Aquawatch Pool Alarms

The Samuel Morris Foundation is proud have Aquawatch Pool Alarms as a partner.

There have been a range of “pool alarms” on the market previously, none of which the Samuel Morris Foundation would have been pleased to partner with. These have included alarms such as “floating” alarms, various gate alarms etc.

The reason why we would not have been happy with these alarms is due to their propensity for false positives. Many of these products would go into alarm when things like a bird diving into the water, sitting on the fence etc. Having a large number of false positives meant people became disenchanted with the alarm, or began to ignore the alarm. Clearly this is not an acceptable situation, as the intent of any alarm is to only draw attention for genuine emergencies.

Having looked at a large number of products, the Samuel Morris Foundation is pleased to support the Aquawatch Pool Alarm because it works on technology that is not prone to false positives. This alarm has very specific criteria that cause it to go into alarm, criteria that are consistent with a child weighing approx 6 kgs entering the water. A weight that is consistent with a chid of approximately 6 months old ( from when they start to become mobile). The alarm will not activate when just the surface of the water is affected, by wind, birds etc.

The alarm also resets so the danger of the alarm being left off is also negated.

Like all aspects of water safety no-one is claiming that this product is the solution to all drowning prevention. The Samuel Morris Foundation believes that toddler drowning prevention relies on systemic and wholistic processes.

Firstly, Supervision….. we encourage all parents to remain vigilant when their children are in, on or around all water sources, but we acknowledge that it is impossible for parents to supervise their children 24 hours a day.

Second, effective barriers. Pool fencing compliant with AS 1926,1 should be installed around ALL backyard swimming pools. It should maintained and regularly inspected using this checksheet.

Third, water familiarisation. Children should be taught the skills and drills they need to help themselves be safe in an around water.

Fourth, learning CPR. Knowing CPR may literally be the difference between life and death if the unimaginable happens and your child becomes immersed in a backyard pool or any other water source.

The Samuel Morris Foundation believes that the Aquawatch Pool Alarm is like having airbags in your car. When all the systems you need like supervision, barriers and water familiarisation have failed, the Aquawatch Pool Alarm will activate as your last line of defence. Letting you know in seconds that someone is in the pool, allowing them to be found rapidly, and if neccessary for CPR to be applied.

Don’t be fooled, protecting your children from drowning relies on a complete system. If you have any doubts about pool alarms, please contact Aquawatch to discuss them and ensure that you get a genuine and effective alarm product.