Coverstar Blog

Children love to swim and play around pools. If you have a pool at home, you should make sure that your kids are always safe. Pool safety measures and adult supervision are necessary to prevent drowning, which ranks second cause of death among children below the age of four. Check out the following tips to keep your children safe.

Responsible Supervision

Many believe that the best way to protect little kids from drowning is teach them how to swim. The American Academy of Pediatrics, however, has a different view. They believe children below the age of four, even those who know how to swim, should always be supervised by adults.

Keep an eye on your kids when they’re in or even just around the pool. Keep in mind that a child can drown in just two minutes. In most cases, they cannot shout for help or even make noises to get attention.

Proper Training and Education

Educate your kids about the dangers of playing around and going to the deeper parts of the pool. Teach them not to push each other or run wildly around the area.

Some kids have the habit of pretending to drown. Explain to them that this is a big no-no, as the attending adult might not readily determine if they’re really drowning or just playing a joke.

Installation of Pool Covers

Cases of drowning don’t only happen when they’re swimming. A little child playing near the pool, for instance, might trip over and fall onto the water. Install safety covers to avoid such accidents. Most safety covers can hold the weight of two to three persons.

Families with young children and pets buy pool safety covers to prevent dangers that may arise when their pools are unsupervised. You can find them in a variety of options and features such as those with automatic function.

Coverstar understands the need for reliable and durable cover for your swimming pool. Check out our cover options today and make your pool childproof.

Coverstar Pool Covers are easy and convenient to use, but they should not be the only source of protection for your family.  Please read the recommendations provided by industry and safety groups listed below and implement as many of them as possible for your pool. 

Multiple Layers of Protection

Don’t rely on only one system of protection – layering several safety precautions together provides the strongest safeguard.  You should never rely on any one layer to be fail proof.  Enclose the pool with a barrier.  In fact, fencing may be required in certain areas.  Keep all doors and windows leading from the house to the pool area secure.  Install self-closing mechanisms on doors.  Install only child-proof, self-closing, self-latching gates around the pool. 

Your Responsibility

As a pool owner, be aware that you must ensure your child’s safety.  Make sure you have rescue devises that are easily accessible.  Never leave a pool with its cover partially closed since children may become trapped under it.  Always drain standing water off of your spa or pool cover.  A child can drown in as little as two inches of water. 

Adult Supervision

There is no substitute for constant adult supervision.  Never leave a child alone – even for a second.  Most drownings occur during a five minute (or less) lapse in supervision.  There is a risk of a child drowning when around any body of water.  Maintain constant eye contact with your children when they are around the pool.  Do not consider young children water-safe because they have had swimming lessons. Post and enforce rules such as No Running, No Pushing, No Dunking, and Never Swim Alone.

Extend Safety Awareness

Instruct baby-sitters about potential hazards to young children in and around swimming pools and the need for constant supervision.  Alert your pool maintenance people, utility personnel and your neighbors to keep covers, gates, and doors to the pool closed and locked at all times. 

Pool Toys

Remember to keep toys and inflatables away from the pool when the pool is not us use.  These items can lure a child into the pool. 

Inspect Equipment

Inspect safety and pool equipment regularly.  Preventive devices are only effective if they are in working order.  Gate latches, gate closure devices, fences, door and pool alarms, and the pool cover should be inspected frequently to be certain they are working properly. 

Sources:  Drowning Prevention Study; United States Consumer Product Safety Commission; National Spa and Pool Institute’s Operation Water Watch; and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

To maintain the safety of your Coverstar Automatic cover and pool area, please follow these instructions:

Pool Water Level
Maintain the water level at the middle elevation of the skimmer opening. If the water drops below this level, the cover may operate under stress. Never cover the pool without the proper water level under the cover. The water supports all weight on the surface of the cover. If the water level is low and water builds up on the cover, severe damage may be done to the coping and/or cover system.

Using the Pool Cover Pump
Water accumulation on the top of the cover can come from rain, snow, over spraying sprinklers, or leaks that may develop in the cover. Even what appear to be small amounts of water spread over the whole surface of the cover can migrate and accumulate in depressions. This is dangerous. Any accumulation of water on the surface of the cover must be removed immediately using the cover pump. The cover is not a safety cover unless the pump is in place.

Key Switch Location
All controls for the cover system must be located where the pool is completely visible during the operation of the cover. All plants and shrubs should be maintained for continuous visibility.

