Summer is approaching in Asheville, NC, and we all know what that means. Hot summer days, tasty craft beers, and hanging out with your friends and family by the pool. While all of this sounds fun, ensuring that your pool has the correct safety measures in place is imperative as pools can be a problem area for small children if not well protected.

Public and private pools alike operate under North Carolina’s swimming pool regulations to protect not only your family but the lives of others. Some of these regulations include:

• Safety inspections
• Potable water supply
• Pool barriers

Swimming Pool Dangers

According to the CDC, there are around ten drowning deaths and 5000 injuries in swimming pools in the United States per day. Children are particularly vulnerable; drowning is the leading cause of unintentional death in children aged one to four. You could be held liable under premises responsibility rules if there is an accident or death. 

One method of prevention is by installing a fence around your swimming pool which is required by many state and local laws (including Asheville, NC).

Swimming Pool Fence Rules

All below-ground swimming pools in North Carolina, whether public or private, must be surrounded by fencing that is at least four feet tall from the finished ground level.  The openings should not be more than four inches wide, regardless of the style of fencing. If chain link fencing is used as a barrier, the chain link openings should be no more than 2 1/4 inches wide.

Gates must be self-latching and self-closing and must open outwards from the pool. Service gates may not be required to be self-closing. However, they have to remain locked when not in use. If your gates have two openings, one must be secured in place, and the other must be self-latching.

There also must be a zone of no less than 36” around the exterior of the fence that is free of any permanent structure or equipment, and the barrier must be unclimbable.

Asheville, NC Pool Fencing

While all of this information may sound daunting, it is important to understand that there are rules and regulations put into place to ensure that you and your family are safe. By correctly installing a fence around your pool, you can have peace of mind knowing that children are protected from the dangers of being able to wander into your pool.

If you are building a pool for this upcoming summer season and need an effective, attractive pool fence installed, contact the team at Asheville Fence today!