Most families use a wooden playpen from the first crawling months until about age two. After that, it rarely goes into storage. It becomes a gate, a room divider or a play corner, which is a large part of why parents say it was worth the money.
How long a playpen stays in use
It depends on the baby. Some families use theirs every day, others hardly at all, and the same parents can have both experiences with two different children. Most owners set the pen up when their baby starts crawling, at around six to eight months, and keep using it well into the second year.
Parents who kept theirs the longest tend to say the same two things. The pen was big enough, and it turned into something else once their child outgrew it.
What it becomes after the baby stage
This is where wood and mesh part ways. A mesh play yard folds up and goes back in the closet. A wooden playpen is built from separate panels, so it can be rearranged.
Owners use theirs as a long gate to keep a toddler out of the kitchen, as a barrier around one corner of a playroom, or as a bigger enclosure when cousins come to visit. To add space later, the playpen expansion set adds two more panels.
Is it worth $200 to $300?
For families with open floor space, pets or more than one small child, owners say yes. Parents who can baby-proof a whole room often find they need it less.
Two things work in wood's favor over time. A damaged panel is a replacement part, not a new playpen. And natural wood looks like furniture, which matters when it sits in the living room for a year or more.
"Update: after two years of use we continue to use it."
Choosing between 8 and 10 panels
Choose the larger size if your room allows it. The 8-panel playpen sets up as a 63 by 63 inch square, which suits a room where space is limited. The 10-panel is a 95 by 63 inch rectangle, with room for two children or a parent sitting inside. Both are 24 inches tall.
If you start with the 8-panel, the expansion set turns it into the 10-panel layout later. Our size guide shows both on a floor plan.
A mat for hard floors
On hardwood or tile, owners recommend a mat inside the pen. It adds cushioning and keeps the panels from sliding. The ZETY playpen play mats are cut to each footprint, 61 by 61 inches for the 8-panel and 91 by 61 inches for the 10-panel, with 1.5 inches of foam under a waterproof cover.
Setting it up
One person can set it up in 15 to 25 minutes. The panels join with nylon connectors, so no tools are needed, and the pen folds flat, accordion style, when you need the floor back.
What sets the wooden version apart
Activity toys are built into the panels, and children play with them from both sides. The panels are smooth, unpainted natural pine. Every playpen is tested by a CPSC-accepted laboratory, with a Children's Product Certificate on file.
See both sizes in our collection of wooden baby playpens. If you are still weighing your options, read wooden or mesh playpens and how to expand a wooden playpen.
