Basics of Pool Safety

We have all heard that a responsible adult should be no more than an arm’s length away from small children when in a pool. Makes sense, right? The adult can grab them should they go under and are with them to monitor their every move. This is a great thing to practice, but there are of course many other things that will help keep kids safe around your pool.

We start with a cover. If you have a cover it should go over the whole pool and have no access to the water once it is deployed. Watch for pooling water on top of the cover though, and get rid of it fast, as this is a drowning hazard all its own. Removable, movable solar covers are not considered covers for a pool and can have disastrous circumstances should a small child fall on top of one that is on the pool.

Pool toys are colourful and fun, but once everyone is out of the pool, all pool toys should come out as well. This stops kids from looking for a toy and finding it in the pool, trying to reach it and possibly falling in. If the toys are on the grass there is no worry. Another thing to remember is to not put any riding toys anywhere near the pool, kids can get on, and fall into the pool on the riding toy. These toys belong no where near the pool area.

Speaking of pool areas, perhaps the biggest safety feature is a fence. It should be climb resistant and at least 4′ tall. It should also encompass the entire pool area and have a self latching, self closing gate, again, one which cannot be climbed. Pool fences made of metal links are super easy to climb so you want one with lateral stats with no more than 4″ between each one. The harder to climb the better as we want to keep children out of the whole area when the pool isn’t being used.

Supervision is key to pool safety, if you know where your children are you will know they’re not in the pool area. Having rules from day one about not diving into a shallow pool and not running on the pool deck, and not putting anything electronic anywhere near the pool will further teach your kids about keeping safe around the water. Keep safe and have fun!