Are DIY and IKEA-Hack Learning Towers Safe? What to Check Before You Build or Buy

The IKEA Learning Tower Hack Question: What the Record Shows

No source used here says an IKEA learning tower hack or a DIY learning tower is unsafe as a class. What the record does show is that CPSC has recalled learning towers sold by companies for tipping, collapsing parts and loose steps. So any tower, built or bought, gets judged on the same few physical checks.

Those checks matter because of where a tower puts a child. NICHD, citing the CDC, reports that falls are the most common cause of nonfatal injuries for children ages 0 to 19. A tower lifts a toddler to counter height, which is the point of it, and also the reason to look hard at how it is held together.

The recalls below are about sold products, and they are used here only to show what failed and what to look at.

Check One: Tip-Over

CPSC’s 2023 recall of Simplay3 toddler towers, announced August 17, 2023, covered about 108,450 towers that can tip over while in use. The company received 16 reports of tipping, including 10 reports of injuries. Six of those were head contusions.

The remedy was a free set of stabilizing bases that attach to the tower. That fix points to where to look on any tower: whether the base can resist a child leaning, reaching or shifting their weight toward one side.

Check Two: Collapse

CPSC’s 2025 recall of Onasti toddler tower stools covered about 10,300 stools that can collapse or tip over in use. There were four reports, including two injuries. One was bruising. The other was a brain injury to a toddler.

CPSC’s advice was to stop using the stools and store them away from children until repaired. A tower that can fold or fail under a child’s weight has no safe fallback position. If you see a stool or tower flex, shift or give at a joint, take it out of use before the next time a child climbs it.

Check Three: Moving Parts and Joints

CPSC’s recall of Little Partners Grow 'N Stow folding learning towers, announced November 20, 2025, covered about 9,780 towers. CPSC says the platform inside the tower can collapse. There were 14 reports of collapse, including one child with bruises.

The remedy was a free repair kit that includes a new crossbar with pin tabs. So on a folding or hand-built tower, the crossbars, pins and hinges that hold the platform in place are a place to look. A foldable learning tower IKEA hack adds those parts to something that began life as a fixed piece. Anything with a hinge or a pin has a spot that can loosen, wear or shift each time it is opened, closed or leaned on.

Check Four: Anything a Child Can Step On or Hold

CPSC’s 2021 recall of Step2 StepUp Sidekick learning towers covered about 1,570 towers. CPSC says the storage tray with cup holders and step can come loose from the tower. There were 20 reports of trays or steps coming loose, and one child had minor bruises after falling.

Toddlers use every surface as a handhold or a foothold. A tray, a rail or a step that looks decorative will still get pulled, stood on and leaned against. The remedy for the Step2 towers was a refund, not a repair.

An IKEA stool learning tower hack often means attaching a rail, a step or a platform to a base that was designed for a different job. Each attached piece is something a child can grab, so each one needs to stay where it is put.

What Changes With a Home Build

The recalled towers came with a company. When something failed, that company could announce a repair kit, a set of bases or a refund, and CPSC could tell owners to stop using the product.

A home build or a hacked stool has no one to call. There is no recall notice coming. The owner is the person who notices a wobble, a loose screw or a joint that has started to give, and who checks again as the build gets used. So the check is a habit, not a one-time inspection.

The same goes for instructions. Before building from DIY learning tower plans, ask whether the plan states the child’s age range and weight limit, and whether it shows how the platform height changes as the child grows. A figure from a blog or a video is one person’s choice, not a safety standard, so do not treat it as a pass mark.

What to Check on Any Tower

Use this list for a tower you are building, buying new, or considering secondhand. It is not a certification.

• Base and footprint: Does the tower resist leaning or tipping when a child shifts toward one side? The Simplay3 remedy was added bases.
• Platform and joints: Do the crossbars, pins, hinges and fasteners that hold the platform stay tight? Look at these on a folding or hand-built tower, as in the Little Partners recall.
• Steps, trays and rails: Does everything a child can step on or hold stay attached when pulled or stood on, as in the Step2 recall?
• Wobble over time: Re-check for loose screws, flex or movement each time the tower is moved or adjusted, since no maker will do it for you.
• Plan details: Does the plan state the age range and weight limit, and show how the platform height changes?
• Recall status: Search the tower against the recalls listed at CPSC.gov before use. Each recall above told owners to stop using the tower, and the remedies were a repair (Simplay3, Onasti, Little Partners) or a refund (Step2).

Placement and Supervision

Picture this: you turn to answer the door, and your toddler is standing at the counter on the tower, reaching for something near the far edge. The tower tilts a little as the weight shifts. A tower that holds up well on a quiet afternoon is judged in exactly this moment, with a reach, a lean and nobody within arm’s length.

That is why adult presence belongs in the plan. CPSC states that no device is completely childproof and that determined toddlers have been known to overcome or disable them. Treat any tower, built or bought, as something used with an adult nearby, not a substitute for one.

Placement matters too. The AAP says never to put chairs, sofas, low tables or anything else a child might climb on in front of a window. A movable tower is something a child can climb on, so keep it away from windows when it is not in use. Counter height also puts a child close to everything else in the kitchen, so the wider work of baby proofing the kitchen goes together with any tower.

If a child falls and is hurt, call 911 or your pediatrician, and see the AAP’s guidance at HealthyChildren.org.

Buying Secondhand or Inheriting a Tower

A tower from a neighbor, a resale listing or a relative’s garage has a maker, but the maker may not know you own it. A secondhand owner may never hear about a remedy.

Look up the brand and model at CPSC.gov before the first use. If the tower is on a recall list, follow the notice: stop using it, and take the remedy the recall offers. A free repair kit or a set of stabilizing bases only helps if someone requests it. If you are comparing towers to buy, the question of which kind of learning tower fits your kitchen is worth settling before you choose.

A Bought Option: Baby Proof Me’s Montessori Standing Tower

For parents who would rather buy than build, Baby Proof Me sells a Montessori Standing Tower. These details come from its product page. The tower has three height settings for children aged 18 months to 5 years. It has a safety rail at the back with detachable safety bars that use knob screws. It also has six anti-slip strips and four non-slip pads, and its weight capacity is 150 lbs.

Whatever you choose, the same habits apply: check the joints and fasteners, keep it away from windows, and stay near while a child is on it.