Any kind of home pool is one people look on fondly, because it’s nice to have an area to cool off and relax in during the warm summer, and at the end of a hard week. Moreover, any pool investment can dramatically increase a house valuation, especially in areas where not every single household has one.
That being said, pools are safety risks if they’re not properly cared for and responsibly installed. Any pool maintenance company will make certain all the fixtures are safe, that the water hygiene and quality is at a high level, and that you’re keeping on top of the homeowner checks you can do where appropriate.
Safety can also come in the form of infrastructure, as keeping people protected is often best when you don’t expose them to risk in the first place. In this post, we’ll discuss three measures you can use to achieve that:
Fencing & Safety Gates
A proper fence around your pool area is one of the most important provisions you can install, especially if you have kids. That’s because it should help you seal it off, which keeps young children and pets from wandering in unsupervised as both will otherwise. The fence needs to be tall enough that kids can’t climb over it, and the gaps between bars should be narrow so nobody can squeeze through. Note that if you have pets like a cat, then you might want to use a pool cover because they can get over most anything.
Safety gates are just as important as the fence itself too, as you want self-closing, self-latching gates that can log open or closed. It’s helpful to position the latch high enough that small children can’t reach it, but accessible enough for adults to use without hassle. Some people also add alarms to their gates so they’re alerted whenever the pool area is accessed, perhaps through an app that goes through your DND settings.
Non-Slip Flooring
Wet surfaces around pools are inarguably going to be there, and there’s nothing you can do, as the area gets soaked constantly from splashing and people climbing in and out. This means choosing the right flooring material, textured, with good grip underfoot, can help prevent someone from falling over.
The most common options chosen these days is textured concrete and special pool pavers, but you can also opt for rubberized surfaces and stone with natural grip to help out. Ground rules, like no running around the pool, is also necessary.
Lighting & Multiple Exits
Good lighting around the pool will ensure you gain clear visibility of the water’s edge, steps, and any extended areas, so nobody trips or missteps or falls in without being seen. Of course, underwater lighting is helpful for seeing into the pool itself, which matters if someone needs help or if you just want to keep an eye on swimmers.
Having multiple exit points is necessary, both a ladder and natural steps with an incline. This means if someone’s in distress, they can still quite easily move to standing or at least kneeling height outside of the water. It might just save a life.
With this advice, we hope you can more easily install a pool going forward.
