Pool Removal in Adelaide

What pool removal in Adelaide actually involves

The pool is drained first. The EPA lists pool backwash water and pool chemicals among the things the law keeps out of the stormwater system, and the City of Marion says pool water should go to sewer. The pump, its wiring and any drain connections are disconnected next. Disconnecting a drain is plumbing under South Australian law, and changing a fixed electrical installation is electrical work; both are for workers registered for them. Then the shell is broken up or lifted out, loaded and carted, and the hole is backfilled and compacted before the ground is levelled for turf, paving or a build.

Approval before the machines arrive

The City of Marion says demolishing a structure in its entirety needs no development approval unless it is a heritage place. The City of Mitcham lists removing an existing pool among the work that needs development approval. PlanSA's approval wizard works from your address, and you should confirm with your council before work starts. If an application is needed, the State fee for building consent to demolish is A$174.00, plus a lodgement fee that depends on the total development cost. Taking out only part of the pool is a different route: see pool fill-in, and the options page compares the two.

The fence stays until the pool is gone. A pool owner must keep a continuous safety barrier that restricts young children's access, and while a pool fence is being maintained or repaired, temporary fencing that meets the requirements has to be in place. The Act defines a pool as an excavation or structure capable of being filled with water, so ask your council when the barrier can come down if the answer is not obvious on your job.

Pool Removal in Adelaide — common questions

Do I need approval to take the whole pool out?

Possibly. The regulations exclude the demolition of the whole of a building from the definition of development, except for a local heritage place or a building in a zone, subzone or overlay the Code identifies. The City of Marion and the City of Mitcham word the answer for pools differently, so confirm with your council or use PlanSA's approval wizard.

Can the pool fence come down before the work starts?

A pool owner must keep a continuous safety barrier restricting young children's access while the pool is there, and temporary fencing that meets the requirements must be in place while a fence is being maintained or repaired. Ask your council when the barrier can come down.

Who is allowed to do the work?

In South Australia a person must not carry on business as a building work contractor except as authorised by a licence under the Building Work Contractors Act 1995, and that Act's building work includes demolishing a building and excavating or filling a site for that work. Disconnecting drains and electrical work need workers registered for them.