Keeping Your Fiberglass Pool Safe
A Blue Hawaiian fiberglass pool can bring hours of pleasurable fun and sun to any home’s environment. However, the responsible fiberglass pool owner realizes that, even at the pool, accidents can happen. Here are steps you can take to ensure your fiberglass pool is a safe place for swimmers of all ages.
First, the most important step in pool safety is ensuring that pool-related activities are supervised. This is especially important with young children and older people. Don’t assume that everyone around the pool can swim, or that they are physically able to ensure their own safety.
Second, check with your city and county organizations before installing your fiberglass pool. Many communities require that yards with pools have some type of fencing surrounding the pool area. Be sure you understand your local requirements before installation starts.
With young children in the home, be sure to install a barrier such as fencing between the house and your fiberglass pool. Ensure that the barrier is at least four feet tall. Any space between pool level and the bottom of the fence should be four inches or less. Eliminate handholds and footholds while minimizing the distance between any vertical openings in the barrier’s construction (one and three-quarter inches or less is recommended). This is especially effective in patio homes, and the fencing, which can be retractable for times when children aren’t present, is a common fiberglass pool addition. Make sure that any gates around the pool open out and away from the pool. Gates should also be self-latching, self-closing and lockable.
If your house comes equipped with a pool room or a bedroom with doors that open onto the fiberglass pool area, make sure those doors are either continually locked or alarmed to go off when opened. An automatic cover installed with your fiberglass pool can also provide extra insurance against accidents that is easily put to work.
Fiberglass Pools are manufactured with steps and or swimout for easy access into and out of the pool. Handrails can be installed to ensure balance and stability at entry and exit points. Talk to your fiberglass pool dealer about other safety features and perimeter decking options. Make sure the equipment that comes with your pool is maintained and inspected regularly.
In fact, one of the best ways to ensure that you are dealing with a responsible and reputable dealer who cares about more than selling fiberglass pools is to make safety a primary topic of conversation. Knowledgeable fiberglass pool dealers can provide you with even more suggestions for ensuring that your pool stays a safe and secure environment for the swimmers in your family. |