Add a Pool Safety Alarm
If you add a pool safety alarm, you can have extra peace of mind this summer. The ultimate symbol of summer fun is the family pool. Days filled with the happy screams of children, relaxing in the sun, and enjoying this precious time with your family. But before you start lathering on the sunscreen make sure your pool is safe for your family and others. There are 3 necessary components to maintaining a safe pool: limiting access, pool safety alarms, and knowledge.
Limiting Access
This is one of the most important aspects of pool safety. By limiting access to the pool, you drastically reduce the risk of accidental drowning. A pool safety fence is the best way to ensure that your pool is properly secured when not in use. They are also the most convenient option to use. By simply closing the gate behind you your pool is safe from even the most adventurous of children.
Add A Pool Safety Alarm – Types
The second level of protection is adding a pool safety alarm. There are several options available depending on your needs. The different styles are designed to alert you if someone has entered the pool or the pool area.
Pool Fence Alarm
This option works best when paired with a professionally installed pool safety fence. These are either magnetic or motion sensors.
The magnetic options alert when the connection between its two halves is broken. For example, if your oldest child figures out how to work the gate and decides to go for a quick swim while you’re busy making lunch. As soon as the magnets separate an alarm will go off, alerting you that someone has broken that barrier.
The motion sensor is intended to alert you to a break in the barrier as well. However, to do this their infrared beams detect movement. This means that if your dog manages to dig its way under your fence or a neighborhood child decided to jump it the alarm will be triggered, and you can react quickly.
Floating Pool Sensor
Another option to add a pool safety alarm option is a floating pool sensor. This device floats on top of your pool and alerts you when there is a disturbance in the water. These are popular because they are generally affordable and work with any style of pool. However, they alert from any disturbance to the water. This means during strong winds you may deal with false alerts more frequently than some other options.
Underwater Motion Alert
A more expensive but highly effective pool safety alarm is an underwater motion sensor. These use a sonar grid system to detect when someone is in the pool. They are very sensitive and detect bodies as small as 15 pounds. They are also less likely to send a false alert because they are not affected by disturbance to the water surface from high winds.
These systems remain on constantly and must be turned off prior to jumping in the pool and turned back on once you are done. However, they do automatically reset on their own after an alert has been activated so they are always effective when you’re not using the pool.
Knowledge
In case an accident does happen it’s important to be prepared to act quickly. There are several things that you should do to make sure that you and your family are prepared in the event that something does happen.
Know CPR
One of the best things that parents can do to ensure their children’s safety is to properly learn how to perform CPR. There are many classes available, and some even focus on how to perform CPR on someone who has inhaled water. Knowing the appropriate way to respond is the best way to ensure that if an accident occurs, you’re fully prepared to handle it.
Know the Signs
With movies showing dramatic scenes of drowning, we often assume that it would be clear if one of our kids was truly struggling. However, this is not the case. Drowning happens quickly and silently. There is little to no splashing or screaming for help. Look for some of these signs of distress and act before you think it’s necessary.
- Vertical in the water but not using legs to stay up
- Mouth open and head tilted back
- Attempts to swim but no progress is being made
- Hyperventilating
- Trying to roll on their back
- Mouth at water level
There is always the risk of accidental drowning. When you add a pool safety alarm and making sure you have these things already in place is the best way to ensure that your family is safe. Let us help make your pool a fun, but most importantly safe, place for your family this summer.
