Superyard XT

Comments about North States Industries Superyard XT:

Our son grew out of his play pen fairly quickly, We needed to find something that was big enough that he wasn't spending the whole time trying to get out. So we picked this up. We didn't think about the fact that we have hard wood floors. This product is meant for carpeted homes or out side use. Within 30 min, our little guy had figured out how to push it around the living room. We are always moving it back into place. I tried placing it on a area rug to keep it in place but he was still able to push the play yard around. Rug and all. I came up with the idea of putting a blanket on the bottom and then trying the corners in place. This helps from bending the play yard into bad angles, as well as making it harder for him to push it around. This did work for a while but but the older he gets the stronger he gets. So even with the blanket he is pushing it around the living room. Also the way the play yard is made it has a lot of little holes in the side, perfect for his little toes to climb right out. He's gotten pretty good at it now and doesn't hurt himself, but I'm afraid to even leave the room anymore.
All in all, it is a good product to have, just keep in mind these things. If you have hard wood floors though I wouldn't bother. Its more trouble then it's worth.

Comments about North States Industries Superyard XT:

This is the perfect fit for us. If the child was left unattended, which I'm sure the manufacture recommends against, I can see where he/she may climb out and get hurt. We purchased the product to keep our 17 month old away from our corn stove that gets very hot. It works great for that and seems to keep her contained for a short time if needed. Once you figure out how it works, it is quite slick to fold and put away. Great for the money.

Comments about North States Industries Superyard XT:

We set up a circled area with the superyard. Whenever my husband or I have to do some house chores, we put her in there and she can play for an extended period of time. It gives me time to cook, to clean, or even work on computer, and never have to worry about her bumping head somewhere - no matter how we childproof our place, there are always corners, edges, like a door frame.

Comments about North States Industries Superyard XT:

Here is my not-so-little, but hopefully helpful, review for you on the superyard XT:

PRO'S:

All pieces detach, so you can adapt it to however small or large you need it. It can serve to block off certain areas (my mom, who is "grandma" to 2 toddlers, uses it to block her tv and dining room area off; my sis uses it to keep her baby off their fireplace; we have divided ours into 3 fences throughout our house to keep our girl from coming in the kitchen, getting into her diaper pail and heater in her room,etc), or you can hook together as many pieces as you want to build a sort of "playpen" for the kids to play in. The adaptability of this great is great for awkward or large entryways or areas that you can't use traditional gates on.

Once you link the pieces together, they can be folded in or out. This also helps you to "mold" the gate into whatever shape you need it in (angles are best, as straight lines are dangerous. see below in "con's").

It snaps back into it's folded fence position when you don't need it. This is one of my favorite features. I love that when we have company, we can make the babyproofing disappear once we put her down for bed, and our living room (aka playroom during the date) becomes an adult setting once again.

CON'S:

This is not really a con as much as it is something to be aware of: when you first get it, expect the gates to be very difficult to work with. It will be hard to link/unlink the pieces (this may always be true) and the clicking/snapping into different positions will feel very stiff (fortunately/unfortunately, this loosens up quite quickly over time).

Once baby is heavy/old/smart enough, the gates in the "taken apart" (as opposed to all linked together as a playpen) position become less efficient. Once our girlie was learning to stand, she could force her weight upon certain weak links (which is sometimes our fault because they encourage sharp angles) and get the fences to bend and - only once in awhile - topple over. She is also outsmarting the system now since she knows how to go around them by finding the end of the gate and moving it. We have tried to combat this by hiding the ends of them by tucking them behind furniture or angling them in such a way that she can't reach the ends of them, which has helped.

Due to the uncertainties of the structure as noted above, I would highly recommend that you be nearby when the baby is within a gated area. We use these to block off areas of our living room which we have childproofed, so I am comfortable cooking next door in the kitchen where I can keep an eye on her; but since she has the strength and smarts to sometimes beat the system, I try not to go too far from her when she's using this.

For the above reasons, I would definitely never use this gate at the top of stairs unless you have a layout where you can bungee cord the gate on both sides to the railings/poles of the stairs (which my hubby actually did at one house we stayed in and it was a success); but, generally, I wouldn't use it for that. However, we do have it blocking the bottom of a set of stairs by wrapping it at an angle around the stairs. Again, we keep an eye on her or check on her every few minutes.

CONCLUSION:We like the superyard XT for the purposes it serves and LOVE that it can be adapted to various settings and that it can disappear when we want our house to look inviting for guests. Obviously, it's practical enough that 3 of my family members would invest in it; but, I think it gets purchased alot because there's not really anything else like; therefore, not much competition.

ANOTHER GATE SUGGESTION: If you need something a little sturdier just to block entryways or stairs, we also own another gate that we use for the area at the top of our stairs. We set it back a little from the top of the stairs to give us a step or two to walk before reaching the first step (much safer if you have that option). It's the First Years Hands Free Gate. We are SO happy with this gate and are always getting compliments from jealous parents who see it. After using it at our house one time, our neighbor went out and bought one for her toddler. Since it has a food pedal (which is the highlight of it's existance), it makes it a little tricky setting it up in doorways; but, it has been wonderful for us in the place that we have it. I love that I can carry the baby or laundry in my arms while I use it, and it's super durable (tested by an extremely active toddler whose been shaking, hanging on, and rattling it for the past 5 months).

Comments about North States Industries Superyard XT:

This pen was wonderful! My daughter couldn't climb out of it and it was enough space for her to play and stay occupied while I cleaned. It was rough putting it together the first time, but now is a cinch since I'm used to it.

Comments about North States Industries Superyard XT:

Used it with my twins as a playpen, since regular playpens are so small, and am now using to block off part of my house from my 9 month old daughter. Great and versatile product.

Comments about North States Industries Superyard XT:

this seemed like a good idea used it for two months until my 11 month old daughter learned how to climb out of it and fell face first on the floor. shes not even walking yet would have been much better if they would have used vertical slats instead so little feet coudnt get in the holes!

Comments about North States Industries Superyard XT:

This is the most infuriating, horribly designed, shoddily constructed, useless piece of junk I have ever had the misfortune of spending my money on. Once it's put together, it's great, but most of us don't have the room in our homes to leave it put together. Assembling and disassembling this thing requires the patience of a saint and quite possible an advanced degree in engineering. Don't even bother. I'm ready to burn mine.

Comments about North States Industries Superyard XT:

This gate has a hole pattern that allows older babies to put their feet in and climb. My 10 month old daughter climbs this gate and flipped out head first.

Comments about North States Industries Superyard XT:

I LOVE THIS GATE AND THE BEST THING IS THAT I CAN MOVE IT ROOM TO ROOM AND TAKE PART OFF IF NEEDED - SO ONE GATE COULD BECOME 2,3,4 IF YOU WANT IT IT BE I WOULD BUY THIS PRODUCT AGAIN AND AGAIN