Partially Covered Pools
It is extremely important to always cover or uncover the pool completely. Never leave the pool partially covered. A partially cover pool presents a serious danger as people or pets may drown under the cover.

Aluminum Lid
The aluminum lid is mounted on top of the finished pool deck and is used to cover the housing. It is not inteded for anyone to walk or step on this lid. It can be slippery when wet and walking on it can loosen the support brackets uner it. Instruct children not to step on the lid.

Every pool professional knows: the weakest part of every safety cover is the seams. Only Coverstar uses interlocked and double overlapped seams to dramatically improve weight transfer from the cover material to the seams and webbing. In fact, Coverstar covers are shown to be the stronger than competitive brands' in independent pull tests!

More strong reasons to choose a Coverstar Safety Pool Cover:

• Bar and box tack reinforcement on all perimeter straps for additional strength - a Coverstar exclusive.
• Double Decker edge won't unravel - the cover material is first hemmed then sandwiched between double layers of webbing around the perimeter.
• Heavy duty vinyl nosing pads protect cover against wear from coping and steps.
  Chafing strip sewn to bottom of cover protects the webbing from coping abrasion wear - and won't mark the coping, like other strips!
• Lower profile springs with heavy-duty overlap D-ring (standard on Heavy-Duty Solid and custom covers) - cover lies flat and fits tight!

And...because we build them better, we back them better: with a 20-YEAR WARRANTY (5-year full warranty)!

This spring, Coverstar released a new iPad application. This tool was designed to help pool builders more effectively present and sell automatic pool covers in the home. It provides clear, concise and compelling presentations on how Coverstar systems enhance the safety, savings and convenience of the prospective pool owner. In addition, this application includes:

• A Savings Calculator showing the homeowner exactly how much money can be saved by investing in an automatic cover
  
• A design tool that allows the homeowner to pick certain features and displays a photograph of pools with those features.
  
• A Photo Gallery
  
• Maintenance & care guide

Click on the link below to go to the App Store to download the updated version 2.0 for FREE!
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/coverstar-pool-covers/id488239538?mt=8

Included in this update, there is a dealer photo gallery where dealers can capture or transfer photos to their iPad and organize them within this powerful new photo gallery feature.

We hope you will find these upgrades helpful as you and your dealers use this app to sell Coverstar Automatic Covers.

To continue showing the different track options when installing an automatic pool cover on a free form pool, we will now look at the third type of track that can be used in this application, which is standard topguide. This track is not set in place during the construction of the pool. This track will be set in place on top of the finished concrete deck. This track is a low profile track (similar to a door threshold) that is screwed down on top of the deck. It is important to check the measurements between the tracks on each side of the pool to make sure they are straight and square before anchoring them to the pool deck.

When any of these track types are used for an automatic cover during the construction of the pool, the cover drive system is located in a cover housing which is below grade. This is where the cover will roll up and be stored when the cover is retracted off the pool.

This cover housing can then be covered using different types of lids. Some of these lids are an aluminum hinged lid, while other lids are made of concrete so the lid blends in with the surrounding pool deck.

The examples that have been given are based on adding automatic pool covers to new pools that were under construction. However, it is also possible to install an automatic pool cover on existing pools. In this case, both the cover drive system and the track are anchored to the top of the concrete pool deck. With the drive system above grade, they can be covered using plastic deckmount housings or by building a wood bench over them.

It is important to note that when installing an automatic pool cover on a freeform pool, it is important to limit the amount of concrete that the pool cover will be pulled across. When a cover is pulled across concrete, it creates deck drag on the cover which will add stress to the operation of the cover system. By locating the track close to the edge of the pool, this deck drag will be reduced, allowing the cover to operate more smoothly.

Regardless of the type of track that is used when installing an automatic cover on a freeform pool, there are a number of benefits that a homeowner will gain by adding an automatic pool cover to their swimming pool. The first is Safety. Although an automatic cover doesn’t replace the need for adult supervision, it does give peace of mind knowing that there is another layer of protection between your loved ones and your swimming pool.

This is a continuation of a blog post that showed one way of incorporating an automatic pool cover on a freeform pool.  The first option that was presented a few weeks ago is an option called pool in pool.  The second type of track that can be used to add an automatic pool cover to a freeform pool is recessed horizontal track.  This track is similar in concept to the track and encapsulation that is used in the pool in pool application in that there is a housing section that is buried in the concrete and a section of track that will lock into the housing with a separate spacer.  Because the housing portion of this track is buried into the concrete, it is put into place during the construction of the pool. One difference between the recessed horizontal track and the encapsulated track is that there is no need to use a second deck with a step. The recessed horizontal track is positioned in the concrete that is poured immediately around the pool.

