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Home & Garden Articles
Spa Safety
Wed 16 Jan 2008 - 14:06
Spa Safety
By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Anthony_J_Ventura]Anthony J Ventura
I'll bet you never considered your home spa or whirlpool as a possible danger to your life or to a member of your family.
Believe it or not since the early 80's there have been a reported 722 deaths from hot tubs and spas
And out of all the death occurrences about 239 have been from child drownings. Yes, this may never crossed your mind but this is for real! Keep your spa or hot tub locked up when not in use and never let your children use the spa when alone, supervision is the key to prevention.
An unbelievable 14 deaths were from a persons hair being sucked into the intake valve and keeping their head under water. There is a safety standard for drain covers. Check with your community pool company and make sure you that your drains are compliant. If you have a drain cover that is missing or damaged get it replaced ASAP and don't use the spa until it is fixed. Older spas or whirlpools may need to be checked and refitted if necessary.
Children sometimes are fascinated by the outtake and intake pressure and like to play with their hands around these valves. While the out going water is really not a hazard for them to play with, the intake valve can be if not using a safety cover.
You can also get a finger or body part sucked into the intake. I have accidentally done this myself cleaning out our pool filter while it was running. I learned the hard way on that one and the result was a swollen finger for three or four days.The suction pressure from a spa, pool or hot tub is tremendous and not to be taken lightly.
The safety standard these days is to have two drains instead of one. This way the suction pressure is cut in half; it still recirculates the water at the desired volume and almost eliminates the potential suction danger.
Another cause of drowning is the water temperature. Hot tubs that have their thermostats set too high can cause drowsiness which can lead to unconsciousness and drowning. By spa safety standards the thermostat should never let the water temperature exceed 104 degrees. Keep a floating thermometer in the water and check it frequently, if you feel a bit drowsy check it and turn down the temperature.
The worst possible scenario is the relaxing hot water and alcoholic beverages. If your drinking and soaking I hope you have a friend there with you.
One thing that can prevent most possible spa hazards is to simply know where the on off switch is and make sure it is mounted within easy reach.
Safe and Happy Soaking
Anthony J. Ventura is a award winning tile and marble designer in South Florida.
If you would like to design your own unique swimming pool tile visit: http://www.pooltileworld.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Anthony_J_Ventura http://EzineArticles.com/?Spa-Safety&id=928052
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