Customer Reviews

KidCo G16 White Center Gateway Extra Tall 42in

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I may be one of the few reviewers who didn't buy this for pets. I purchased this because my 2.5 year old twins are like stealthy ninjas and have even bested 36" gates - and they're just over 36" inches tall! So far this gate has kept them safely in their bedroom at night. The handle is too complicated and requires too much pressure for them to open and the height is perfect to keep them safe. As for the pressure required to open the handle, it does require quite a bit, so it's not recommended for folks with arthritis. The gate does not latch automatically upon closing, but the gate does close short of the latch if you just walk through. It also STAYS OPEN if you open it all the way - very nice if you're frequently in and out of the room (we only close the gate at night.) Installation took about ten minutes and it doesn't require any holes in the wall nor any tools aside from the included little wrench.

PROS:

Latch isn't easily figured out by even the craftiest toddlers

Easy installation

Stays installed - my twins haven't been able to knock it over they way they can most pressure installed gates

Easy to walk-through and can stay open

CONS:

Latch button and lift could be difficult for people with arthritis

I'm very happy with this gate!

I needed a tall gate to keep my high-jumping, rescue dog confined to the kitchen during his housebreaking. This gate, although a bit pricey, fits the bill perfectly! It was very easy to install and simple to use. It does not require any permanent attachment to walls or woodwork, and once installed, the frame stays in place. No more having to constantly undo and redo the tension bar to get in or out of a room, or risking your life trying to step over it! If you need something tall, this is definitely the way to go.

I purchased this gate because I am working on introducing my new cat to the other two in the household, and wanted them to be able to see each other without being able to harm one another or jump over the gate. They had already proven they could jump over the regular 3' high baby gates and it was a nuisance for my husband and myself to have to be stepping over this kind of gate anyway. The Kidco gate was super-easy to mount-I had it up in less than 10 minutes without needing tools nor having to screw it into the walls. It is pressure-mounted, which was a highly desirable feature, since our apartment is a rental. We love that the door swings both ways. I've had it for a few weeks now, and so far, none of the kitties have even thought about trying to jump over it.

So.. My wife and i had tried out the Summer Extra Tall gate and were underwhelmed by the limitations and i was disappointed by the narrowness of the walkthru part of the gate.

With that said, we opted to try the Kidco Extra Tall (extra tall so cats cant jump over)..

Numerous great reviews prompted us to give it a try.

Value: Well, $90 + $25 for an extension makes this by FAR the most expensive baby gate option for us.

Installation: It lacked REAL detailed pictures for step by step walkthru.. (i figured it out on my own, but there is no way my wife would have understood this)

Use: After it was installed, we began testing and QUICKLY learned after about 15 minutes this was not the gate for us.

The part you walk thru was the nicest feature about it. It was 22'' wide. More than enough for my 225lb and 6'1 frame to fit thru - but that is where the positives end...

The latch to unlock it feels cheap and flimsy. It feels almost like the plastic youd buy a gallon of milk in. It doesnt flow smoothly to pull up and over.

At the bottom, there is a 'bracket' that extends down about 1 inch. This bracket ensures the door is aligned to the frame. When pulling up on the latch, you have to lift the gate up over that inch (doesnt sound like much but the others we have tried you only lift up a little bit and its unlocked.

This bottom bracket also causes trouble when it shuts, which i might add does not automatically shut.

I was shutting the gate door, and noticed that i several times had to stop for an extra amount of time to ensure the bottom bracket was aligned correctly to the frame. It was a cumbersome process and wasnt what i wanted if i was in a hurry.

Other gates just have a metal pin that hangs down, that when it meets the bottom of the frame it simply slides in and shuts very easily.

Another feature i just could stand at ALL, was the fact that if you have the gate door open half way and it isnt in the "lift up position", you have to lift it up again. Its kind of odd to describe in this review.

oh yea - the supposed stainless steel extension connecting bars were RUSTED when they came! i pulled the first two out, and they were fine. the other two were totally rusted.

Its just nothing at all what we want and i am surprised how many good reviews this has.

It's a baby gate, and despite other reviews about using it for cats, I had some concerns about skinny cats fitting through, but first...

Getting to what most people want addressed: Yes, it installs easily. No tools needed but the supplied toy wrench. The white one we got isn't bad looking at all. It's quiet in operation and firm in fit. The gate mechanism swings both ways and works pretty well, requiring you to push in a button while lifting the handle (so it helps to have two free hands, though I've gotten good at one hand operation.) It comes with small extensions in the event your door frame is a bit wide (so you don't have to order and pay for them seperately). Our doorknob did not stick out so much that it interfered with the gate's position and we are able to close the door (with the gate open or closed) with no issue. The gate's permanent vertical bars appear not so wide apart that a cat can get through. We're good. Except for a few things we learned as we went along... If you're buying for a cat, read on. You want to know if a cat can squeak through or jump over this gate, and in our experience, the answers were "maybe" and "yes".

