Putting a pool in...
Jun 4th 2013, 1:52 pm
#106
The worse half of Weeze
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Location: Back in TX
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Re: Putting a pool in...
I like the design - its a bit different to most. If it was me, I'd go with the firepit in the location as in the last photo, and move the spa to where the circular patio is, but pool designs are vey individual, and everyone has to go with what works for them.
On the safety fence, personally I'd go with the mesh fence if I were you, as its easy to removed once your son is old enough/competent enough for that to happen, and reliable enough to keep the curious toddler out. Friends have a net, and they are meticulous about putting it on/off (I don't think I would be) and it only takes them a little over 5 minutes, but they have quite a small pool. But accidents can still happen. Just after they moved into the house, and before they had installed the net, we were having a playdate over there. Our daughters were about 2, and they were all playing inside. I was on the patio grilling hotdogs, with my back to the pool, and the music was on. No-one was swimming, so no-one was watching the pool. First I knew there was a problem, the mom came charging outside and went headfirst into the pool fully clothed and pulled her daughter out. The girl had got out the back door, out the screen room door, straight across the patio behind me and went into the deep end without a sound. If the mom hadn't seen her.......
I think there is more chance of stopping that sort of accident with a fence.
On the safety fence, personally I'd go with the mesh fence if I were you, as its easy to removed once your son is old enough/competent enough for that to happen, and reliable enough to keep the curious toddler out. Friends have a net, and they are meticulous about putting it on/off (I don't think I would be) and it only takes them a little over 5 minutes, but they have quite a small pool. But accidents can still happen. Just after they moved into the house, and before they had installed the net, we were having a playdate over there. Our daughters were about 2, and they were all playing inside. I was on the patio grilling hotdogs, with my back to the pool, and the music was on. No-one was swimming, so no-one was watching the pool. First I knew there was a problem, the mom came charging outside and went headfirst into the pool fully clothed and pulled her daughter out. The girl had got out the back door, out the screen room door, straight across the patio behind me and went into the deep end without a sound. If the mom hadn't seen her.......
I think there is more chance of stopping that sort of accident with a fence.
Jun 4th 2013, 3:21 pm
#107
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Joined: Nov 2002
Location: Where bad things rarely happen in movies
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Re: Putting a pool in...
Don't you love it when they do that. Who's freakin' pool is it!!!!!
Jun 4th 2013, 3:45 pm
#108
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jun 2008
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Posts: 10,678
Re: Putting a pool in...
Thanks Yorkie. We want to watch TV in the spa (lame but the truth) so that's why it's where it is. We are trying to break the norm around here and be a little different but we also want it to meet our needs. Met a second pool company today who really only wanted to build their pool not our pool. He really didn't appear to be listening to us when we said we didn't want to go the traditional lagoon route that's very common in our area. I guarantee that's what he comes back with.
Regarding child safety our back door is alarmed which is a start. The first pool guy we spoke to recommended putting a 4ft child gate outside the back door so even if the door gets opened the child gate has to be too. I think we'll end up going for the mesh fence. It would be nice for him to play outside without us constantly having to run after him worrying.
Very scary story about your friends daughter. That's why I want to try and childproof the back door as much as possible too. It's just an additional preventative step
Regarding child safety our back door is alarmed which is a start. The first pool guy we spoke to recommended putting a 4ft child gate outside the back door so even if the door gets opened the child gate has to be too. I think we'll end up going for the mesh fence. It would be nice for him to play outside without us constantly having to run after him worrying.
Very scary story about your friends daughter. That's why I want to try and childproof the back door as much as possible too. It's just an additional preventative step
The first was in 1970 when I was staying at an uncles house in Tempe AZ and the neighbors came over with their 5 year old son. The parents and the son came over regularly so the son could use the pool and he was taught to put on his life jacket before he entered the water. We were sitting in the house and my uncles father was watching as the son went to the pool area and jumped in without his life jacket and sank to the bottom. My uncles father yelled and the mother ran out and dived into the pool. He was coughing when she pulled him out but he was ok. The mother was nervous about the incident but put the life jacket on her son and told him to go into the pool since she didn't want him to be afraid of the water.
The next occurred in 1989 at my HOA pool complex and I was walking along the pool with my sons when I noticed a child (about 5) under the water with his hands up. I reached down, grabbed his arm, and pulled him out. The mother who was distracted by talking to a friend immediately saw what was happening and ran over and grabbed him by his legs and started hitting him on his back. The child was ok. Again the child didn't have a life jacket on.
If you can figure out how to make sure that a child has a life jacket on when in the pool area, I suspect 90% of the accidents can be avoided.
Last edited by Michael; Jun 4th 2013 at 4:05 pm.
Jun 5th 2013, 12:11 am
#109
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Joined: Nov 2002
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Re: Putting a pool in...
The other thing is to always assume that visitors are idiots and their children can't swim.
We had a parent drop off their 6 yo for a swim party. They didn't leave any floaties, life jacket, armbands...they just dropped her off at the swim party and left. But they forgot to mention she couldn't swim. Fortunately, just as she was about to jump in the deep end, I asked if she could swim. No. Err......
How could the parents do that?
We had a parent drop off their 6 yo for a swim party. They didn't leave any floaties, life jacket, armbands...they just dropped her off at the swim party and left. But they forgot to mention she couldn't swim. Fortunately, just as she was about to jump in the deep end, I asked if she could swim. No. Err......
How could the parents do that?
