With summer in full swing, many of us are seeking some respite from the heat in swimming pools. If you have a swimming pool in your backyard, make sure that it is safe for your kids. There are some rules which ensure that the fun isn’t spoiled by an incident of any kind. The CDC issued a disturbing statistic which should make you seriously consider implementing strict pool rules.

Before you start teaching your kids these lessons, make sure that the pool water itself is safe and clean with tips from this article. It is also useful that you stick to these rules as well, setting an example your kids can follow.

Adults

Rule number one with young children is never going near the pool without adult supervision. Even if they know how to swim, something can go wrong and they may need your help. All the other rules are second to this one. If they follow this one, your pool safety worries for children are significantly lowered.

Report Problems

If there’s anything wrong with the pool, they need to tell an adult. It is important that you know about any malfunction in order to fix it as soon as possible, both for safety and for financial reasons.If in doubt contact a suitably qualified pool technician - pool inspections melbourne provides a very reliable and cost-effective service to check the functionality of your pool.

No Diving

This one doesn’t have to be as strict, but they need to make sure it’s not too deep for them (if they can’t swim well), or too shallow that they will injure themselves when jumping in. Another compelling reason to ban or restrict jumping into the pool is carelessness. If they aren’t careful, they may accidentally jump on top of someone who is already in the pool.

No Running

Even though it may sound a bit cruel and overly strict to ban running to kids, pools can be very dangerous. Water makes surfaces slippery and just a second is enough to injure yourself quite severely.

Additionally, all the toys need to be neatly put away after use, for the same reason – someone can trip over them and injure themselves.

What Can You Do?

Apart from teaching your kids these rules, you can try to do a bit more to secure the pool; just in case your rules aren’t followed as diligently.

·         Install a railing around the pool, at least 4 feet tall. Make sure that your kids can’t squeeze through the bars or jump over it.

·         Fit a gate with a lock mechanism and keep the key well out of your kids’ reach. If you want to be extra safe, you can also find one of those alarms which let you know if someone’s trying to open the gate without your supervision.

·         Learn CPR for emergencies. What’s more, you should probably insist that everyone who supervises the kids, be it your neighbor or your babysitter.

·         Teach your kids how to swim early on. This way, you can be sure they will have enough practice by the time they are old enough to be allowed to swim unsupervised.

Sunscreen

This tip is not exactly strictly pool-related, but it can’t be repeated enough. Always make sure that everyone is wearing sunscreen. The harmful sun’s rays are very intense in the summer and can cause nasty sunburns, or even cause more serious health issues.

The effect of the sun is intensified by water, so if you are spending time in or around the pool, it is even more important that you don’t skip the sunscreen.