# Questions about automatic retractable pool safety covers



## JessieBird (Nov 21, 2008)

Hi -

We recently bought a new home and are moving across the county this summer. The home has a beautiful backyard with an in-ground pool. The yard is fenced at the perimeter but the pool itself is not fenced off from the house. 

The pool has a fairly new (approx 3 years) automatic retractable safety cover and I'm curious about just how safe it is. It completely seals off the pool and is supposed to be able to support the weight of 10 adults. I've seen photos of people (and deer!) walking across it however I still can't really understand how it works for young children or someone without a lot of strength or good balance. I keep reading that this is the safest type of cover but I'm confused because they are not completely taught (there's a bit of sag and I've read that this is a deliberate part of the design) and rain water must be able to puddle on them, isn't that a recipe for a potentially deadly struggle?

I'd love to hear from someone who has this type of pool cover. Help me understand how it is safe for young children (if it is). My kids are 6 and 4 year old boys, both good swimmers, and a baby girl.

Thank you very much!

PS I'm not worried about the kids opening the cover on their own as the button requires a key and I trust myself to be vigilant about keeping the key out of reach. The cover opens and closes in less than 2 minutes with no effort at all so I know we will always close it when not in use.


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## Matt Mega (Apr 18, 2015)

I'm not sure. But from what you describe it sounds pretty good to me. Especially with the lock. I have been looking for a good cover for my pool. With the drought in California, I'm looking for ways to decrease the evaporation of the water and I have read that a good cover can cut the evaporation down by 1/7 of what it normally evaporates.


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