The hottest days of summer are officially upon us, which means that it’s time to hit the pool and cool off for a bit. However, if you have kids, it’s important that you know some basic pool safety tips for kids. Unfortunately, most cases of drowning among children ages one to four occur in residential pools, so it’s time that we all learn how to minimize those risk and maybe even eradicate them completely. So here are the five best tips to help you keep your kids (and the kids of others as well) safe at the pool.
1.Adult supervision
This first tip is the most elementary of them all: keep your kids under close supervision when they’re at or near a pool, even if that pool happens to be in your own backyard. Small children are unpredictable, and even the best education and most vehement warnings won’t stop accidents from happening. However, a lot of pool accidents happened while the child victims were being supervised by one or even both parents, so there are other steps that need to be taken.
- Rigid pool covers
If you have a private pool on your property, chances are that you and your family will always enjoy it together. A rigid pool cover works like a horizontal garage door, and you can just slide it over the pool when it’s not being used. This way, you can prevent your child from falling into the pool by accident.
- Fences around the pool
This is another extra layer of pool protection that might seem a bit extreme, but it will prevent a lot of unwanted accidents from happening. Separate your pool from your house by building a fence around it, and make sure that the entry gate is secured with either a key or an access card. This will not only prevent unwanted visitors, but also minimize the risk of your toddler having an accident. You can also install an alarm at the pool’s door to notify you of any unannounced breaches.
- Underwater motion sensor
Another good solution to detect any unwanted activity in your pool, and thus know if your child has accidently fallen in, is to install an underwater motion sensor. This sensor will pick up on any strong movements inside the pool and let you know by triggering an alarm.
- Water-triggered watch alarm
If you don’t want to install such complicated security layers on your physical pool, you can also equip your child with a special watch that triggers an alarm once it comes in contact with water. The alarm can be sent to a device of your choice, letting you know promptly if your child is in danger of drowning.