# Above ground pool bonding



## blueheels2 (Apr 22, 2009)

How would you or would you at all bond this nightmare?


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## blueheels2 (Apr 22, 2009)

Digging down to the base of the frame and then measuring up to the skimmer depth of the pool seems to be 41.5” deep which in this regard makes it a storable pool. However it’s not really storable. Half of It is surrounded by a deck and it stays up year round.

There is a metal frame rail on the bottom but best I can tell there is no real connection from rail to rail or to the sides Of the pool.

In fact when I play around with it there doesn’t seem to be really good bonding from an metal part to any other metal part. However All of the metal parts seem to be coated in pvc at least where you could most likely touch them.
Do I bond every piece of individual metal or do I bond nothing?


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## wiz1997 (Mar 30, 2021)

I've had an above ground pool for over 20 years.
Never "bonded" any part of it.
The pump is grounded.
In my municipality it is considered "storageable" even though it's never been stored.


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## Kevin (Feb 14, 2017)

We installed a pool at my dad's place and there was no way to bond the wall without voiding the warranty. We asked an inspector the next time we saw one and they said what we could have done was changed a bolt to a longer one where the pool wall bolts together and put a lug on the longer bolt, but it still isn't a good bonding connection if we do that. 

Rumor has it some pools come with bonding points but I have yet to see one. All the above ground pools I've wired or worked on I've never seen a bonding point from the factory, and we can't add one without voiding the warranty.


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## Easy (Oct 18, 2017)

Section 680.42(B), which states that compliance to Section 680.26(B)(2) shall not be required where ALL of the following conditions are met. (1) The spa or hot tub shall be listed as a self-contained spa for above ground use, (2) The spa or hot tub shall not be identified as suitable only for indoor use, (3) The installation was done in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions and shall be located on or above grade and (4) *The top rim of the spa or hot tub shall be at least 28 in. above all perimeter surfaces that are within 30 in. measured horizontally from the spa or hot tub.*

The decking seems to be an issue. I personally don’t see why this pool, portable or not would require bonding because it appears there is nothing electrical connected to it. No low voltage controls or light fixture. No metallic plumbing coming from the pump. It’s just a vessel that holds water. 

I’m sure someone here knows something I don’t and could explain what danger it poses or how a path could be establish for current to flow to this set up.


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## yankeejoe1141 (Jul 26, 2013)

I would buy the Burndy above ground water bond kit and install that in the skimmer, I would run a solid #8 from the skimmer to any accessible metal in the pool’s frame, around the perimeter of the pool attached at four points, I would end the #8 at the lug on the pump motor. If any metal is within 5 feet from the inside wall of the pool I would attach to that as well, things like aluminum ladders or fences. If the frame is coated in pvc or composite I would skip it then. 

I wouldn’t attach that bond wire to any ground wire that supplies power to the pump, it solely creates equal potential on all things that conduct electricity, it’s not intended to ground anything. It only make sure electricity doesn’t move from one place to another and use a person as the path.


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## yankeejoe1141 (Jul 26, 2013)

Easy said:


> Section 680.42(B), which states that compliance to Section 680.26(B)(2) shall not be required where ALL of the following conditions are met. (1) The spa or hot tub shall be listed as a self-contained spa for above ground use, (2) The spa or hot tub shall not be identified as suitable only for indoor use, (3) The installation was done in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions and shall be located on or above grade and (4) *The top rim of the spa or hot tub shall be at least 28 in. above all perimeter surfaces that are within 30 in. measured horizontally from the spa or hot tub.*


But it’s not a spa or hot tub, it’s a pool and anything that can conduct electricity needs to be bonded so there is zero difference of potential.


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## Easy (Oct 18, 2017)

yankeejoe1141 said:


> But it’s not a spa or hot tub, it’s a pool and anything that can conduct electricity needs to be bonded so there is zero difference of potential.


I see your point about zero potential but really what would it matter if it was a spa or hot tub as really it looks like a spa to me. Just because something has a different name shouldn't dictate bonding. I do however see lots of rusted metal on the underside of the fiberglass. Water is a conductor if it has minerals in it so it is a bit confusing. I agree it should be bonded and your example above is a good one.


