› Flat Chat Strata Forum › Living in strata › Pool safety rules get the sitcom solution › Current Page
I read, and laughed, at your article in Domain this morning re: the new, new, new swimming pool regulations and the proliferation of certificates.
You may be interested in my current situation related to the new regulations.
We have lived in the same house for 28 years and we have a pool in front of our house (we are on a battle axe block). Up until the new regulations were mooted some 2 or 3 years ago our pool complied with the then regulations and involved a section of our house comprising part of the pool exclusion zone.
To comply, doors in that section of the house had to have handles 1500mm from the ground, they had to be self closing and windows could not open more than 100ml. We did all of this and with other measures we had to take we complied with the then regulations.
Last week I had a private certifier come in and review the situation. He was a nice bloke and he had a bit of imagination (and this is a particularly difficult and fairly unique situation) but even so we are looking at a complex and expensive (at least $20K) solution which would comply without totally destroying the beauty and the ambience of our garden setting.
I pushed him on the possibility of continuing to use the previously compliant section of our house as part of the exclusion zone and he ask how long how pool had been there.
At least 30 years, possibly quite a lot longer as we are pretty certain it is pre 1980. He said that due to length of time the pool had been there and our compliance with the previous regulations there may be a way but he would need to check with the POOL & Spa Association. I am awaiting his reply.
Since then, a real estate agent friend brought to my attention the recent sale of a house in Lindfield which had a compliance certificate attached to the contract. The house was used as part of the exclusion zone for the pool. The certificate was issued by Kuringai Council. My friend did some digging. Kuringai Council have 3 pool compliance officers ; one of these officers issued the compliance certificate yet when my friend spoke to one of the other officers he stated that he would never have issued it!
It would appear that these new regulations are more complex than is understood and open to interpretation.
My question to you is do you know anybody who knows the new regulations inside out and back to front ?
Apart from Sir Humphrey*, of course. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
*In the print version of Flat Chat column in Domain, we “quoted” the eloquent Sir Humphrey of Yes, Minister rather that potty-mouthed Malcolm from The Thick of It.