We had a peaceful four cat household that grew to five when a good friend died leaving her five year old cat, Kali behind. We were fine with bringing her to our house. Despite the presence of many outdoor cats where she came from, Kali was used to being inside as an only cat and "plays well with others" was never on her report card. When she first met him, Kali gave my sweet skinny 16 year old boy the bum's rush, jumping and rolling him though he posed no threat. We then knew it was critical to make slower, safer introductions.

Hence this gate. At 42" it was the tallest I could find. It fit the door perfectly with no extensions. I put it in myself, and was psyched to show my husband. I stood back to admire it, and that's when Kali put her head through the space between where the bars end and where the door jamb began. They say if a cat's head will fit, so (unless the cat is overweight) will the rest of it. I don't know if it's true and I didn't want to find out. I knew adding the extensions would provide more bars and less gap, but despaired, knowing the addition of the extensions would make the gate too wide for the doorframe.

Enter the husband, who, thinking further outside the box than I could, realized only ONE extension at one end of the gate would work. He put it on, it filled the gap, we easily reinstalled, and stood back to admire the gate. Within 15 minutes, Kali jumped up and stood swaying on the widest top part of the gate, the handle, her four feet in a tiny row. I gently pushed her back down, closed the door and began to try to think like a cat.

How do you make a gate not look like a good place to jump? I laid old mushy bed pillows across the top which would interfere with her ability to land and might visually discourage her, but did not trust the scheme. We thought about getting a second gate to put above this gate, but vetoed it as creating too much hassle when trying to enter or exit. I soon wearied of hanging around the door to make sure Kali didn't try again, when it occurred to me that if I were a cat, I probably wouldn't jump if I couldn't see how high I had to make it. One tension rod, some pinchy clip hooks, and an old folded sheet later, the top part of the door was closed off only with fabric, and allowing it to drape on the side facing the cat, Kali couldn't see the gate's top. So far, she hasn't tried again. I can sweep the curtain to one side before entering easily.

We still don't know if the gate will help us accomplish the task of letting the cats get accustomed to one another in a non-threatening way, but if it fails, it's not the gate's fault. Of the four cats, two are coming around and sitting within a few feet of the door. The old fellow who got jumped by Kali is still avoiding the area when the door is open. The shyest one who doesn't come upstairs much is starting to be curious. We are cautiously hopeful this product will help the transition. As gates go though, this one's easy to put in and work, is tall, sturdy, looks acceptable, and does what it's supposed to do. Wish us luck!

ADDITION, AUGUST 22, 2010 - Kali got out of the room early in the morning on this date. We are not sure if she managed to leap over the top of the gate, or if she squeezed through the bars, but clearly this gate alone is not enough.

ADDITION, OCTOBER 2010 - We have now determined that Kali is able to jump over the gate after two more escapes. I have tried to visually block the area above the gate with tension rods as bars, but I failed to put them low enough and close enough together to discourage her - it still looked to her like she could squeeze through once up on top of the gate, so it was tempting to her. She jumped up, stood on top of the gate, and then pushed through the flimsy tension rods without injury, but clearly demonstrating her leaping finesse.

I have searched all over trying to find a "whole door" gate to no avail. We may do what a local cat rescue person does- get a baby gate that is as tall as the door is wide, but very long - if you lay that on its side, that can block all or most of the door, but it seems you'd have to have a pretty good fit to keep it from toppling. Another option would be to get yet another baby gate and install it above the present one. Another would be to tape in some corrugated cardboard cut from a larger box and this is ultimately what we did- if you do this, you must place the corrugated about 4-5 inches above the gate so you have room to lift the handle. We really hate having Kali confined, but her forays into the house have quickly led to cat fights- she is so scared that when she meets a cat who moves or mews she assumes an attack is coming and becomes aggressive. We continue in our quest to expose her to our cats in a non-threatening way.