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## yankeejoe1141 (Jul 26, 2013)

Easy said:


> I see your point about zero potential but really what would it matter if it was a spa or hot tub as really it looks like a spa to me. Just because something has a different name shouldn't dictate bonding. I do however see lots of rusted metal on the underside of the fiberglass. Water is a conductor if it has minerals in it so it is a bit confusing. I agree it should be bonded and your example above is a good one.


Thanks, I just felt like your post were reasons not to bond it, and those reasons are valid when dealing with spa’s and hot tubs, but it’s a pool and I don’t think those exceptions apply. That’s why art 680 has a separate sections for permenant pools, storable pools, hot tubs and spas, and fountains and such.


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## blueheels2 (Apr 22, 2009)

There is a metal track at the base in the dirt but the connection from each section of track to another section of track is spotty at best. Customer says they just layer in a track at the supports and they aren’t really joined together mechanicallly though they may touch. So you bond each individual piece of that? 

And then the supports on the side are definitely metal but they have some kind of coating on them. Not sure it’s pvc but don’t know how I would tell. Magnetic tape measure sticks to them.


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## DSiggy60 (Apr 30, 2021)

Some above-ground pools have plastic joints that hold the metal pieces structurally but apart. But they do not come in contact with the recommended level of the pool water. The pump (double insulated), and the saltwater system both have installed GFCI protected power cords.


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## yankeejoe1141 (Jul 26, 2013)

blueheels2 said:


> There is a metal track at the base in the dirt but the connection from each section of track to another section of track is spotty at best. Customer says they just layer in a track at the supports and they aren’t really joined together mechanicallly though they may touch. So you bond each individual piece of that?
> 
> And then the supports on the side are definitely metal but they have some kind of coating on them. Not sure it’s pvc but don’t know how I would tell. Magnetic tape measure sticks to them.


I think if they’re coated then you don’t need to bond them. The coating around the metal is kind of like insulation around a wire, you’re not going to want to penetrate that insulation to connect to it.


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## ohm it hertz (Dec 2, 2020)

All you can do is install the pool circuits to code and have the AHJ sign off on it. If you're not comfortable, politely decline to bid it. I can't say I've ever rewired or updated an existing pool before, just new ones. 

I bond continuously to every other partition, 2' around the pool edge buried just below grade, coming back up to the skimmer kit, the pump motor housing, gas fired heater and any other luxuries like saltwater systems. No split bolts or lay in lugs, the point of connection for the partitions must be made with copper mechanical lugs at grade. You can also bond at the drain plug on the pump strainer basket with a kit.

Feeling any better about it yet? lol


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## Dennis Alwon (May 9, 2009)

If it fits the definition of storable then no bonding is necessary. Sounds like you have a storable pool whether it is storable or not.


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## Easy (Oct 18, 2017)

It seems like a poor example of the code IMO. The term "storable" is so vague. Would it matter if it was just an oversized fiberglass pool with absolutely no conductive parts and no electrical actually connected to it and just some PVC lines for the supply and return of water. The pump would be bonded and grounded. Would adding an above ground water bond kit into the skimmer actually improve the safety of the pool?


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## kb1jb1 (Nov 11, 2017)

Here the definition of a storable pool is very clear. It includes the depth of the water and not the sides. Some pools have a deeper center. Also if the filter is not a storage pool filter the it is not a storage pool.


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## kb1jb1 (Nov 11, 2017)

On above ground pools there is the seam where the side wall bolts together. I remember one of the bolts being longer than the rest so that the electrician can install a lug to bond the side wall. Nowadays the seam is behind one of the uprights making it not accessible. .


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## yankeejoe1141 (Jul 26, 2013)

I never sleep well when I’m doing a pool install. I always over think it to death and re-read all the stuff I looked at on my last pool install.

I’ve basically just come to the conclusion that anything that can conduct electricity within 5 feet gets bonded, that way if stray voltage was present on one object, it can’t jump to another object through a person, the way I understand it, that’s how electrocutions always happen. There’s a fault somewhere and voltage tries to move to another object through normal contact.

I think water bond as silly as it sounds is also important. If there’s a fault on a luminaire and someone is in the water, when they get to the side they can just touch the concrete patio and find themselves completing the circuit while voltage moves.


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