From residential pools to commercial aquatic facilities, regular pool inspections are critical for preventing health hazards and remaining compliant with regulations. After all, most areas have strict regulations, requiring you to consistently check for water quality and structural integrity to keep both swimmers and pool owners safe.
In this guide, we’ll dive into the essentials of pool inspections, including what exactly you need to assess –from the filtration system to staff training. By the end, you’ll have a clear understanding of what you need to maintain a clean, well-functioning pool, while avoiding costly fines or health risks.
What is a pool inspection?
To start off, a pool inspection checks if a swimming pool or spa is safe for the user’s health, regardless if it’s a residential or commercial one.
The requirements for a pool inspection vary depending on the country’s regulations. However, there are still large similarities that can be found such as the ideal water quality and the proper filtration settings. As such, we will be using later the requirements made by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to gain insight into the important points for consideration during pool inspections. Aquatic facilities that fail to comply with these requirements can be penalized with costly fines.
What does a pool inspection cover?
A pool inspection would usually involve:
- Evaluating water quality by testing PH balance, chlorine levels, and clarity to make sure it’s free of contaminants
- Checking for barriers like fences and gates, proper signage, and lifesaving equipment
- Assessing the pool walls, floor, and deck for damage
- Testing mechanical components like pumps and filtration systems
- Seeing if electrical systems meet proper standards
- Verifying that chemical storage practices align with safety protocols
- Confirming compliance with local regulations, such as permits
You’ll need to do both routine inspections for daily or weekly maintenance, along with more in-depth inspections at least every year.
What are the risks of not conducting a pool inspection?
Comprehensive pool inspections and aquatic facilities regulations have just been recently introduced, around three decades ago. This was only triggered because there has been a dramatic increase in waterborne disease outbreaks which were traced back to poor water quality from water recreation parks such as swimming pools and spas.
Health professionals have discovered that this outbreak is due to the proliferation of germs such as Giardia, Shigella, E.coli, norovirus, and Cryptosporidium (the leading cause of waterborne diseases in the United States).
Various vectors, such as human feces and animals, introduce germs into the pool. Chemicals like chlorine and bromine kill these germs when applied to the water. However, factors such as low concentration or an inadequate pool filtration system can render these chemicals ineffective.
To prevent these factors that make pools unsafe, it’s essential to conduct a swimming pool inspection. Not only will it prevent penalties, but also enable the pool and spa to maintain a good public reputation.
What is the Model Aquatic Health Code (MAHC)?
The Model Aquatic Health Code (MAHC) is a guide that was created by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This guide ensures healthy and safe experiences in aquatic facilities like swimming pools, spas, and waterparks. The CDC initiated the MAHC in 2005 to reduce the numerous waterborne disease outbreaks occurring in the United States.
From their further studies and discussion, the council that was in charge of creating the Model Aquatic Health Code came up with the conclusion that in order to achieve their goals, they must regulate three focus points:
- Design standards and construction
- Facility operation and maintenance
- And policies and management
We will talk more about these focus points below. Due to the large scope that this guide covers, we will focus our discussion on factors that affect water quality.
Due to how comprehensive this guide is, many institutions have created their own pool inspection checklist (residential or commercial) based on the Model Aquatic Health Code. So, learning more about the MAHC will give us insight into what a proper and final pool inspection checklist should have and what to expect when a government official arrives to inspect a swimming pool or spa.
Design standards and construction
This key focus point applies only to aquatic facilities that are just in the planning stage and are yet to be built.
Particle contamination burden and filtration system
During the inspection of a plan for an aquatic facility, one of the most important factors for consideration is that there should be an indicated particle contamination burden. Particle contamination burden is the expected rate at which contaminants like dust, debris, body excretions, and insects enter the pool.
This is very important because this contamination rate is where the filtration equipment capabilities are decided upon. If the rate of filtration is less than the contamination burden, then the pool will eventually become dirty with contaminants.
Chlorine and disinfectant demand
Chlorine demand, or disinfectant demand, requires adding chlorine or other disinfectants to a pool at a specific rate. Various factors influence this rate, with the number of bathers or swimmers expected per day playing a significant role. Swimmers contaminate the water with body excretions, which increases the need for disinfection. The second one is the chlorine or disinfectant loss due to ultraviolet rays, decomposition, and oxidation.
Keep in mind that the rate of the chlorine feed pump must match the chlorine demand to keep the pool safe.
Facility operation and maintenance
This key focus point applies to aquatic facilities that are operating.
Permits
In the pool inspection checklist of an operational aquatic facility, permits must be included. Because permits need to be continuously updated to ensure that the facility operation is legal. If not, a facility risks being fined or being forced to close down.
Preventive maintenance plan
According to collected data, approximately 22% of pool chemical-related events are due to equipment failure which can be prevented with proper maintenance; not with any maintenance, but preventive maintenance.
Preventive maintenance refers to the planned schedule of equipment maintenance intending to prevent equipment breakdown. Manufacturers usually give recommendations on what type of maintenance should be done and how frequent it should be. Doing so will prevent any unwanted repair costs and disruption of operation. Make sure that preventive maintenance is on the pool inspection checklist.
Water quality testing
Water quality testing is the procedure of collecting water samples and then testing them to check parameters such as alkalinity, hardness, total dissolved solids, and chlorine levels. We do this to ensure that the water is balanced and safe. This is also a good measure for knowing whether the pool equipment is working correctly. It is important to make sure that water quality testing is in your pool inspection checklist.
Policies and management
This key focus point applies to aquatic facilities that are operating.
Staff training
Training the hired staff is an important part of the pool inspection checklist because it ensures that they know their duties and responsibilities, especially the workers who handle chemicals and equipment.
There have been incidents where a staff member has mishandled disinfectants which caused irritation and discomfort to the affected swimmers. So making sure that they’ve received the proper training ensures that they’re less likely to cause any problems, as they’ll know how to effectively do their job.
Contamination response plan
Having a contamination response plan in the pool inspection checklist ensures that the staff knows what to do in a scenario where a swimmer contaminates the swimming pool with their blood, vomit, or feces.
This is crucial because these body excretions, when handled improperly, can cause the proliferation of germs in the pool which can then cause sickness to other swimmers. It might even severely contaminate the pool filtration system which can lead to early equipment replacement and cause business disruption
How a software can make your pool inspections more efficient
With Lumiform’s audit app you can easily perform a multitude of safety and quality inspections on the go from your smartphone or tablet – online or offline. Use premade pool inspection templates or create your own for the most accurate and customized experience.
- With our flexible and easy-to-use form builder, you can transform any pool inspection checklist into a digital format within minutes.
- Lumiform offers thousands of ready-made templates to choose from, so that you can make the switch from paper to digital in a safe and simple way.
- With the intuitive and easy-to-use mobile app, you and your team can conduct your inspections with ease, saving time and effort.
- All results are automatically summarised in a report which can be sent to responsible personnel(s) immediately.
- Comprehensive and automated analyses help you uncover threats and errors fast and effectively and thus allow you to concentrate on improving processes continuously.