Pool repair in Gilbert AZ - Replacing a broken drain cover

One of my long time customers has a rental property in Gilbert AZ, which had some pool repair issues that needed to be addressed before this years swim season. One problem was a broken drain cover. The pool is very old and had an outdated Aqua-star drain cover that cracked.

In 2002, the United Stated Congress passed a law called the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool And Spa Safety Act (VGBA) after she drowned in the family's fiberglass spa. The official cause of death was drowning, but the reason she drowned was being entrapped by the suction of the pump and being stuck to the drain.

All drain covers are now VGBA compliant and designed to keep anyone from sticking to the drain and becoming trapped. In many cases, I use a 'retro-fit' drain cover that works on all drains, but this time I was fortunate and the manufacture makes a replacement for the old drain cover.

It's unlikely that anyone will be entrapped to the drain in a 10,000-20,000 gallon residential swimming pool since the standard 1.5 Hp pumps are not powerful enough, but since 2002 all manufactures make products VGBA compliant, including variable speed pumps that will shut down if they sense a lack of water flow.

In this case, the cracked drain cover could have caused a nasty cut on someones foot, or toe requiring stitches, so for safety reasons I replaced it before the swim season started.

Location: Gilbert, AZ