Swimming Pool Safety

Swimming Pool Safety Is Essential

Swimming pools have been found to present a fairly significant threat to toddlers' and pets' lives. Pools that do not have professional life guards should combine supervision and safety devices to lower the death rate due to drowning. Swimming pool covers, pool fences and pool enclosures are just a few of the many available effective barriers.

With advanced technology, computer-aided drowning prevention systems and other electronic systems are also readily available. Poseidon system, Swimguard, Drowning Early Warning System (DEWS) are few of the most widely used of these. Pool alarms like the Sacunda pool alarm system, which have underwater sensors are also highly effective.

Pool fences can be considered as the first protection layer. Pool fences run across the perimeter of a pool and ideally should be at least four feet high. Any openings in the fence should not be more than four inches wide. The consumer has a wide variety of pool fences to choose from poolfence.com and Fence City offer removable mesh pool fences and aluminum fences.

Pool covers offer the next layer of protection. Apart from providing protection, pool covers are also helpful in maintaining cleaner water by preventing leaves and debris from falling into pool water. Pool covers, both manual and automatic, are either in the form of mesh or are solid. They are hooked to decks to make them taut over the pool. backyardcitypools.com and poolstore.com offer both mesh and solid pool covers made by the Cantar and Rayner brands.

Pool enclosures are other barriers that are employed for safety. A pool enclosure is a kind of roofing that creates an indoor environment that is secure and protected. It also helps in regulating temperature of pool water to a certain extent. Aquashield and Libart are some of the providers of pool enclosures.

Apart from the barriers, special care needs to be taken with children. A child should never be left unsupervised near a pool, even if the pool is equipped with safety devices. First-aid education is a must. Gates of pool fences and pool enclosures should never be left unlocked when the pool is not in use.

Many times, even adults are careless about pool safety. Proper diving safety should be practiced. Swimming should never be undertaken under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Proper CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) technique should be learnt. A poolside telephone, with emergency numbers, is also suggested. Care should be taken that the safety equipment is working properly.

Other life saving equipments, such as a pole and rescue tubes should be kept near the pool. A first aid kit is also very important and should be kept at an easily locatable and safe place. Suction of main drain and other fixtures also pose as a potential threat. Care should be taken that they are in place and not damaged. Appropriate safety signs, like 'No Diving', 'No running', etc, should be posted around the pool. Finally, a regular check of the equipments is a must. First aid kit should also be periodically checked and should be well stocked.

Apart from the above mentioned technical pool safety tips, clinical pool water safety is also important. Pool water should be regularly checked for any sort of impurity and should be treated accordingly.