Current through Rules and Regulations filed through September 23, 2024
(1)
Location. Return inlets
shall be installed and arranged to produce a uniform circulation of water and
maintain a uniform disinfectant residual throughout the pool or spa. Where
skimmers are used, the return inlets shall be located so as to help bring
floating particles within range of the skimmers.
(a) Pools shall use wall or floor inlets that
are adequate in design, number and location to provide adequate
mixing.
(b) A swimming pool shall
have a minimum of two return inlets regardless of pool size.
(c) The total number of return inlets shall
be based on one inlet per three hundred square feet of pool surface area or one
inlet for every twenty feet of pool perimeter or fraction thereof, whichever is
greater. The return inlets placement shall be as follows:
1. Wall inlets shall be placed within five
feet of each pool corner and at least five feet from a skimmer.
(i) Wall return inlets for the circulation
system shall be designed to include directionally adjustable fitting to provide
effective distribution of water.
(ii) The fitting shall not constitute a
hazard to the user.
2.
Floor return inlets must be used on pools more than fifty feet in width based
on the following placement:
(i) Floor inlets
shall be spaced to effectively distribute the treated water throughout the
pool.
(ii) Distance between floor
inlets shall be no more than twenty feet.
(iii) A row of floor inlets shall be located
within fifteen feet of each side wall.
(iv) Floor inlets shall be flush with the
bottom of the pool.
(v) Floor
inlets used in combination with wall inlets shall be spaced no more than
twenty-five feet from the nearest side walls.
3. For an aquatic facility with multiple pool
types in combination using the same body of water, inlets shall meet the
chapter's placement criteria and be hydraulically sized to provide the required
turnover rate for each pool type.
4. Inlets shall be placed in each recessed or
isolated area of the pool.
5. Wall
inlets shall not be required to provide directional flow if part of a
manufactured gutter system in which the filtered return water conduit is
contained within the gutter structure.
(2) Location. All pools shall be provided
with at least two main drain suction outlets with sumps in the lowest point of
the pool floor or other approved methods.
(a)
The main drain system shall be designed at a minimum to handle recirculation
flow of 100% of total design recirculation flow rate. The branch pipe from each
main drain outlet shall be designed to carry 100% of the recirculation flow
rate
(b) The spacing of the main
drains shall be at least three feet apart, but not more than twenty on centers
nor more than fifteen feet from each side wall.
(c) Three or more suction outlets are subject
to the three feet spacing requirement measured from the centerline between the
outermost suction outlets.
(3) All spas shall have a minimum of two
suction outlets provided for each pump in the suction outlet system, separated
by a minimum of three feet or located on two different planes; e.g., one on the
bottom and one on the vertical wall, or one each on two separate vertical
walls. These suction outlets shall be plumbed such that water is drawn through
them simultaneously through a common line to the pump.
(4) Suction outlets shall be provided with a
cover that has been tested and approved by a nationally recognized testing
laboratory and shall comply with the current ANSI/APSP-16, Suction Fittings For
Use in Swimming Pools, Wading Pools, Spas, and Hot Tubs or a successor standard
and the following:
(a) Where three or more
main drain suction outlets are connected by branch piping, the flow through
each branch pipe from each main drain suction outlet shall be calculated as
follows:
1. Quantity (Q) of flow (gpm)
maximum for each drain = total design flowrate (DFR)) divided by number of
drains (N) minus one drain, or
2.
Q(gpm per drain) = DFR/(N-1).
(b) The suction outlets shall be connected to
a single main suction pipe by branch lines piped to provide hydraulic balance
between the drains.
(c) The branch
lines shall not be valved so as to be capable of operating
independently.
(d) All
covers/grates shall be in the same body of water.
(e) Each suction outlet cover shall be
attached to a properly manufactured or field fabricated sump that meets
ANSI/APSP 16 or successor standard.
(f) The maximum flow on the pump's curve
shall be used to select the cover.
(g) Field fabricated suction outlets must be
designed and certified by a registered professional engineer to comply with
ANSI/APSP 16 or successor standard.
1. Field
fabricated suction outlet covers or grates must provide sufficient area so that
the maximum velocity of the water passing the grate will not exceed one and
one-half feet per second.
2. The
field fabricated sumps shall be built so that the opening of the suction pipe
will be no closer than one and one-half times the inside pipe diameter from the
bottom of the listed suction outlet cover/grate or in accordance with the
standard or manufacturer instructions.
3. The width of openings in grating shall be
not less than on eight inch and not more than one half inch. The pool or spa
shall not be operated if the outlet grate is missing, broken or secured in such
a way that it can be removed without the use of a tool.
(5)
Entrapment
Avoidance. If the suction outlet system, such as a filtration system,
booster system, automatic cleaning system, or solar system, has a single
suction outlet or multiple suction outlets which can be isolated, each suction
outlet shall protect against user entrapment by installing a cover/grate that
complies with ANSIAPSP- 7 Standard for Suction Entrapment Avoidance in Swimming
Pools, Wading Pools, Spas, Hot Tubs, and Catch Basins or successor standard and
as many of the following as necessary:
(a) A
safety vacuum release system that has been tested by a nationally recognized
independent third party and found to conform to ANSI/ASME standard A112.19.17
or ASTM standard F2387 and installed in accordance with manufacturers'
instructions.
(b) A
suction-limiting vent system designed by a professional engineer,
(c) A gravity drainage system designed by a
professional engineer,
(d)
Automatic pump shut off system that has been tested by a nationally recognized
independent third party and found to conform to a recognized
standard,
(e) Other means
determined to be equally effective by the Department meeting the requirements
of an applicable ASME/ANSI, ASTM or a Consumer Product Safety Commission
standard.
(6) Where
provided, the vacuum cleaner fittings shall be located in an accessible
position between six and eighteen inches below the minimum operating water
level or as an attachment to the skimmer(s).
(7) The vacuum line shall be protected with a
self-closing, self-latching fitting that complies with the current IAMPO SPS 4-
Special Use Suction Fitting for Swimming Pools, Spas and Hot
Tubs.
O.C.G.A. §§
31-2A-6, 31-12-8, 31-45-10.
