The Official Blog of The Fence Authority

Adding a pool to your yard can make summer a lot more fun for your family. However, there a few more serious concerns to keep in mind before you can enjoy your pool. Naturally, you want your kids to be as safe as they possibly can be in your yard and reduce the chance of an accident.

Unfortunately, many drowning deaths do take place in home pools. Toddlers between ages one and four in particular are at a high risk for drowning, and supervision alone often isn’t enough to prevent a disaster. It only takes two inches of water for young children to drown. These tips will enable you to get the most out of your pool without the risks.

Make the area slip-proof

Drowning isn’t the only pool safety risk. Because pools and the areas surrounding them get very wet and slippery, many accidents occur as a result of slips and falls near pools. Your pool dock, diving board, and ladders should all be made of non-slip materials. You may also need to add a non-slip coating to a cement pool deck. Additionally, you should ensure that the surface surrounding your pool is level. If there are any low points, water will easily collect in them and create a slip risk.

Put up a secure barrier

Pool fences are required to meet certain standards by law or your insurance company. They are also a safety best practice. Temporary fences may be the cheapest option and the least that is required, but they are not necessarily the best.  A fence should provide a secure barrier that keeps children out, and it shouldn’t be easy to climb. Here are a few things you should keep in mind:

• Fences are often required to be four feet, but higher is better if your neighborhood allows it.
• Latches should be self-closing , and an alarm will add an extra layer of security. Alarms may also be required by local ordinance or your insurance company.
• The pool should be totally separated from your house by a fence.

Do your part to keep your kids safe

Once you’ve installed your pool and fence and are sure that they are up to
safety standards, you now have a very important role to play in making sure your children and toddlers are safe. It’s absolutely necessary that you:

• Be prepared with a first aid kit nearby.
• Have life-saving equipment like poles and life rings on hand.
• Always secure a safety cover when pool is not in use.
• Keep pool chemicals out of reach of children.
• Learn CPR and make sure you brush up on it frequently.
• Regularly check the there are no toys and other obstructions on the ground near the pool.
• Never use the pool without a phone available to call for help.
• Never let children use the pool without supervision, and be vigilant and attentive when you are watching them!

Educate your kids about pool safety

Your efforts to make the pool area safe and stay prepared for accidents will go a long way, but your kids should be educated about safety too. Children need to understand that they should never go in the water without adult supervision. They should also know that there is a risk of getting hands or other body parts stuck in the pool drains and should therefore never play near them. As an extra precaution, it doesn’t hurt to teach your children CPR in case of emergency.

Ultimately, playing in the pool should be fun, not stressful, but that’s no reason to get casual about safety. However, once you’ve taken all the safety measures possible, you’ll have a lot less reason to worry!

Do you have any fun and creative tips for how to educate kids about safety? Feel free to share some of the ways you keep your children and toddlers safe in the comments.