A swimming pool in the back yard can be a great asset to a home. You can use it for recreational or exercise reasons. And in high income communities, where status is important, a backyard pool may even improve their property value.

As with anything else, however, it is easy to get carried away and go too far. For example, some feel the need to go too far and add items such as diving boards, slides, and so on. However, one thing that many fail to realize is that, often, these additional items can make their pool a more dangerous place to play. For their family as well as for their friends who want to use their pool.

In fact, some communities consider these types of add-ons so dangerous that they have municipal codes that ban their use. In other communities, that do allow them, many contractors will not install diving boards or slides on pools because of possible liability issues.

The reason for these concerns is that diving boards, can be extremely dangerous when used in unsupervised conditions. Boards can be slippery and it is very easy to imagine someone slipping and suffering a serious fall as a result.

Neck injuries and spinal injuries make up the bulk of all injuries incurred due to diving. And, unsurprisingly, most diving accidents will occur among young adolescents and teenagers. What is surprising, however, is that the majority of these injuries happen when the person dives from a relatively low height.

Many people believe that a diving board for a residential pool is actually safer than those in professional pools - becaue the height of the board is usually lower. But they couldn't be more wrong. One problem that diving presents to homes built for swimming pools is that the depth of the water is simply not deep enough. Pool experts recommend that a pool be at least 10 feet deep if people will be diving into it from a low diving board. If a high diving board is used, the pool should be even deeper. In addition, this depth of ten feet must be extended for a length of at least twelve to fourteen feet from the edge of the pool.

There are other specifications as well that will have to be adhered to when adding a diving board to a pool. Needless to say, because of the extra cubic foot area needed, building to these specifications would make the pool more expensive to build. They would also make the pool more expensive to maintain in water costs as well as pumps, chemicals, and the like. And, many of the same challenges come into play when considering installation of a slide.

And, lastly, if you add a diving board or slide to your pool, expect to see a sharp rise in the amount that you pay for liability insurance on your homeowners policy.