The recessed horizontal track is set in place along both sides of the pool before the concrete deck is poured.  As the track is staked into place, it is important to check the measurements between them to make sure they form a perfect rectangle.  The top of the track will be set at a height that is flush with the top of the finished concrete deck. 

Once the recessed horizontal track is staked in place, it is important to mask the top of the track during the concrete pour to keep concrete from making its way in to the track. 

Our next blog post will focus on using our standard topguide track. 

Coverstar is excited to announce that not only do we offer the strongest brand in Automatic Safety Covers, 

but we now offer a new line of Coverstar branded mesh and solid Safety Covers. This new product line reflects the strength and reliability of the 

Coverstar brand, and supplies the best in class in materials, craftsmanship and service. Among many exclusive features, all Coverstar Safety Covers include interlocked and double overlapped seams that dramatically improve seam strength and the life of the cover.

Now you will be able to rely on Coverstar as your one-stop source for all your automatic cover and safety cover needs… plus so much more to make your life easy!

No Covers are Built Stronger:

Every pool professional knows that the weakest part of every safety cover is the seams. Only Coverstar uses interlocked and double overlapped seams to dramatically improve weight transfer from the cover material to the seams and webbing. Coverstar Safety Covers also include:

• Bar and box track reinforcement on all perimeter straps for additional strength – Coverstar exclusive! 
• Double decker edge won’t unravel – the cover material is first hemmed then sandwiched between double layers of webbing around the perimeter.
• Heavy duty vinyl nosing pads protect cover against wear from coping and steps.
• Chafing strip sewn to bottom of cover protects the webbing from coping abrasion wear – and wont mark the coping, like other strips!
• Lower profile springs with heavy-duty overlap D-ring (standard on Heavy-Duty Solid and custom covers) – cover lies flat and fits tight!

And…because we build them better, we back them better: with a 20-YEAR WARRANTY (5 years FULL warranty)!

No one is easier to do business with: 

When it comes to delivery in-season, Coverstar can do in days what our competitors do in weeks! Our multiple manufacturing locations positioned strategically across North America enable us to ship custom safety covers in just 4 days in season! We also make your life easier by:

• Mobile Phone App that enable safety cover quoting in real time right at your job site! 
• Faster installation with our exclusive center web – allows quicker line-up. Coverstar exclusive!
• Patented Reduced Deckmount springs for easy installation with less than 18” of deck space. Maintains tight cover fit. Coverstar exclusive!
• Removable perimeter padding attaches with Velcro – padding can be replaced quickly, easily and at a fraction of the cost! 
• 35” Installation rod is ergonomically designed to make installation and removal virtually effortless.

We look forward to being your one-stop source for all your pool cover needs! For more information about Coverstar Safety Covers please call 1-800-833-3800.

Automatic pool covers travel through aluminum tracks that are installed on each side of the pool. These tracks form a rectangle around the pool. Because automatic pool covers are rectangular in shape, they have traditionally been an easy addition to rectangular shaped pools. However, through these new innovations, automatic pool covers can not only be installed on rectangular shaped pools, they can also be installed on freeform pools that vary in shape and size.

When installing an automatic pool cover on a freeform shaped pool, there are three different types of track that can be used. The first type of track is called encapsulated track. This encapsulation is used in a pool application called pool in pool, or it is also known as deck on deck.

The pool in pool application includes pouring a concrete deck immediately around the perimeter of the pool. Once this first concrete deck is complete, encapsulation is installed on top of the concrete deck along the two sides of the pool as well as on the shallow end of the pool to create a rectangle. This encapsulation is set back from the edge of the pool about 1 ft. The fourth side of the pool will be left open as the location for the cover drive system to be installed.

Once the encapsulation is installed on the first concrete deck, a second concrete deck is poured on top of this encapsulation and on top of the first deck. This will create a step up from the first deck to the second deck. The backside of the encapsulation is locked into place inside the concrete while the front side of the encapsulation is accessible on the inside of the step. The track for the cover is then inserted inside the encapsulation and locked into place using a spacer. While the encapsulation is poured and locked into place in the concrete, the cover track is still removable as needed.