Federal pool and spa law
The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act
“New federal Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act now requires that all public facilities install anti-entrapment safety devices.”
Below is Vacless’s own summary of the Act: the paragraph that names a safety vacuum release system, how the law came about, and the figures the company cites. It is a summary, not legal advice. Your local authority and a qualified pool professional decide what your pool needs.
The paragraph that names SVRS
What the Act says about public pools and spas.
The text below is a paragraph taken from the Federal Virginia Graeme Baker Act, as printed on vacless.com. Dashes in the printed text are shown here as plain punctuation.
(1) Required equipment.
(A) IN GENERAL. Beginning one year after the date of enactment of this title:
(i) each public pool and spa in the United States shall be equipped with anti-entrapment devices or systems that comply with the ASME/ANSI A112.19.8 performance standard, or any successor standard; and (ii) each public pool and spa in the United States with a single main drain other than an unblockable drain shall be equipped, at a minimum, with one or more of the following devices or systems designed to prevent entrapment by pool or spa drains that meets the requirements of subparagraph (B):
(I) SAFETY VACUUM RELEASE SYSTEM. A safety vacuum release system, which ceases operation of the pump, reverses the circulation flow, or otherwise provides a vacuum release at a suction outlet when a blockage is detected, that has been tested by an independent third-party and found to conform to ASME/ANSI standard A112.19.17 or ASTM standard F2387.
Signed into law
December 19, 2007
Named for Graeme Baker.
On December 19, 2007, the president signed into law the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act, named after the daughter of Nancy Baker and the granddaughter of former secretary of state James Baker. Graeme Baker died in a tragic incident in June 2002 after the suction from a spa drain entrapped her under the water.
The Act was first introduced by Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (FL) and was supported by the Baker family and Safe Kids Worldwide. On or after December 19, 2008, swimming pool and spa drain covers available for purchase in the United States must meet specific performance requirements, and public swimming pools, wading pools, spas and hot tubs must meet requirements for the installation of compliant drain covers. Effective December 20, 2007, the Act is administered by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
“My daughter never should have died,” says the 48-year-old mother of five. “It’s catastrophic when a child dies in any way, all the more so when it’s preventable.”
Why the law exists
The CPSC figures quoted on the Vacless page.
- 283
- drowning deaths a year, on average (2003-2005), involving children younger than 5 in pools and spas
- 2,700
- emergency room-treated submersion injuries, on average (2005-2007), involving children younger than 5
- 74
- reported incidents associated with suction entrapment from 1997-2007, including 9 deaths and 63 injuries
“There is an annual average of 283 drowning deaths (2003-2005) and 2,700 emergency room-treated submersion injuries (2005-2007) involving children younger than 5 in pools and spas. In addition, from 1997-2007, there were 74 reported incidents associated with suction entrapment, including 9 deaths and 63 injuries. The new law is aimed at reducing these deaths and injuries by making pools safer, securing the environment around them, and educating consumers and the industry on pool safety.”
Suction force entrapment
How a drain holds on.
Multiple layers of protection in and around swimming pools can prevent serious injury or death to the most common victims, which are children under the age of fourteen. The Vacless catalog page lists these entrapment types.
- Body Entrapment
- A section of the torso becomes entrapped.
- Limb Entrapment
- An arm or leg is pulled into an open drain pipe.
- Hair Entrapment or Entanglement
- Hair is pulled in and wrapped around the grate of the drain cover.
- Mechanical
- Jewelry or part of the bather’s clothing gets caught in the drain or the grate.
Where a Breather fits
One layer of protection, built to ANSI/ASME A112.19.17.
The standard the Act’s safety vacuum release paragraph names is the one the Breather is listed to: IAPMO listed per ANSI/ASME A112.19.17, and recognized by the Consumer Product Safety Commission as an approved manufacturer of ANSI/ASME A112.19.17 Safety Vacuum Release Systems. It threads into the pump drain plug port by hand, no tools required.
Breather I
Automatic reset
Automatic reset with center or offset port installation, for suction lift or submerged suction installations.
See the Breather I modelsBreather II
Manual reset
Manual reset with release chain, for suction lift installations only.
See the Breather II modelsBreather III
Electrical
Electronic pump shut-off with limit switch and a control box with 5-10V DC power supply and time delay relays.
See the Breather III models
For pools with a single main drain, you can become VGB compliant by installing the Vacless SVRS in less than 5 minutes and for a fraction of the cost. Installing the Vacless products minimizes your liability and can also reduce your customer’s liability insurance.
Vacless Safety Vacuum Release Systems provide a crucial layer of certified protection against the body and limb entrapment and should always be used in conjunction with an approved anti-entrapment drain cover. Nothing replaces parental supervision, but having multiple layers of protection is the best way to prevent main drain entrapments.