Jun 5th 2013, 1:31 am
#111
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Joined: Nov 2002
Location: Where bad things rarely happen in movies
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Re: Putting a pool in...
Same here, well, maybe not every week, but there are a few every year.
Its tough with the little ones because once they get mobile, they suddenly get so fast so quickly - that's why the pool safety fences are so important...
My wife was paranoid about it, which is why we didn't build a pool until all the kids could swim and were winning races in swim team. Still no guarantee, but at least give them a chance. With the way the culture is here - hot summers based around water - I am amazed by how many kids can't swim. I run a cub den of 10 boys, and last summer when they were 9/10 year olds, I did a swim badge with them. 3 of the 10 couldn't swim without floats.
Its tough with the little ones because once they get mobile, they suddenly get so fast so quickly - that's why the pool safety fences are so important...
My wife was paranoid about it, which is why we didn't build a pool until all the kids could swim and were winning races in swim team. Still no guarantee, but at least give them a chance. With the way the culture is here - hot summers based around water - I am amazed by how many kids can't swim. I run a cub den of 10 boys, and last summer when they were 9/10 year olds, I did a swim badge with them. 3 of the 10 couldn't swim without floats.
Jun 5th 2013, 5:14 am
#112
Rootbeeraholic
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Re: Putting a pool in...
Same here, well, maybe not every week, but there are a few every year.
Its tough with the little ones because once they get mobile, they suddenly get so fast so quickly - that's why the pool safety fences are so important...
My wife was paranoid about it, which is why we didn't build a pool until all the kids could swim and were winning races in swim team. Still no guarantee, but at least give them a chance. With the way the culture is here - hot summers based around water - I am amazed by how many kids can't swim. I run a cub den of 10 boys, and last summer when they were 9/10 year olds, I did a swim badge with them. 3 of the 10 couldn't swim without floats.
Its tough with the little ones because once they get mobile, they suddenly get so fast so quickly - that's why the pool safety fences are so important...
My wife was paranoid about it, which is why we didn't build a pool until all the kids could swim and were winning races in swim team. Still no guarantee, but at least give them a chance. With the way the culture is here - hot summers based around water - I am amazed by how many kids can't swim. I run a cub den of 10 boys, and last summer when they were 9/10 year olds, I did a swim badge with them. 3 of the 10 couldn't swim without floats.
He loves the water and if he's anything like his parents he'll take to it like a duck!I think we're going to go for multiple layers of protection:
Deadlocked back door out of child height (though when I talked to my Mum about this she said when I was young I had no issues dragging a chair and climbing on it to get what I wanted and my son shows very similar characteristics to me
) It's already alarmed and you can hear it easily within the house when the door is opened.Secondary door/child gate on back door as a secondary measure.
Some type of fencing either around the pool, blocking the covered patio off from the pool and/or a separate play area. I'm leaning towards a fence blocking the covered patio off and then a separate area of the garden fenced off to play in. The reason being that if we're just sitting under the covered porch the pool is out of reach, if he's playing on the grass, the pool is out reach, but if we're in the pool you can still access the deck and other social areas without being on the other side of a fence to him (I'm thinking as he gets a bit older here).
Other children coming round is what scares me though.
It's amazing how scary being a parent is (I'm sure a few on here would probably want to clip me round the ear for saying that as they've known this for years) but it really is quite eye opening how many things you need to think about when you have a child. Even furniture choices become a lot more important - could it topple easily, could they break it and hurt themselves in the process etc etc etc. The pool process is no exception.
Jun 13th 2013, 6:57 am
#113
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Re: Putting a pool in...
Looks like it's all go! 
Jun 13th 2013, 8:26 am
#114
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Re: Putting a pool in...
Nice going.... The hot and sweaty weather certainly focuses the mind a little....
When are you going to be swimming?
When are you going to be swimming?
Jun 13th 2013, 11:42 am
#115
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I'm waiting....
Jun 13th 2013, 4:37 pm
#117
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Re: Putting a pool in...
That's the easy bit.
The nice man from the pool company will be really helpful on that bit. He'll send one of his guys round with a baby bobcat to dig a nice big hole in your yard. You will then stand on the edge and throw all you money in, and they won't leave until they are sure you've emptied every last pocket and even tossed in that bunch of rolled up fivers in the tea caddy...
The nice man from the pool company will be really helpful on that bit. He'll send one of his guys round with a baby bobcat to dig a nice big hole in your yard. You will then stand on the edge and throw all you money in, and they won't leave until they are sure you've emptied every last pocket and even tossed in that bunch of rolled up fivers in the tea caddy...
Jun 14th 2013, 12:30 am
#118
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Joined: Oct 2007
Location: Charlotte,NC
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Re: Putting a pool in...
That's the easy bit.
The nice man from the pool company will be really helpful on that bit. He'll send one of his guys round with a baby bobcat to dig a nice big hole in your yard. You will then stand on the edge and throw all you money in, and they won't leave until they are sure you've emptied every last pocket and even tossed in that bunch of rolled up fivers in the tea caddy...
The nice man from the pool company will be really helpful on that bit. He'll send one of his guys round with a baby bobcat to dig a nice big hole in your yard. You will then stand on the edge and throw all you money in, and they won't leave until they are sure you've emptied every last pocket and even tossed in that bunch of rolled up fivers in the tea caddy...
Jun 14th 2013, 3:24 am
#119
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Jun 14th 2013, 3:24 am
#120
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