Welcome to Pool Safety Tips

Child Care Providers Should Learn CPR

Good life-saving techniques, in addition to installing a baby barrier around the perimeter of your swimming pool area, is to require that everyone in your home over the age of 14 learn CPR and have some form of emergency training.
Additionally, any childcare providers (including babysitters, relatives and friends) should also have CPR training in the event of any emergency - not just drowning.
CPR training is typically offered at local hospitals, police stations, the YMCA, the American Red Cross and various other facilities. Check with your local Yellow Page listings to find providers in your area. Some trainers will even schedule home or group consultations.
To make sure techniques are properly learned, most providers recommend a course that spans a few days, or weeks if necessary, versus trying to learn in one day.
Teach your child care provider that if your child is missing, look in the swimming pool first because if the child has penetrated the swimming pool fence, time is the most important factor. In addition, CPR and emergency techniques learned in training can help to save your child's life.

Keep Hinges on Self-Closing Gates Well-Maintained

Keep self-closing gate hinges oiled and well maintained. Self-closing gates around the safety barrier of your swimming pool need to be maintained regularly. If the hinges, or any other part of the self-closing gate, needs to be fixed or maintained beyond adding oil, call a repairman or contractor who has had extensive professional experience in maintaining and repairing swimming pool fences with self-closing gates.

Alarm System Adds Protection to Pool Safety Plan

Another good child safety barrier is an alarm system for the pool area.
Try installing alarms on all doors leading up to your pool area. This can include screen or glass doors opening onto your patio and any other exit/entrance around your pool area. This type of child safety product can alert you when a door has been opened unexpectedly or unintentially and can prevent potential life-threatening situations.

Never Swim Alone

Teach your children that it is never a good idea to swim alone.
Even swimming pool fencing, first aid kits, and other precautionary measures will not help anyone who is swimming alone and gets a sudden cramp or falls into some other form of distress. Swimming alone is dangerous for swimmers of all levels and ages.
Have at least one other person with you when you are swimming. Children should have an adult present at all times — even if there are other children around.

Should you decide to swim alone, alert others in your home when you will be in the swimming pool. Ask them to check on you often and set a time to go back inside. Open windows that border the side of your home with the swimming pool so that those inside can hear your calls for help if you fall into distress.
These precautions can save your life if you find yourself in an emergency when swimming alone.

Children Should Always Be Supervised When Swimming

Children should always be supervised when they are in the swimming pool area — regardless of whether or not they are actually in the pool. This is because even when they are wearing flotation devices, children can drown.
Adding protective measures, such as swimming pool fencing, does not help if you are not paying attention to your child when they are permitted to be the swimming pool area.
Close, detailed supervision should be available for every moment your child is swimming. If there are multiple children present, there should be more than one adult supervising. Do not encourage rough play in the swimming pool and go over pool area rules before allowing anyone to swim.

Hire Licensed Contractor to Install Removable Fence

Removable swimming pool fencing should only be handled by a licensed, bonded, insured fencing company. A good removable fencing company will have a variety of specialty swimming pool fences and should be able to answer questions about the product. The company should provide a guarantee on your choice of removable pool fencing and provide maintenance should there be problems with the swimming pool fence after installation.