Above ground pools

[pinkfluff<P>Big Wet Drops and Lots of Them, Are a Sure Sign of Rain!<P>]

We wondered if above ground pools are subject to these safety laws we are a private house not a gite etc

[Poolguy]

This subject has been dealt with before but is worthy of more attention.

For the Compliance with the law to be introduced on Jan 1 2006, the owner of an above ground pool is not obliged to fit a compliant safety device. It does not matter if they are private, commercial or corporate.

However, you are not exempt of a 'duty of care' and can surely be taken to Justice should a drowning occur and it can be show that you were negligent. This might mean for example that you failed to remove the ladder after you have finished swimming and supervision has ceased. This is by no means the only example of this issue as I know that there are many.

It does mean that you are safe from inspection and the fine for non compliance. The limit to this as I understand it is that the pool may be sunk into the ground up to 2/3 of its depth and still be regarded as 'above ground' but How this is calculated is unclear and I suspect open to the discretion of the inspector. For if a pool is on a slope and a portion is completely sunk and a portion above ground I do not know that answer- compliance or no????

I suspect that it would be cheaper to add a compliant device if you are in any doubt rather than fight it out in the courts.

Andrew

[pinkfluff<P>Big Wet Drops and Lots of Them, Are a Sure Sign of Rain!<P>]

Thanks pool guy HENDO

We have not built a pool yet and we were not going to bother with all the regs but an above ground pool sounds like the answer it sounds too good to be true and I am suprised more firms are not designing huge above ground pools to get round these laws I suppose the logistics of having a huge weight of water are enormous but it is interesting I dont suppose you know if there is a size limit ?  thanks a lot

[Poolguy]

Sure

I know that above ground pools can be sourced up to 12 meters long and more. However I am not so sure that you will 'get around these laws', as you still have a duty of care.

At any rate soon the perception of the price of a pool will include the security as part of the essential equipment of the pool. And given the price of pools has dropped more than 40% in recent years due to new technology and improved design I think that the client is no worse off.

The price of pools are a reflection of the value people place on them as a lifestyle choice. Whereas 20 years ago it was the purview of the well off, now its common place to own and operate a pool with more than one million pools in France (highest in Europe).

Also there is a surge in interest as the publicity about security legislation brings the ownership of pools into the consciousness or everyday French. The next step is to provide education on the care an maintenance of pools and most important the hygiene of the water (by far the greatest element in a pool).

As In my experience, serious pool owners care more about the purity and cleanliness of the water than the look of a pool. Largely because they have decided that pools are mainly for swimming in rather than looking at albeit that a nice pool does look well in a well kept garden. So sanitization and filtration systems have improved over the last 20 years to a point where there is no reason that any owner should have to work on their pool every week, or put up with green water, or cloudy water or any of the other ailments which have traditionally plague the owners of pools. Nor should anyone experience any discomfort what so ever no matter how sensitive their skin or eyes.

Regrettably as with every industry, there are a proliferation of 'snake oil salesmen' in the pool industry (which is largely unregulated) marketing solutions to these problems which are untested and somewhat ineffective. For owners and would-be owners there are established technologies which are reliable and there is little reason at this time to go searching for non-existent solutions to imagined problems.

For there can be no better feeling then to go for a plunge on a piping hot summers day in a nice pool with Pure Water.

Andrew