There is nothing like having a swimming pool in your backyard on a hot summer day. Pools are an awesome feature to almost any home – especially if you have kids. You can make happy memories for many years to come with a swimming pool – and they are usually well worth the money.
But be sure that your pool is a safe environment for you and your family. Every year, there are pool deaths and injuries. The sad part is that many of these can be prevented.
So before you buy a home with a swimming pool, or put one in at your existing home, be sure that it is safe – especially for your children. How can you do this? The points below will help you through the process.
First of all, make sure you have a proper fence around your pool – one with a self-closing gate. This will help prevent the little ones from getting into the pool area without adult supervision. This is important because according to HealthyChildren.org, most drownings in kids 4 and under happen in home swimming pools. So why the fence? There are two reasons. one is obviously you don’t want neighbor kids wandering in and getting into the pool. Kids wander – it’s what they do. So we have to protect them. But it also has to do with your children. For instance, you may be grabbing groceries out of the trunk and your little one runs out back out of excitement to get home and swim – without a proper fence, sad things can happen very quickly.
Second, make sure you have a qualified electrician check to make sure your electrical work is safe and properly done. Electrical hazards are one of the most common issues in a pool. We have all likely become familiar with the tragic events over the past few years of water parks having electrical issues. Home pool electrical hazards are very common as well. So be sure to make sure it is right, to begin with – and then make sure it stays in good condition.
Be sure that your pool equipment is also in good working order. Things such as a diving board (if you have one), ladders, and other items. A broken diving board, a rusted ladder, loose tiles on the edge of the pool – all of these can lead to injury – or worse.
Keeping your family safe at the pool is well worth the effort. So keep your pool safe – and enjoy it!