spottrouble

The 2 drains I mentioned are splash-out drains, they are located on the deck at either corner of the deep end. From the VGB Act (iii) that pools and spas built more than 1 year after the date of the enactment of such statute have— (I) more than 1 drain; (II) 1 or more unblockable drains; or (III) no main drain; (iv) every swimming pool and spa that has a main drain, other than an unblockable drain, be equipped with a drain cover that meets the consumer product safety standard established by section 1404; and Unless I cut out the old drain I do not see this as new construction. Pool as built only has 1 drain, I would call it an unblockable drain, its a 4" pipe that sits 6" under a metal grate 20" wide x 48' long, short of a group effort how could anyone be entrapped by this? Secondly that is up to the states, and Nevada is not really current on many regs, I'll have to talk to the inspector on this issue. I would probably add a Safety vacuum release or Automatic pump shut off system just to be safe, of course it will all depend on inspector. Nowhere do I see a clear definition of unblockable drain. Use of geo heat would depend on the level of heat, if its boiling hot why not use a heat exchanger, 78 degrees would require a heat pump, either option is still years away. May or may not use the pit, we'll see, maybe I can run plumbing into systems room. Pool is indoors, I really don't see a problem with splashout water running back into pool, its not like leaves or dirt from an outdoor pool, maybe a little dust, isn't that what the filter is for. Still not understanding the need to bond a concrete deck with no rebar in it, or electrical service run through it, and no wall sockets in the room either? How can a person be electrocuted by this, please explain. If I rip deck up it has to meet current codes, as is its old construction. Once again I'll discuss this with inspector.

Pool is in the basement of the building, I've already claimed the rest of the basement as my home and studio, might as well claim the pool too Adding chairlifts would be nuts, ain't gonna happen on my watch. Yes pool will need heat to really make it enjoyable, fortunately I'm in an area of geothermal activity, sinking some geo wells is in the plan. There is an artesian well about a block away, water flows 75 degrees year round, the local swimming pool is maybe 1/2 mile away spring fed at 78 degrees, just a few miles north is a hot spring with boiling water. Heating the building and pool with geothermal energy would be sweet, backup plan for the pool would be solar. I've also considered adding some quartz heaters to the pool room, instead of heating the room all the time just turn them on with the lights when pool is in use. The room next to pool will be the systems room (concrete wall divider with a false window) plan is to leave the false window open so waste heat goes into pool room. There are 2 drains in the floor at either side of deepend for splashout, original coping had holes every few feet for water to drain back into pool, figured I'd just redo those. I thought VGB act only applied to commercial pools? In the original design the single drain was in the same concrete trough as the water "in" pipe, trough was covered my metal punch plate, short of removing punch plate I think it would be impossible to get stuck to the drain. Since I have no idea if reinforcing metal is connected I would connect bond wire to all exposed rebar and handrail fittings, yet I see no way NOT to encase bond wire in the concrete when coping is reinstalled, bond wire would continue into pit and connect to pump also, not sure where it would go after that, I'm assuming I would need to drill hole in base of pit and drive a ground rod in there and connect bond wire to it, is that correct? Concerning the deck, its concrete and I doubt there is any metal in it (has not been any in other locations we've cut open), how could this area become electrified?. Are these codes just for new construction? Commercial pools? Or any and all pools? All pipes are coming out of the pit soon, might have to erect an A-frame and winch a few parts out.

I think adding a bond wire would pretty easy since the coping is already gone, is it OK to bury bond wire in the concrete? ADA compatible is just not going happen, so I guess its just my private pool. Oddly enough I think the original drain design would be VGB compliant. What are the filtration requirements for private pools? I can see that enlarging entrance to the pit may be needed, or disassembling components, dropping them in, then reassembling them. I do not think ripping this pool out is economically feasible, walls are 1 foot+ thick concrete, and the columns support 3 more floors of the building, I just do not see how it could happen without destroying the entire building, or my winning the lotto .

"First, you will need to find out from the city if they are going to make you bring it to code(VGB)." No city gov't, only county, been working with building inspector for other repairs, have not run this issue past him "If they require a split main drain, you may be able to get around this by offering to eliminate the main drain all together. Normally i would advise against this but since this pool is indoors, i don't think you will have a big debris problem. Of course, if this is the only suction line to the pump, you can't eliminate it without an alternative." Drain was disconnected from sewage line a few years ago, raw sewage was backfilling into pool, so I decided that was best. Thought of running a new dedicated drain line into sewer main, that would have required tearing up a Federal highway and was a little pricey. Sewer/water company was also concerned draining the pool would overflow their system, its a tiny town, pop under 1000. Figure I'll either pump into the lawn (2 acres) or pump it into sewer line slowly. "I would water/sand blast the surface before you attempt the epoxy-injection. To eliminate the paint and clean the cracks for the epoxy. " In the plan "You should be able to get someone to float the bond beam and install new coping." Working on the prep work now, concrete man lined up, just need mo' money Anyway to post a pic of the entire floor? Not in 1 pic, pool takes up most of the room, distance from edge of pool to the wall is 9' at the deepend, 7' along the sides, ans 2' at shallow end "Perhaps the pool equipment can be relocated." I've thought about that, just not sure where or how without tearing everything out "Plaster or some sort of tile is pretty much your only options IF you are refurbishing to circa 1900's." I'm thinking tile would look best, something like the Roman pool at the Hearst Mansion

