Hazard # 4 Electricity

Mixing electricity and water is always hazardous. In a pool or spa situation, underwater lights, deck lights, the motor on the circulating pump, or any other accessory requiring electricity may pose a safety threat to people in the water if the wiring is incorrect or faulty. Read the owner’s manual for each piece of equipment to get information about electrical requirements. To make sure your pool or spa is electrically safe, ask your pool builder or professional service person to verify these points:

1) Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCIs): The power supply circuit for each piece of electrical equipment should include a GFCI for protection against tiny – but dangerous – leaks of electricity to ground (‘ground faults’). If these tiny ground faults travel through the human body, they can damage the nerves controlling the heart and cause cardiac arrest (heart failure).

2) GFCI will sense ground faults and disconnect the power supply. This protects you from a dangerous and possibly fatal electrical shock.

3) Codes: All electrical equipment and wiring must meet the requirements of the local and national codes which apply.

4) Grounding and Bonding: All electrical equipment must be grounded. All metal objects (ladders, diving platforms, etc.) must be electrically bonded together.

5) Extension cords: Never use extension cords around a pool or spa or to supply power to pool or spa equipment. If they get wet, it’s an invitation to a shock – possibly a fatal shock.

6) Pool drainers: A drainer must always be plugged into a GFCI-protected outlet. Because of the danger of electrical leakage from a drainer to the pool water, never get in the water when a drainer is running, and never put an aluminum vacuum handle (or any similar object which could conduct electricity) into the pool while a drainer is running in the pool.