like to hear him breathing...kinda overprotective, but I figure that until he starts doing stuff I definitely DO NOT want to hear in there & as long as it doesn't bother him...we're keeping it! You'll make the right decision for your family.

I think that baby monitors are great for any age. My opinion, they are a lot cheaper than a P. A. system. I would still be using mine if it hadn't worn out.

When they start bringing overnight guests...seriously. I am laughing at the thought of an adult child having a baby monitor in their room...LOL.

We still have monitors in the hallways outside the kids rooms because they are at the other end of the house. I hate split floor plans. I have heard the kids, and their friends, talking about all kinds of topics that I have simply gone in and interupted with some excuse or another. I have heard fights going on and known who was telling the truth just by having heard the whole thing first hand. I think when they are big enough to go outside and play unsupervised, cross the street by themselves, etc...they are old enough for the monitors to be gone. But then again, I am one of "Those" parents that worry about people breaking in the house and stealing the kids or hurting them so I want to be able to hear them all night. Friends of mine are friends of the family in Utah whose daughter was stolen from their home by a crazy man, he raped her and kept her as a wife for months before she was rescued. Elizabeth Smart is her name. I don't think too many precautions can be taken.

I still use a monitor with my 6 year old and my 3 year old... when they are sick my 6 year old has bad asthma so i use it to listen to make sure shes breathing and WHEN i use it for my 3 year old its because shes sick or im down stairs napping. I will say this a fire marshal told me that baby monitors are one of the leading fire hazards so dont leave them plugged in except if you really need them i know night is the worst time to have a fire but thats when all parents use them. just somethings to think about but i would start removing them around 4 or 5 if their are no medical problems

I dont think I will ever stop checking on my daughter when she sleeps at night - well maybe when she goes to college. ;) We ditched the monitor a few months ago, only because it finally wore out - she is 5 - but I get up and check on her multiple times - I just wake up so might as well peek in.

HAHA I love this question, I have a baby monitor in my 10(b) and 8(g) year olds shared room.... I hear the joyfull playing and banter and occasionally I hear the fights (really helpful when mediating). They are not yet at the age that they worry about too much privacy except to change clothes and bathroom time. SO.... I guess it's really a presonal preference... I actually read an article a few years ago about a parent who was worried about her young teen daughter possibly doing drugs and she hid one under her daughters bed. (may be going a bit to far) but hey we all do what we feel is right.

I stopped using the baby monitor on my son when he was able to start coming to me on his own and telling me if something was wrong. I don't think there really is a limit per say, just trust your instinct. I think by the time they turn 5, you won't have much use for a monitor. But that's just me. :D

I no longer use one in my bedroom at night because our daugther's room is right next to ours and I am a light sleeper.
But we still use one and the receiver is downstairs, so while she is up there or napping or sleeping and I am downstairs, I can still hear if she needs help.
I think I will have mine until it quits. So far it is almost 3 1/2 years old and still plugging away.

Until you feel confident that your child could handle an emergency. It could be vomiting in the middle of the night, charley horse, falling out of bed, (God forbid) fire. My children were always told that once they're in bed, the only get out for emergencies. Mine slept on a different level, too, and sometimes you just want to monitor that cough, etc.
I think you'll know when the time is right.

My boys are 5 and 3 years old and share a room. I've been thinking about getting the baby monitor out again.! I'll probably have to hide it inside the room because they would disconnect it.

Children living in your house are never too old to have you listen to them.

Never too old. If you "feel" the need to use it, just use it. Happy mother's day!

we used ours for years. way after the boys were babies. we put it outside when we were in the pool and also so we could hear the phone if it rang inside the house. they are great for so much more than just infancy. also great for seniors. when my grandmother was ailing it was in her room so my parents could hear her.

sjsj

Updated

I work with adults who were on the bottom floor as children separated from the rest of the family on the upper floors. Or living in the attic room in the apartment house where the other maid's rooms were. They felt emotionally abandoned. Two floors is too many if your child is not a teenager.
Every child with their own room is a tradition we gathered from the ultra rich who could afford it. In most families that were large there was a boys room and a girls room for sleeping.
My parents grew up like that. See if you can move that monitored child in with the rest of you upstairs.
When so many homes have family rooms and living rooms children don't need a room of their own in the daytime.

My daughter is 2.5 yrs and we still use a monitor for her. We have one receiver in the living room and the other in my husbands outside office. It's hard to hear her since she is in the back of the house so the monitor helps us know when she's woken up from nap or in the morning (if we are up and in the other part of the house. Her room is next to ours so we don't need one in our bedroom. I also take the monitor out with me if she is napping so I can work in the yard while she's sleeping but still keep an ear out for her waking up.

If your old using it to make sure the child is safe at night then I don't see why you would have to stop using it.
However, if your using to listen to him when he's in his room alone or with friends, and he knows you can hear him during the day I say turn it off. If he knows you have it and uses it to manipulate you I'd also say turn it off. If your using it to "spy" on him, he may feel that you don't trust him or that he can't be alone ever, so then I'd also say turn it off. Otherwise, if your only using it for his saftey at night (while you and hubby are sleeping) you could continue to use it well into his tweens!

We registered for a baby monitor with our first. Only used it a dozen times during his infancy. If we were downstairs watching a movie or went to someone's house and expected to be there late and wanted the option to put them down to sleep. Along came the 2nd one 4.5 yrs later and we never even unpacked the monitor. By then, our own internal baby radar was well developed. I swear, I know when those kids needs me before they do. ; )

I would say 13 is probably too old. :-) If it makes you feel more secure, use it!!

I don't know when it is to old to use one. I have a three year old and a six year old and we just got rid of our baby monitor a month or two ago, I don't know if their is. If that is the case keep it until the kid can come up and wake you if he/she needs anything.

My son is in the next room and I used a moniter with him until he was 4 and we had another child. And actually I can still hear him through my daughters moniter so I guess I'm still using it for him... haha! He is almost 6. :)

Oh good, I don't feel too guilty about still using it at night, even though my daughter is 6! My hearing is really shot, and I'm a deep sleeper at night, so I like to be able to hear her is she's screaming for me at night. She does know she can come into my room to wake me up if she needs to, but I think she's still hesitant about doing that!

C.
www.littlebitquirky.blogspot.com

Use it until you are comfortable, or until the child is old enough to tell you that they are uncomfortable with it! =)

My personally thoughts are when you trust your kids. But for your unique situation since they are on different floors.. I would have one with them at all times, but not listening all the time, kind of like if they need you they can turn it on, like in case something happened ? I currently tend on raising my son with some space. My mother my whole life went through my things, my diaries, and if she could have had a monitor strapped to me my whole life..she would have !