"If you have an old picture of this pool in its original glory that you can scan, that would would be a great help. " Been searching for pics of this pool for 8 years, I've begged, pleaded, and offered reward$, so far nothing. "In most places, buildings of historic nature need a declaration from either the State or Federal government. This places a lot of restrictions on the property but may also offer tax breaks." Working on state designation, no restrictions or tax credits, its Nevada "You mentioned the length and width but not the depth." Just measured, 48 feet long x 20 feet wide x 8 feet deep (not quite as big or deep as estimated) "Is there a ventilation system?" Ummm, there was, kinda, just some 1'x1' vents to the outside, but we filled them with concrete. With no AC pool room stays about 70 all summer, and with no heat it stays about 45-50 in the winter, before we plugged the vents it was going below freezing. Room has plenty of windows, figured I'd just open those if ventilation was needed. Air is extremely dry here, never a problem with humidity. "Will this be a commercial or residential pool? Commercial pools will have a number of requirements that aren't needed for residential pools, specifically turnover rates, chemistry, and safety guide lines, regardless of the historic nature, even if this is a for display only situation. There is no grandfathering." The long term plan is commercial, ie B&B with a stunning pool, at the same time that might not happen in my lifetime "The original design used water at a mad rate by todays standards. If you are in a drought area, such as the desert southwest, that will be a problem. I think you recognize that and know that a filter system will be needed to make this a closed system. The original design, as described, was an open system, basically a concrete pond. This is a major concern." Yes, the plan is to change it to a closed system "You already recognized and taken action with the steel pipe removal. However, it looks like the rebar you said was there was cut" Rebar has not been cut, its also not rebar as we know it today, vertical bars are smooth, some with mushroomed heads, horizontal rebar is square stock that has been twisted "I also seriously doubt a bond wire was set before the deck was poured. I suspect you can look forward to pouring a new deck." Whats a bond wire? "This pool never had skimmers, near as I can see. Please correct me if I am wrong. A skimming solution will still be needed even though this is an indoor facility. There is a "toy" remote controlled, battery operated catamaran boat on the market that has a net for this purpose. It's not perfect but would do as good a job as someone with a skimming net and may allow you to keep some of the original look in place" I doubt there were ever any skimmers "I can't see the scuppers. Are they still there? If so, how high are they, roughly, from the expected water line? This will effect your chemistry if they are used as the pool return inlets. What are they made of or to be made of? Scuppers are still there, 22" wide x 3" high, presently made of concrete, yet could probably be modified or upgraded if needed "The paint will need to be removed and plaster applied." Is plaster needed before tiling? Pretty sure whether plastered or tiled ledges will have to be removed, they were cast seperately in sections, supports were cast into the side of the pool in the initial pour "How big is the opening in the pit? How big is the pit?" Opening to pit is 20"x20", enlarging it would not be too much of an issue. Pit is 42" x 42" square x 10.5' deep. When previous owner tore the coping off he filled the pit with the concrete debris, I dug it back out the first year

It is in a Historic building, economically salvageable is not part of the equation, if it was I would have knocked the whole building down to start with. All pipes are steel, I am almost done removing them, no pipes are buried in the concrete walls or floor of the pool. Yes concrete does have rebar. I need suggestions to repair THIS pool, not a new pool.

Hi folks, I need some advice on restoring a 100 year old concrete swimming pool. Its an indoor pool, approx 50' x 30', poured concrete (you can see the form board lines), that has not been used in maybe 70 years. There are some hairline cracks in the concrete, was thinking of using epoxy injection to fill those, beyond that I'm lost. There are numerous other problems, #1 is previous owner jack hammered off the concrete coping, #2 he for some unknown reason attacked the side of the pool in an approx 3'x3' area with jackhammer, #3 pool never had a filtration system, it was fresh water in then 2 scuppers that went into the drain. I would like to restore the pool to its original appearance, what I do not know is if there are code requirements for pools, or if its a historic pool will they waive the codes. The coping was just concrete, from the deck surrounding the pool it sloped up about 4", rounded over to horizontal for about 6", then rounded over to the pool side, maybe a pic would help? The pool also had a handrail that went around edge of pool, is this still acceptable? Of course its missing now because PO chopped it off. I would also like to recreate the water feature, only now it has to recirculate and be filtered. At the deep end, where a diving board would normally be there is a hatch into the pit (10ft, as deep as the pool)where the fresh water plumbing came in and the main drain valve was located, I am presently removing all these old pipes. From here the fresh water "in" ran through a pipe laid in a trough all the way to the shallow end, curved up and hit a T fitting and flowed into pipes with a slit in them to create a waterfall/watercurtain across the shallow end, then flowed to scuppers on either side of the pit at the deep end. My idea is to place a filter in the pit, with a large pump to push water through pipe to the shallow end, then redirect scuppers to the filter, any thoughts? At some point in time the pool was painted in an attempt to seal the concrete, probably oil based paint, obviously it needs to be removed before I can do anything else. What are my choices for a nicer waterproof finish? I think tiling would look the best, yet I'm not sure what my options are, to date it seems like tile or plaster, maybe I have other options? Of course I forgot to mention the ledge to stand on along sides of pool, I think these would make plastering or tiling a PIA because they might need to be removed, trimmed, then re-installed, and they are concrete too Does anyone know of an individual or company with experience in restoring historic pools? Google search just brings up lots of ads for companies that "restore" modern pools, not exactly what I'm dealing with. To make matters worse I'm in the most isolated community in the lower 48 states, its a 4 hour drive to the closest pool supply. Links to pics Pool Coping The Pit Pool 2