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As a minimum, all commercial, public or semi-public pools are required to install approved main drain covers, marked with ANSI/ASME A112.19.8-2007
If you currently have only a single drain in your public pool or spa, these are your likely options:
Install an unblockable channel drain – 32” x 4”
Cut out the single drain and replace with two connected drains, 3 ft apart
Disable the drain, or convert it from a suction line to a pool return
Install a Safety Vacuum Release System
If you already have dual main drains, at least 3 feet apart, simply replace the old covers with new covers that are imprinted with the ANSI 112.19.8-2007.
Virginia Graeme Baker (VGB) was lovingly known to her friends and family as Graeme (pronounced Graham). The granddaughter of former Secretary of State James Baker, Graeme went with her mother, Nancy, and four sisters to a family friend’s home for a graduation party on June 15, 2002. The focal point of the party was the swimming pool and hot tub.
Graeme had worn her swimsuit to the party and jumped into the pool as soon as they arrived. A short time later, Graeme’s older sister ran to her mother and said that Graeme was under water in the hot tub and would not come up. Nancy ran to the hot tub, but could only see a dark figure under the bubbles obscuring the surface.
Nancy jumped into the hot tub and discovered the horrific sight of her daughter’s unconscious body on the bottom. Not realizing that her daughter was trapped underwater by the suction of the whirlpool’s drain, Nancy desperately and unsuccessfully tried to pull her daughter out.
Two adult men at the party came and helped, finally managing to free Graeme and pulling so hard the drain coverbroke in the process. Lifesaving efforts were immediately performed on the little girl, but she couldn’t be revived.
It was a sad day for the Baker family and they did not want to see another child lost in such a horrific traumatic experience as they had lost Virginia Graeme Baker. Nancy Baker took what she had learned and teamed up with Safe Kids USA - a Washington DC nonprofit that helps lobby laws worldwide in the name of child safety. With the help of her family’s Washington contacts and Safe Kids USA a law was passed on December 19, 2007 affecting all commercial pools in the USA and was named after Virginia Graeme Baker and is referred to as the VGB Pool and Spa Safety Act.
Signed by President George W. Bush on December 19, 2007, and went into effect December 19, 2008. It is called the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act, This is a federal law for all commercial pools and swim clubs as well as residential pools built after that date to have new drain covers or Safety Vacuum Release Systems (SVRS)installed in all pools to meet the new code to prevent bodily injury and/or death. All covers and SVRS* must meet or exceed the ASME/ANSI A112.19.8-2007 National Standards and ASTM G154 for UV Testing. This is stamped on all compliant systems and the law is regulated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission as well as state and local pool inspectors. A Safety Vacuum Release System works by monitoring the vacuum on the suction side of the pool or spa pump.
When a blockage occurs in the main drain or skimmer a sudden rise in vacuum will cause the SRVS to shut down pump operation and activate an audible alarm. The pump will remain off with the alarm sounding until the SVRS is manually reset. The bill states that the maximum fine is $1.8 million and for the pool to be closed until compliant with the law. Between 1985 and 2004, 33 deaths were contributed to entrapment from the suction of pool filters.
This has sent ripples in the swimming industry and does not only apply to swim clubs. It is affecting the hotel industry and the medical hydrotherapy sector as well. The problem is that it is difficult to replace a cover or add a SRVS to many older pools. They were built in a time before these products were around. Retrofitting these older pools can be quite costly. Some pools have gotten estimates of over $20,000 to be brought into compliance.
