• Most townships have swimming pool safety standards in place.swimming pool image by Wolfgang Peinelt from Fotolia.com
  
  All modern societies have safety as a concern. These concerns extend to the home and the outdoors enjoyed by homeowners. One of the chief safety concerns is swimming pools. The overriding theme in many ordinances is that unwanted persons or animals are kept out. Another overriding theme is the prevention of injury and drowning. Prevention of injury is the key and knowing what the safety design standards are in your community will save you a world of trouble.
  
  

Safety Fence

• Most, if not all, communities have a barrier law in place. This is usually accomplished by a fence completely enclosing the pool. Furthermore, gates must be locked when the pool is unattended. Design criteria varies from municipality to municipality, but a common theme is that no gaping holes are permitted, since a small child or animal can enter through the hole. To obtain the specific standards in your community, check with your county or township's building department, which can offer expert guidance on their requirements.
  
  

Nonskid Decking

• The Consumer Products Safety Commission states that most slip-and-fall injuries occur on wet slippery decking. The way to prevent this is by obtaining decking finishing material that is nonskid, such as those that mix sand in with the paint. There are many nonslip finishes available for decking and, again, your local building department can offer guidance.
  
  

Swimming Pool Cover

• Most communities have a pool cover ordinance in place. This is to prevent unwanted entrance into the water by children or animals. This cover is usually tight-fitting to prevent a person or animal from wedging themselves between the cover and the pool deck to obtain entrance into the water.
  
  

Filter Intakes

• There are design standards for filter intakes. If the suction is too great, a child--or even an adult--can get sucked onto the intake and be unable to free themselves. Because of this, most building departments have set design criteria for intakes, such as having safety screening over the inlets. Check with your local building or zoning board, who can offer assistance in the design of the intake.