Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Toy Proofing an Antique Vent

Does anyone else have this problem? Surely someone else has this problem.


A pretty, decorative vent. On the floor of their small child's bedroom. A small child whose favorite toys include tiny Legos, miniature doll houses and we're also starting to get into Barbies. Basically, anything which will fit down the vent. I have access to the bottom of this vent but it is behind the buffet in the dining room so who wants to move that every time Barbie loses a shoe? I needed some sort of preventative feature which didn't involve completely covering the vent or *gasp* replacing the vent.

The vent pops off pretty easy. It has louvers which open and close that screw onto the back. I guess I didn't get a photo of them but you can hopefully picture them.


I was thinking window screening might work, and probably will but I was worried about it getting clogged with fuzz and fur. I had some square chicken wire (1/2" I think) I used in the garden last summer already which is sturdier than window screening, maybe a little easier to keep clear? I did double it up so what you are seeing is two layers. I just cut it, and then the louvers screw back over the top and keep it in place. Why didn't I get a photo of it with the louvers?

 Here it is set back into the floor. It looks better than I thought it would and has saved a Littlest Pet Shop tea cup so in my mind it has paid for itself already.

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