Inflatable or not - Safety comes First

Friday, 16 October 2009 00:19

While most would classify the hot tub - inflatable or otherwise - as a relaxing, enjoyable way to de-compress after a hard days work, these recreational toys can be deadly.

Earlier this week, a man in South Pasadena Fla apparantly drowned in a home spa after spending an afternoon consuming alchohol and watching football.

While the loss of life is tragic, the sad reality is that accidents like this are easily avoided by following basic hot tub safety.

What could have avoided this tragedy? Lets go over some basic water safety issues that had been overlooked in this case:

1. Alcohol and Hot tubs don't mix. The normal affects of alchohol increase exponentially while in a hot tub. The combination of Heat and alchohol both expand your blood vessels, and may raise your body temperature to stroke or heart attack inducing levels. Also, drowsiness and blackouts are far more likely to occur while soaking - and lets face it - this is not the place to pass out.

2. Keep track of how long you've been soaking. While most modern tubs have a max temperature setting of 104 degress, heat exhaustion may still occur in as little as 20 minutes. Most experts agree that you shouldn't exceed 30 minutes in any given session.

3. Avoid Bathing alone. This may sound trivial, but in the story above, the bather was a guest, and was not discovered for approx. half an hour before he was found dead.

When it comes to water - hot tubs, inflatable tubs, or even a swimming pool, following basic safety guidlines is always your best bet.