Post #605623 by sur2baja on Mon, Sep 5, 2011 8:52 PM

OK, I'm not going to get into a pi$$ing match here about property owners rights or whatever but as a Firefighter/Paramedic who has been on way too many drownings of children, toddlers and infants and as a pool owner of a tropical back yard...please put in the darn safety fence!!!
Half of my pool area is up against the house while the other half is against the property edge. My yard is fenced in with chain link but then lined on the inside with vegetation so the perimeter fence is hidden. I do have three gates that I have latched from the inside with a bolt meaning you can only open them from the inside. If you are an adult and can reach over the fence then the latch is easy to open. Little tike's cannot open them. I also have them clipped with a simple dog leash clip as an extra. The fence I have that is visible and near the house is a five foot high (code in 1999 when I put it in) cedar dog eared fence with tropicals growing in front of it. It has weathered nice and actually adds a nice ambiance verses seeing a stuccoed house.
There's an endless selection of comparatively inexpensive good looking fences so regardless of how far you are from other neighbors homes, put one in.
Back to safety, never ever ever turn your back on the little ones and even the not so little ones. We taught our children how to swim prior to putting in the pool and have never knowingly let non-swimmers in it. We had an eight year old boy at my sons birthday party jump in and go straight to the bottom. He didn't know how to swim. When I questioned the mother about how the invitation said "this is a pool party...swimmers only" she said she sought he would learn by jumping in. Argh!!!

[ Edited by: sur2baja 2011-09-05 20:54 ]