Can anybody advise if there are regulations regarding minimum height that an inground pool must be built above the ground level. I know somebody who has just built a pool and it is sitting way above ground level with a thick slab of concrete showing. The pool builder has said it has to be that high due to regulations but it looks bad and is posing all sorts of problems for paving and landscaping in future as it is so far above the level of the existing house patio. This is in Qld.
Inground swimming pool high above ground level
emeraldone on 04/11/2016 - 21:40
Comments
Check with your local council. There may be regulations relating to landslip due to the amount of cutting that would occur with an in-ground pool (most people have their pools on flat land so it shouldn't be a problem, but you should check anyway, and you can ask them about pool fencing while you're there too).
Speaking from an engineering point of view there shouldn't need to be a minimum height above groundwater for a pool (i.e. pool can be founded below the maximum groundwater table). The big caveat on this is that the pool needs to be anchored or heavy enough to resist uplift forces (i.e. buoyancy) from the groundwater when the pool is at its lightest (when it is empty). This is typically expensive to implement, hence why most pools are founded above the maximum groundwater level.
how high is it above GL?
Also has to be above 1 in 100 flood level
My understanding is if the side is > 1200mm
it alleviates the need for a pool fence.
ie no foot or hand hold on wall either.my neighbour has that situation for the back of his pool.
With fibreglass pools its generally best to have the pool approx 150mm above natural ground level, especially in flat flood prone areas. As the area on the outside of the pool can fill up with water during heavy rain. If the water on the outside of the pool reaches a height that is higher than the water inside the pool, there is a chance that the pool could pop up.
You can test this theory with a glass of water in a sink filled with water.
Keep in mind that the water in the pool also sits approx 100mm lower than the top of the pool.
What you describe does sound odd. Most of the pool regulations are about fences and signs.