Investing in a pool can be both an exciting and terrifying decision if you have children. On the one hand, selecting one of the many designs for custom swimming pools for your Berks County residence can leave you giddy to see a dream come to life. On the other hand, it’s no secret that pools can be dangerous when kids are involved.
Here are some ways to keep your child safe while in the pool beyond teaching them how to swim.
Leave the Phone In the Bag…but Charged
When your kids are swimming, you want to be paying full attention to what they’re doing for two reasons:
- It’s going to make the experience better for you and your children.
- It takes only a few seconds for a child to get sucked underwater.
The first reason is pretty straightforward because almost every parenting blog mentions the need to pay attention to children to deepen their relationship. However, it’s not so common to know that a child can be in sight one second and then silently slip underwater.
While you don’t want to be on your phone during this time, you should keep your phone charged while your children are swimming. If there’s an emergency, you want to make sure you can quickly contact the necessary services, so be sure that it’s nearby and has enough charge.
Use Proper Life Preservers
It’s tempting to trust your child to water wings or other fun flotation devices while they’re young or don’t know how to swim. However, doing this is rolling the dice in the worst way possible.
Life jackets certified by the Coast Guard are your best bet when selecting a floatation device to protect your child. You should also avoid using any pool toy that might prevent your child from reaching the surface again if they do slip underwater, such as mermaid tails.
Finally, while it’s not a typical “life preserver,” it’s worth considering putting a fence around your new pool with a latch that locks behind it. If you choose to install an alarm to make sure you’re aware of anyone getting in unaccompanied, then you can make sure that your child won’t be in the water when you’re not around, even if you opt for an above ground pool.
Practice Proper Water Safety
It’s always valuable to teach your kids proper safety protocol, like how to swim or use the buddy system while in the water. You should also be sure they understand rules that will help protect them, like “no running” or roughhousing.
To find out more about how to keep your child safe this summer or get a quote from one of the expert swimming pool companies serving Bucks County, call the Carlton Pools team today!