How to Make Swimming Pool Safe for Kids?

Imagine a dip in the swimming pool under a blazing sun. For many families, there is nothing better than to cool off in a pool, particularly if they have their own swimming pool in the backyard. However, families that have young kids are often unaware of the hidden dangers because they don't see swimming pools as a threat.

Often, lack of safety precautions around pools can result in life-or-death scenario for young kids. For instance, a video of a 17 month old child recently went viral on social media as his mom tried to rescue the child from drowning. Just two days earlier, the family had bought a huge inflatable pool that was only accessible by a four foot high ladder that reached the upper deck.

Unknown to the mother, the child and his two years old cousin sneaked out silently to climb the ladder. Once at the top, Eliah, slipped inside the pool, which was full of water. Luckily, his cousin, Jaden, recognized the danger to warn the mother about the ordeal. Apparently, the two year old cousin could not recall the trauma, but his wet clothes were enough to push Mom into taking action. In the video, the mother can be seen climbing the ladder and pulling her son to safety.

By the time he was rescued, Eliah had been underwater for more than five minutes. Miraculously, he was rescued by performing a CPR, after eight minutes of the incident. For the mother, it was a rescue from heaven as medical reports suggested that her son did not receive any lasting effects from drowning.

For Juan Zuniga, the rescue was also miraculous because her nephew was able to warn her about danger. Had there been no one to notice, the incident could have taken another life without any warning signs or cries for help. As a result, it is not the swimming pool that is a problem, but it is lack of pool safety measures that are to be blamed.

According to a representative of Safe Kids Worldwide, drowning is often silent; therefore, parents usually don't notice cries for help or splashing. It means that children can drown easily without anyone taking notice of them. In fact, anything that could act as a barrier to entry in the swimming pool can save a lot of lives.

Swimming Pools and Young Kids - Statistics

If statistics can provide any clue, young kids and swimming pools are a recipe for disaster. Unattended swimming pools are a nightmare for parents because drowning is the second leading cause of child death for individuals under five years. According to recent stats by Center for Disease Control, nearly three-quarter of deaths by drowning, in the United States, are children aged between one and five years. These statistics are even more concerning considering that a vast majority of these deaths occur when the child is under three years because toddlers are usually unable to recognize that swimming pools can be dangerous.

Research also suggests that a whopping 75 percent of the drowning deaths occur in private residences when there is no adult supervision. Even when children were saved from drowning, half of them had to be treated in an emergency unit or they had to be moved to another hospital for intensive care. For parents, the high cost of medical bills poses another major dilemma because the initial hospital bill can amount to more than $8000, on average. For serious injuries related to accidents in swimming pool, the cost can often reach as high as $250,000.

What you should do?

No one can stop a mishap from occurring if safety precautions are not followed; however, there are some key steps that a parent needs to take to stop misfortunes. The most important of these safety measures is installation of barriers around the swimming pool parameters.The three most common types of barriers are fences, door alarms, and mechanical safety nets.

Barriers are often your best choice against child safety because they can stop an unsupervised child to enter the danger zone, particularly in large swimming pools that have changing depth. In fact, these hurdles give time to react to an emergency situation as parents can get additional time, which can prove a lifesaver in an emergency.

There are different kinds of barriers in the market. They include swimming pool gates, protective fences, pool covers, and door alarms, among others. Depending on the requirement of the pool owner, multiple barriers can also be used to distract kids from entering the pool. Following guidelines will help parents decide what safety equipment they require.

Gates and Pool Fence

Most gates and fences are installed around the pool. If the pool is unprotected from every side, fences can be a good deterrent because they will cover the swimming pool from every angle. Knowledgeable companies can even provide fencing according to the landscaping requirements of home owners, which helps increase the safety while improving the outdoor ambiance.

For child's safety, each fence should be at least 4 feet high without any visible handholds. Accordingly, it is not uncommon for some of these fences to have pointed edges on top, which acts as an additional safety measures if the child tries to climb the fence. Similarly, fence slats should be only 4 inches apart enough to stop a child from squeezing through the gap.

Once fences are installed, you should inspect the fencing yourself to see if the barrier is set up properly. It is even better to regularly inspect each fence because rainy season often dampens the soil, which ultimately loosens the base.

Even if you have properly set up fences, the most vulnerable part of the barrier remains the door leading to the pool. Most accidents happen if the door is left open, unintentionally. To ensure maximum safety, it is a good idea to install a fencing door that has self-closing and self-latching functions. Such swimming pools doors usually integrate rubber-band like spring mechanism, which forces the door to close automatically. It means that even if someone forgets to lock the swimming pool door, the door will close and lock itself, properly. Just like the fence, keep an eye on the working of swimming pool door mechanism to fix any problems, if they occur.

As a rule of thumb, the door lock of the swimming pool gate should be located inside the side facing the swimming pool. This configuration ensures that the child does not open the door from outside. Besides, the door latch should be located at least 3 inches down from the top of the door. If the door lock is 3 inches below the top of the gate, most kids will not be able to open it by reaching over the top. The location and the height of the lock can be changed according to the height of a child who needs protection.

Door Alarms

Sometimes, it is impossible to cover every side of the pool with a fence. This is particularly the case if the swimming pool is located near the main building, where hard surface area prevents house owners to install a fence. If this is the case, then door alarms are your first line of defense. Just like a home alarm, these door alarms will sound a warning whenever a child passes through it.

Modern door alarms are equipped with a keypad or a switch that can be turned off easily by an adult who wishes to deactivate the alarm. Also make sure that the door alarm is not switched off permanently because there is every chance that an adult will forget to activate the alarm after passing through the gate. Hence, a door alarm should have the ability to automatically reactivate after a certain period.

If your door alarm comes with a remote keypad, it is imperative that the keypad is not left in open. It is even better to use the manual keypad for door alarms instead of automatic keypads because automatic keypads will always invite a curious child, who are often much smarter than we think. The door alarm should be located at a height that is out of reach of a child. Similarly, there shouldn't be any furniture near the door alarm that could help children access the safety alarm.

Safety Covers

Often, door alarms can prove annoying as they may hinder access to the backyard and swimming pool area. It is also not uncommon for parents to question the reliability of most alarms. To tackle these issues, your best bet is to opt for safety covers and fence safety net. Instead of a flimsy cover, always select a mechanically powered safety cover.

Most of these power safety covers are designed according to the stringent guidelines of ASTM, which is an international U.S. based organization dedicated to provide instructions for material testing. Their guidelines suggest that a power safety cover should be strong enough to withstand weight of two adults and a child. These safety covers also prove extremely useful when there is no water in the pool as an empty pool is as dangerous to a child as a pool full of water.

Frankly speaking, you can even jump on these cover, and they will withstand the force of impact of an average adult. You don't have to test the strength, but make sure to install a durable power safety cover. In fact, ASTM guidelines also suggest that each of these covers should be able to drain water quickly because even a small puddle of water can prove hazardous to a child.

Unlike a make-shift cover, mechanical safety covers are the real deal. These safety covers are professionally installed by a swimming pool contractor who is specifically trained to test and equip these according to customized requirements of home owners. Motor driven, the cover will open and close mechanically using a power motor. Anyone can easily open the cover in under a minute, and then close it quickly.

Ironically, people always spend a lot of cash on pool remodeling, underwater lights, and pool maintenance but they forget about safety devices such as safety barrier, fence, alarm, and rescue hook. Homes with swimming pools that have children are prone to accidents. As such, it makes sense to think about child safety if you have a swimming pool at your home. Perhaps, it is time to call a professional who can help in making a life-time investment by installing safety barriers.