Toddler Summer Must Have: The Noggle

Note: this is not a sponsored post.  I have no affiliation with Noggle....this is purely my personal opinion and experience!

The summer heat in Texas is already upon us, and it is BRUTAL!  Last summer, I struggled with how to keep C cool in his carseat, since I drive a car (read: not an SUV/minivan with ceiling back-seat air vents) and the air conditioning had a hard time reaching him in his rear-facing carseat.  Even with the AC on at full blast (and me freezing in the front seat), he'd be pink-faced and sweaty-haired by the time we got to our destination.  Because we are committed to keeping C in a rear-facing carseat as long as possible - until he reaches the max weight or height limits of his seat, because of how much vastly safer rear-facing is - I needed a solution for this upcoming summer.

This spring I ordered a Noggle for my car, which is designed specifically for this situation!  I wasn't able to find anywhere local that sold the Noggle, so it was Amazon Prime to the rescue!   Let me be the first to tell you, this is not going to win you any cool points -- it definitely pushes my car well into "mom car" territory of lameness.....but IT WORKS!  The Noggle is a flexible plastic tube, covered in fabric, which attaches to your front seat air vent and routes the air flow back to your kiddo in the backseat.  It comes in 2 sizes: the 6 foot, designed for children in forward-facing carseats, and the 8 foot, designed for children in rear-facing carseats.  Since C is rear-facing, I ordered the 8 foot model.

The Noggle comes in a bunch of different fabrics; some are bright and colorful, and others are more boring/discreet.  I chose the Tan Honeycomb design, thinking that the plain-ish tan color would blend in with the tan interior of my car.  It doesn't - it still looks like a giant snake going from my front air vents to the backseat - but oh well.  This thing is not discreet, but it is effective.  C is no longer sweaty or pink-cheeked when I get him out of the carseat, and he always reminds me to turn on his "air" ("high!") 

It comes with 2 different adapters for round and rectangular front air vents; you attach the adapter to your air vent with a (provided) plastic zip tie, and then twist one end of the Noggle into the adapter to secure it to the air vent.  (Note that you can untwist the front-seat end of the Noggle when not in use to make it SLIGHTLY less obtrusive).  

Then, you route the Noggle to your backseat, using Velcro loops on the other end to secure the tube and direct the air flow towards your kiddo.  

I currently have the backseat-end of the Noggle attached to the loop pull-down for the center seat console, but the provided images show it attached to headrests or the handle in the car ceiling as alternate options.  (Note that you should not attach the Noggle - or ANYTHING - directly to any part of your child's carseat, as this can interfere with the effectiveness of the carseat and is expressly prohibited in most carseat manufacturer's manuals).

The entire Noggle is very lightweight, so even though it would act as a projectile in the event of a vehicle crash, it is not likely to cause serious injury.  In my opinion, the risks of overheating in the backseat are far outweighed by the remote chance of injury from using the Noggle.

Although it makes my car look super lame, I would absolutely buy the Noggle again!  We use it daily and it has made such a difference in how hot C gets in the backseat!  You can order one on Amazon HERE.