Pool barriers
Whether you own or rent a property with a pool, you must make sure it has a barrier that meets the standards in the Building (Pools) Amendment Act 2016.
All pools must have a physical barrier that stops unsupervised young children entering the pool or area around it.
Barriers must either:
- surround the pool and part (or all) of the area around it
- cover the pool itself in the case of a small heated pool like a spa or hot tub,
There must be nothing on the outside of the barrier that a child could use to climb over it.
Gates must open away from the pool, not be able to be easily opened by children, and close automatically after use.
Pool barriers must comply with building code F9, restricting access to residential pools. MBIE has provided an acceptable solution (F9/AS1) as one means of complying. It outlines construction rules for pool barriers as well as the construction and operation of doors, gates and windows that provide access to a pool area.
Making sure your pool barrier is compliant
You'll need to make sure your pool barrier complies with the Building (Pools) Amendment Act 2016. Only the immediate pool area is to be included in the enclosed area, not the whole of the outdoor living space. It should not be used as a thoroughfare to other parts of the property.
Activities that may be carried out in the enclosed area are those that involve the pool or are in relation to it. For example, you could have a barbeque and outdoor furniture in the immediate pool area, but not a clothesline or vegetable garden.
The specifications detailed are taken directly from the Acceptable Solutions F9/AS1 and F9/AS2 Guidance document available at Restricting access to residential pools.
Barrier specifications, gates, doors, windows, and buildings
Height and angle
- Your pool barrier must be at least 1200mm high measured on the outside and at least 1200mm high measured from any permanent projection or object placed on the ground outside the barrier.
- It must not be angled more than 15° from vertical, and must slope away from the pool.
Openings and gaps
- Your pool barrier must not have any openings that a 100mm diameter sphere could pass through.
- Steel wire mesh with square openings may be used as an alternative, as long as the openings do not have a side dimension greater than 13mm.
- Panels with steel wire mesh with openings measuring between 13mm and 35mm on a side must be at least 1800mm high, but may have a gap at the base of not more than 100mm.
Features to stop a child climbing into the pool or pool area
- Any rails, rods, or wires forming part of a pool barrier that aren’t vertical must be at least 900mm apart vertically, to prevent a child from using the barrier as a ladder.
- There must be no ground features or objects outside a pool barrier within 1200mm of the top of the barrier that a child could use to climb over the barrier.
- Any projections or indentations on the outside face of a pool barrier must not have a horizontal projection from the face of the pool barrier greater than 10mm unless they are at least 900mm apart vertically.
Pool barriers on a property boundary
Height, angle, and placement
- Any pool barriers on a property boundary must be at least 1800mm high, measured from the ground level on the pool side.
- The barrier must be located at least 1000mm horizontally from the water’s edge.
Openings, gaps, and barriers
- The barrier must have no openings that a 100mm diameter sphere could pass through.
- Any rails, rods, or wires forming a part of a pool barrier that aren’t vertical must be at least 900mm apart vertically.
Pool wall as a barrier
- The outside face of a pool wall is an acceptable barrier if it is at least 1200mm high and complies with the requirements of a pool barrier listed above.
- When the top of a pool wall is 1000mm or more from the surrounding ground, clause F4 of the Building Code, Safety from falling, may apply if there is a potential hazard from falling over or off the top of the wall.
- Any ladder or other means of providing access to the pool must have a compliant enclosing barrier and gate.
Balconies projecting into immediate pool area
When the floor of a balcony is more than 2400mm vertically above the immediate pool area, a barrier complying with clause F4 of the Building Code may be used as long as there are no projections within 1200mm below the top of it (such as a wall or landscaping feature) that could assist a child to climb down.
Gates in pool barriers
A gate in a pool barrier must:
- be hinged
- be at least 1200mm high, and comply with the requirements of a pool barrier listed above
- open away from the pool
- swing clear of any obstruction that might hold it open
- have a self-closing device that will return the gate to the closed and latched position from any position with a stationary start; and
- have hinges arranged so that when the gate is lifted up or pulled down:
- the latching device will not release
- the gate will not come off its hinges
- the ground clearance under the gate will not allow the passage of a 100mm diameter sphere.
A latch on a gate in a pool barrier must:
- automatically operate when the gate closes so that manual operation is required to release it
- be positioned so it cannot be reached by a child from outside the pool area
- not be capable of being released from outside the pool area by the insertion of a thin implement through any gaps.
Building wall as pool barrier
Where there is a window that can open above and within 2400mm vertically of the immediate pool area, the window must have either:
- the lower edge of the opening no less than 1000mm above the floor inside the building with no projections underneath of more than 10mm;
- a restrictor limiting the size of the opening such that a 100mm diameter sphere cannot pass through; or
- a permanently fixed screen over the opening that a 100mm diameter sphere cannot pass through.
Doors in the building wall
Doors in a building wall that provide access into the immediate pool area must be:
- single leaf doors that are not more than 1000mm wide and
- side-hinged or sliding.
Doors in a building wall providing access into the immediate pool area must have all of:
- either a self-closing device or an audible alarm
- a self-latching device that automatically operates when the door is closed and must be released manually, with a release located at least 1500mm above the inside floor
- a sign that must be:
- fixed next to the inside door handle at a height between 1200mm and 1500mm stating: “SWIMMING POOL. CLOSE THE DOOR.” and
- written in black letters of at least 5mm high, complying with paragraphs 2.2 and 2.2 of Building Code F8/AS1.
Signs on pool doors are not required in detached dwellings or in household units in multi- unit dwellings (such as apartment units). However, homeowners may choose to fit signs to their pool access doors as a reminder for visitors.
Doors will usually require two-handed operation – one to release the high level latch, and the other to operate the door handle lock set.
Doors enable the barrier to the pool to remain effective except when the doors are briefly used for access.
For hinged doors that open towards the pool, a self-closing device must return the door to the closed and latched position from any position when the door is stationary.
For all other doors, a self-closing device must return the door to the closed and latched position when the door is stationary and 150mm or further from the closed and latched position.
Door alarm
A door alarm must:
- produce an alarm tone of 75dBAL10 when measured at a distance of 3000mm that starts 7 seconds after the door’s self-latching device is released;
- automatically return to a state of readiness when the door is closed and latched; and
- have a low battery charge warning that is visual or audible.
Door alarms may be provided with a deactivation switch placed not less than 1500mm above floor level, and that silences the alarm for not more than 15 seconds
Keep your pool and pool area safe
Even when your pool has a barrier that complies with the Act, you need to make sure:
- gates or doors are not propped open or kept from latching
- there is nothing close to the pool barrier that could be used by children for climbing, for example:
- bikes
- trikes
- flowerpots
- deck chairs
- firewood
- boxes
- wheelbarrows.
For more information visit www.building.govt.nz.