Are Pool Glass Balustrades Safe for Kids?

Posted on: 30 May 2018

Share

Installing a glass balustrade around your pool adds a certain style to your garden; however, if you have kids, you'll know that substance must trump style when it comes to safety. You can't just think about getting a designer look in areas where your kids hang out a lot, you also need to make sure that your kids are as safe as possible. Is glass a safe balustrade option for kids around your pool?

Glass Is Tougher Than You Think

When you think of glass, you may simply view it as something that is easy to break and that can cause a lot of damage if you get cut. This may be true of a drinking glass; however, it doesn't apply to the kinds of glass used in products like pool balustrades.

The glass used in a pool balustrade must meet certain safety standards and quality grades. For example, this glass must be of a Grade A toughened safety glass standard. Toughened glass has been through a special heat treatment process that makes it way stronger than regular glass.  Even if your kids are frankly feral at times, they aren't likely to be able to break this kind of safety glass no matter how hard they try.

Plus, in the very unlikely event that balustrade glass was to break by accident, it breaks differently than regular glass. It doesn't shatter into small sharp pieces but breaks into larger pieces with blunter edges that are less likely to hurt anyone.

Keeping Kids Where You Want Them

Putting glass balustrades around your pool may also help you keep your kids out of the pool area when you aren't around to supervise them. This is really useful if you have kids that climb — it can be a lot harder to get a good climbing purchase on a smooth glass surface than on wood or metal balustrades.

Kids can be ingenious, so you may have to be careful not to give climbers ways to get over your balustrade. If you put something near the glass panels like chairs or boxes then they can use these to help them get over into the pool.

A Clear View Is Safer

One of the big safety advantages to using glass in a pool balustrade is total visibility. You can always see through the glass to keep an eye on your kids while they play. So, if they get up to mischief or get into trouble in the pool, you can react immediately.

To learn more about the safety benefits of glass balustrades and how they may suit your family, talk to your local pool fencing supplier.