Swimming pools are fun for the entire family. However, if your family includes little ones or people with physical disabilities, the thought of having a deep and sometimes unsupervised body of water in your backyard may seem like a living nightmare.
Without a doubt, pool safety is priceless when adding a pool to your backyard. Aloha Pools & Spas is a family business of over 57 years that values the safety of the families we serve. We know that while there is no way to 100% prevent accidents, you can absolutely prepare for the worst and make arrangements so it doesn’t happen.
In this article, we’ll share things you can do to keep your family safe, along with items you can purchase as an added element of protection for your swimmers.
Why Pool Safety Is So Important
Even if your family is grown with incredible swimmers, pool safety is still important.
Why?
Because with wet concrete and a big body of water, accidents still happen.
Having preventative measures and equipment in place ensures that you’re better safe than sorry- even if you don’t feel like the money is worth it.
Here are some ways you can ensure a fun and safe pool experience without tragedy striking.
1. Install a Four-Sided Pool Fence
Especially for in-ground pools, a pool fence is one of the most foolproof ways to keep unsupervised children and creatures out of your pool. In some states, a fence is actually required around your inground pool. States that don’t have regulations sometimes have county or city regulations, so always check your local regulations about what you need for your pool.
Even if a fence isn’t required, it’s always a helpful way to keep your family safe.
Something to note about fences: we see a lot of our customers who have a gate on their fence that stays open or unlocked at all times. Although this is convenient for our pool service technicians, it can cancel out the benefits of the fence. It’s important to keep any gates latched or locked when you’re not around.
2. Never Leave Children Unsupervised
This may sound obvious, but even children who know how to swim can get into trouble when left unsupervised in a pool. As children develop their swimming skills, sometimes bravery takes over before their judgment has caught up. Other children aren’t equipped to help one another, and this can lead to danger.
Even if an adult is not in the pool, having one around is non-negotiable.
If you have a pool and lose track of a child, whether you were outside with them or not, check the pool first. Drowning can happen in as little as 20 seconds, and it’s often silent. Kids are drawn to water, and things can change fast.
3. Teach Everyone in the House How to Swim
Pool floaties are great for children who don’t quite know how to swim yet, but they aren’t a foolproof protector against drowning. As soon as your kids are old enough for swim lessons, it’s always helpful to enroll them.
4. Keep Rescue Equipment Nearby
Something as simple as a lifeguard pool ring or a rescue buoy can save the life of a loved one in your pool. These items are an added expense, but they could be literal lifesavers if needed.
5. Learn CPR and Basic Water Rescue
Hopefully you won’t need to rescue anybody or perform CPR if your fence and gate are properly maintained and all other precautions are taken. However, emergencies do happen fast.
Knowing CPR, or having somebody around who does, is just one more step in keeping your crew safe. Basic water rescue training is helpful too. This not only keeps your swimmers safe, but it also ensures your own safety when coming to the rescue in an emergency.
6. Install Pool Alarms
Like fences, some states require swimming pool alarms that sound when a certain amount of weight enters the pool. Tennessee, for instance, has the Katie Beth Law, a law named after a toddler who drowned in a pool in 2009. Several other states have similar laws, resulting from tragedies much like that one.
To be clear, pool alarms should never be your main source of protection for your pool. We turn them off when we’re swimming, and they often don’t get turned back on. Sometimes they’re faulty. Other times the batteries die. They don’t prevent tragedy on their own- they just act as another set of eyes.
7. Create and Enforce Pool Rules
The last thing you want is to get the gear, get CPR certified, and get your family swimming lessons, just for somebody to run on the concrete, fall, and bust their head open. There’s no part of the pool area that doesn’t require some precaution. Establishing your own set of rules can keep silly, preventable accidents from happening. Some pool rules that many households follow include:
- No running by the pool
- No diving in the shallow end
- No swimming alone
- No glass at the pool
- No chewing gum near the pool
You may run a stricter household, or you may be more relaxed. Customize these rules to fit your family and what keeps everyone safe.
What Is the Best Way to Make a Swimming Pool Safer?
The best way to protect your family from the water is to cover it with an automatic pool cover. Of all the protection methods, this is the most likely to single-handedly prevent a tragic accident. Automatic pool covers can hold a minimum of 435 pounds and up to 2,000 pounds. If a person falls on the cover, they simply fall on the cover. They can safely get out from there without touching any water.
The caveat to automatic pool covers is twofold: they’re expensive, and they’re made specifically for rectangular inground pools. Because automatic pool covers are mechanical, they need a very uniform shape to work properly; an automatic pool cover can be added to some freeform pools as well, but it does not cover the whole pool. Many people are hesitant to add another expense to what is already a costly process. However, one of the best things about an automatic pool cover is that it can satisfy the fencing regulation in many areas, standing in for a fence altogether. Since you’re going to be paying for some form of cover either way, an automatic cover often ends up being only a few thousand dollars more than a standard cover-and-fence combination, while offering more foolproof protection than either one alone.
Pools Are Only as Safe as You Make Them.
Yes, there are many jarring statistics about drowning and other pool accidents, but the majority of these tragedies can be prevented. Knowing what to do if a crisis occurs is crucial for your peace of mind as a pool owner.
These are extra steps in the process of pool ownership, and some of them cost a little extra money. But feeling certain that your family is safe and free to have fun has no price tag.
If you want to hear more about safety, check out the episode below from our deep-dive podcast where owner Brad Cook shares his suggested safety tips, both as a pool store owner and as a personal pool owner of 30 years.
If you’re interested in becoming a pool owner, or if you still have questions about safety, visit any of our locations or contact us. We’re thrilled to swim with you on the journey.
