How to make your Fort Worth pool a safer place to swim

Living in the Fort Worth area means that you're familiar with the blistering Texas summers that come around every year. Owning a swimming pool for you and your family to cool off in can make your home the perfect place to be for the smoldering months.

But you should take care when using your pool, especially when you have smaller children using it. There are a few different ways for you to exercise caution when owning a pool that can keep your family and any guests safe from harm.

Put up barriers
They can be fences or stone walls, but barriers can help block off the swimming area from anyone who shouldn't be near the water. This can prove beneficial if you have younger children who haven't gotten around to learning how to swim yet. The pool can be cordoned off to only allow adults around the pool, which can prevent any accidents from happening. Fences or barriers should be at least four feet high and have no footholds for children to climb over, according to Pool Safely.

Install a gate
To place some added security around your pool, you could talk to your Fort Worth pool service company about installing a gated entrance to your swimming area. Since the locking mechanism is elevated off the ground, children would have a harder time reaching the latch to open the gate. With it out of their reach, they won't be able to sneak in when you're not watching. The gate should open out from the pool, closing and locking on its own.

Ditch the diving board
Although they can be fun and entertaining to jump off of, diving boards also add a threat of injury to your pool area. A misstep or ill-timed jump could leave you calling for an ambulance. Instead of raising your stress levels by having a diving board, you should choose something that doesn't require as much fear or supervision. Waterfalls and slides are good options instead of boards, as they can provide better safety options and more fun for younger children.

Set up weekly cleanings
The local Fort Worth pool service can serve you with the expert cleaning protocols each week to ensure the safety of your pool. They can brush and empty baskets of any debris that may have accumulated as well as properly balance out the chemical levels every other week.