Graco Easy Chair Highchair: IMPORTANT UPDATE!!
Written: Feb 23 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Inexpensive, large wraparound tray, easy to assemble and to keep clean
Cons: Basic
The Bottom Line: The Graco Easy Chair Highchair is durable, well made, inexpensive and quite simply does the job!
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| akaMum's Full Review: Graco Easy High Chair W/Patchwork Cow Print |
IMPORTANT RECALL INFORMATION:
PLEASE NOTE GRACO HIGHCHAIRS HAVE BEEN RECALLED BUT NOT THE PARTICULAR MODEL # WHICH MY REVIEW OUTLINES
The model and serial numbers of these Graco highchairs are located on a sticker beneath the seat. The model number contains "3170," "36051" or "74001" within it. The first six numbers in the serial number indicate the date of manufacture. The recalled highchairs were manufactured from January 1, 1995 through December 8, 1997 (or from 010195 through 120897). The highchairs are made of a white plastic seat with white metal legs, and "Graco" is printed on the front of the tray.
Mass merchandise, juvenile products and discount department stores nationwide sold these highchairs from January 1995 through June 1998 for between $30 and $35.
Highchairs with push buttons on the legs that snap into the seat are not part of this recall.
Consumers should stop using the highchairs immediately and call Graco at (800) 617-7447 anytime to receive a free repair kit. Consumers also can write to Customer Affairs, Graco Children's Products, Inc., Box 100, Elverson, PA 19520. Consumers should have the highchair in front of them when they call Graco.
quoted directly from the Graco website: http://www.gracobaby.com/ February 21, 2001
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Review originally submitted Jan 19, 2001
"You know Graco should pay us commission" my husband said as I showed him yet another item for the family with those wonderful words emblazoned across the front of a product, this time on the high chair I had picked out.
"..... and it's a little cheap don't you think?"
Cheap? What is wrong with cheap? The assumption is frequently made that the more expensive a product is the better made it must be? Well, not always and in the case of the Graco Easy Chair Highchair cheap = excellent !
I had specific criteria when choosing a high chair and it was as follows:
~ Easy to clean
~ A large enough tray to keep most of the food on the tray and NOT on the floor
~ Not made of wood - wood cracks after consistently getting wet
~ Simple to assemble
~ Light to move around the house if required
~ CHEAP!
And so the conversation continued in our local Babies R Us store surrounded by an array of highchairs...
"How about this highchair, which can tilt back and has different height levels?"
Well, that's fine, but I did not intend to feed our daughter in a high chair until she could sit up unassisted anyway. The reason, quite simply, because her car seat or bouncy chair would be more than sufficient in the very early days. So strike one on the tilting high chair. I felt this was a gimmick I didn't need. As for various height levels, yes they have the advantage of allowing mom (or dad) to feed their child while sitting on a sofa or on a stool or standing up (standing up?!), but realistically, you invariably feed your baby in the same place, be that the kitchen, dining room etc. The height of the Graco Easy Chair Highchair is about the size of the average family table (approx. 30").
"The wooden ones look so much nicer.......".
Yes, they do, but they are a pain to clean. Realistically, a high chair needs cleaning after every meal. I am of the school of thought, where I believe a baby should be allowed to "dig in". In other words self-feed and play with their food and oh boy... what a mess that makes! Graco is owned by Rubbermaid and the durable plastic of this highchair is their signature trade. Which brings me to the tray. I wanted a large enough tray that detached from the main frame. I would rather take the tray to the sink than the other way round thanks! What makes Graco Easy Chair Highchair tray stand out from the rest is that the tray is large enough to wrap around baby and keep the food where it should be (almost!). It has a cup holder, although my daughter uses it to store food for later! The tray has four slot positions so that it can be moved back and forth to accommodate baby as she grows. In addition, the tray can be removed by one hand by a 'nifty' squeeze lever underneath the tray, although I tend to use two hands to secure the tray correctly.
"The seat doesn't look very padded nor very comfortable"
It never ceases to amaze me that when we buy products for baby it's really our own preferences we place on what to choose for baby. I'm not sure baby will really mind that the seat is a no-frills affair! No, the Graco does not have the luxurious padded leather look of the Peg Perego Prima Pappa Roller Highchair but then again, it does not have the $199 price tag either!
The Graco Easy Chair Highchair has a simple wipe clean vinyl, lightly padded seat which is easily removed for a thorough cleaning. One of my pet hates with my son's more "upmarket" highchair was the seat covering was stitched. You cannot believe how much food gets stuck into the crevices of a highchair. The stitch holes make a lovely haven for germs in the long-term and are best avoided. I also found that my son's seat was more susceptible to mold where water had got into the actual padding - need I say more..?! Finally, the seat has a high back with a built in T-bar restraint. Baby's head is fully supported and the restraint prevents slippage from the chair. There is a waist safety strap for additional protection, but as with all Graco products, I do wish they would introduce a 5-strap harness for maximum safety, i.e. an over the shoulder strap too.
"It doesn't seem very solid?"
My son's wooden highchair was as solid as a rock and as heavy as one too! Once we assembled it, it never moved from its place! The great thing about the Graco Easy Chair Highchair is that it is very light. It was unbelievably easy to put together (Mom assembled it in ten minutes for the first outing!) and once assembled it was sturdy but light enough to move around the house. I feed our daughter in the dining room, but I sometimes move the chair into the kitchen so that she can watch me prepare the evening meal. I carried her and it, the other day into the kitchen (not wise I know!) but it was an easy feat! Furthermore, the chair legs simply snap into place and make dissembling the chair easy for transportation.
"It's CHEAP!"
Yes, it is! We bought our chair for $25.99 online at Babycenter.com. It retails around $29 which is a fraction of the average price of other brands. It may not be a "Cadillac" in the world of highchairs, but it's functional, practical and has all the safety features you need.
Well, as for that title of mine, the Graco Easy Chair Highchair joins a distinguished family of Graco products in our house. In fact, our home does resemble a Graco catalog with their Swing, Pack and Play Bassinet, Stroller and Car Seat. And why not? Graco offers exceptional customer service, recall information and good value for money. Graco makes other adjustable highchairs with all the bells and whistles you could want if spending too little on your baby's high chair leaves you with some psychological fear in your mind that you haven't spent enough....!
"Oh look Honey, Graco also sells a splat mat for under the high chair......now, what else does Graco sell.............?!"
Recommended:
Yes
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akaMum
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Location: Bay Area, CA but now Seattle, WA
Reviews written: 26
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