I bought this gate to see if it would keep our 5-year-old, 10-pound cat out of a room we had just remodeled. We have lower gates the keep our two dogs in one area of the house and the cat jumps them with ease, which is OK, but we knew we needed something different if we were going to be able to keep the door open on the new room. This gate works. Installation was easy. After the gate was installed I took some cat food into the new room where the cat could see it and watched to see if he could jump over it. He got his front paws over the top, but he couldn't get traction with his back legs on the round uprights and he just hung there until I rescued him; I laughed my head off. If he can't clear it for food, he won't be able to clear it at all and the new room is safe. That's good; my wife had threatened to run the cat and me both off if the cat marked the new room. We have foot-operated gates on other doors, and those are much easier to use, but I think we will get used to the handle on this gate, and it did seem to be the best of the available choices in tall gates.

we've owned the regular height kidco gate for several years. when i needed another gate in my new house, i decided to try out the dreambaby since it was cheaper. ended up going for the kidco after all. it is worth the extra money if you can afford it.

i like my kidco gates better. much, much easier to install, don't require mounting cups, the kidco does not swing shut so it can be left open when my little guy is asleep. not good to leave it open when he is awake as he loves to swing it and bang it around.

the kidco latch has a button to be pushed while rasing the handle. you can then let go of the handle and lift and swing the gate. this seems to be easier for me and my 6 year old than the other brand, but also seems like it would be more difficult for the baby to figure out - if he could reach it.

the height is great. but, keep in mind that the height it may interfere with door handles. only a problem if you want to be able to close a door completely.

we had the regular height gate with extensions in a 64" opening in our previous house. worked great. the taller one seems like it may not work as well for that large space unless maybe it is hardware mounted. it does feel a little less sturdy than the shorter one. i have to keep sliding the top back into position as it seems to get out of alignment more easily than the shorter gate. but only by an inch or two. it hasn't fallen - even after several kids came for a visit.

We bought this to fence off an area of the house after one cat started to bully the other.

The gate is easy to install and also easy to move around, if you need to, although it does require a tool to loosen the bolts that keep it tight in the doorway.

We installed ours in a hallway and using the included extension pieces, we have been able to completely block off the other side.

Just in case, we also put a scat mat in front of the gate on one side, in case the more athletic and bullying cat was able to jump from just below it.

The gate's locking mechanism can be a bit fiddly if you just have one hand but it seems very secure and definitely child proof when engaged. As we only have cats to worry about, we don't bother locking it and just close it in place, making it much easier for us to come in and out. There is a lip at the bottom of the gate which engages the lowest bar and that does a good job of securing the gate but you would want to engage the locking handle at the top if you had a stairway to protect from a child.

All in all, not a cheap gate but well constructed and doesn't damage the areas you might install it.

I own both of the tall gates, Kidco and Carlson. They are both quite fine in terms of "tallness" and soI'll share with you the benefits of each, as I see them, as well as the downsides. Since I prefer the Kidco I'll start with the Carlson plus points: I love the tool for the adjustible sides! They have created a knob that can be spun in order to tighten and loosen the gate pressure points that hold it to the wall - super handy! Especially because this gate is used to help 2 sets of cats become familiar with one another. We are moving the gate daily between the two master bedrooms so that each set of kitties gets access to the main house equally, until they are prepared to co-exist. It's working wonderfully! Last night two of the cats from each set even touched noses thru the gate, so we are making progress. If I had children this gate might also be my preference, because of the locking handle. When the lock is used it does require two hands. We don't take advantage of it, so it's not a burden to us at all. Finally, the Carlson gate does include some extenders in the original purchase, which can cover a larger doorway. However, the downside of this gate for us is that it is "clanky". As the gate open and closes it clanks and is not particularly soothing sound. Sounds "jail-like". So, clearly, the Kidco has sub-par adjustment tools, but they are not so bad as to be a deterent. The nuts spin quite fine, just as the knobs do, and if it gets a little tight I just easily employ a small wrench. Works quite fine! The Kidco, however, has NONE of the clanking sounds, which is important in my home. And the gate control/lock is absolutely one-hand capable. There is no "child lock" included at all, so it just moves up and down as you like. We use our gates for pets - my boxer puppe has the kidco on his area - not children. And while the Carlson has the "child lock", any bright child who saw the gate installed would have no problem handily adjusting the pressure knobs at the sides. Don't let your children watch or EVER see you adjust the knobs - the gate will be too easy to take down. Hope this helps!

I love this "baby gate." I actually bought it because my 75 lb labradoodle was jumping over our other baby gate on a daily basis & I wanted to keep him out of our dining room. This is the tallest baby gate I've seen - definitely too tall for my dog to get over. I also like that you can open the gate & walk through. It's too complicated of a mechanism for kids to figure out (not that they'd be able to reach it...), but easy for parents to use & can be done with one hand. While easy to do, it is a bit cumbersome to open/close the gate, since you have to push a button while you lift the plastic handle, & then you have to lift the gate up as you push it open. I don't need to use the gate often, though, so it's OK with me. Although it does take a bit longer to open/close, it is definitely much more secure than my other baby gates. It was really easy to install, too.