What would you do if your kid wandered into a half-demo’d kitchen?

Totally get where you’re coming from with the “function over form” thing. I tried one of those fancy acrylic gates because it looked cool in the catalog, but my toddler figured out how to push it over in about five minutes. Lesson learned. Now I’m all about the heavy-duty stuff - even if it looks like a prison for a few weeks.

I’ve been debating the plywood panel idea, actually. Wasn’t sure if it was overkill, but after finding my kiddo halfway up a stack of demo’d cabinets (how do they climb so fast?), I’m starting to think ugly is better than unsafe. Did you just screw it straight into the studs and patch later? Any tips for making sure it’s not going to wiggle loose?

One thing I’m still struggling with: what do you do about doorways that don’t have frames yet? We had to take out a wall and now there’s just this open space between rooms. The pressure-mounted gates don’t really work without something solid on both sides. Has anyone rigged something up for that? I thought about wedging some 2x4s but that feels a little sketchy.

Honestly, I’m starting to think there’s no such thing as “childproof” - just “child-resistant for now.” Every time I think I’ve blocked off a danger zone, my kid finds a new way in. At least patching drywall is easier than explaining stitches...

I hear you on the “child-resistant for now” thing - my youngest once managed to wedge herself under a sheet of plywood I thought was secure. For those open doorways, I ended up screwing a temporary 2x4 “frame” into the studs on each side, then attached the gate to that. Not pretty, but it held up. Patching a couple holes later was way less stressful than chasing her around with exposed nails everywhere.

Title: What would you do if your kid wandered into a half-demo’d kitchen?

I totally get the “not pretty, but it worked” approach. I remember when we were redoing our living room, I tried to keep things eco-friendly and avoid using new lumber, so I rigged up a barrier from old closet doors and some leftover hinges. It looked like a Frankenstein project, but at least it kept my little guy out of the mess (most of the time). Did you worry about off-gassing or splinters from the 2x4s? I always wonder if I’m being too paranoid about that stuff, especially with reclaimed wood.

How did you deal with dust and debris? I found that taping up plastic sheeting helped a bit, but honestly, there was always some fine dust sneaking through. Sometimes I wonder if it’s just impossible to keep things 100% safe unless you move out for the whole reno... but who can actually do that?

Did you worry about off-gassing or splinters from the 2x4s? I always wonder if I’m being too paranoid about that stuff, especially with reclaimed wood.

Honestly, I sanded down any rough edges and gave everything a quick wipe, but I didn’t lose sleep over it. Main thing was making sure there weren’t nails sticking out. As for dust, plastic sheeting only did so much - shop vac got a workout every night. Moving out just wasn’t an option for us either.

Definitely relate to the shop vac getting a workout - dust just finds its way everywhere, no matter what you do. I’m with you on not stressing too much about off-gassing from standard 2x4s, but with reclaimed wood, I do get a bit more cautious. Quick checklist I usually follow:

- Sand down sharp edges and splinters, especially at kid height.
- Double-check for old nails or screws - those things hide.
- If the wood smells weird or has visible stains, I’ll skip it or seal it up.
- For dust, nightly vacuuming and keeping doors closed helps, but it’s never perfect.

Kids are resilient, but I’d rather deal with a little extra cleanup than a tetanus shot.