Monday, November 9, 2009

Ask Dave Question #4

This weeks question comes from Jane, who asks, “Curious about your hot tub. Are there rules about having an open water place with foster kids? I know day cares are very particular about this.”

Yes, there are definitely rules about foster homes with swimming pools and hot tubs! Among other things, either the water has to be completely enclosed by a fence, separating it from all doors leading out of the house, or the doors leading out of the house to the pool area have to be alarmed in a kid-proof manner.

Because my back yard is rather small, a separate fence around the pool isn't practical. Instead I have an alarm on the sliding glass door that leads to the backyard. I also added a "pool eye" device that sits in the water when we're not using the pool. This device produces an ear-splitting alarm, both inside the house and outside the house, whenever it detects waves created by something over about 25 pounds hitting the water. I like the idea of having layers of protection. My county's social workers seemed to appreciate it, too.

This was another great question! Keep ‘em coming!