Do pools need drains?-A study on the subject

[JohnT]

Study concludes no, but I'm not sure it addresses all issues.

http://www.manufacturingcenter.com/d...feature_2.asp?

[kaybinster]

Interesting, but keep in mind it was done in a lab. In the real world I would think the drain helps as pools are not designed nor built to perfection. Also four water inlets is more than most pools. The other issue that is not discussed is heat transfer. Having the drain at the bottom helps to ciriculate the cold water up to the heater and more evenly heat the pool.

As far as a control system to shut the pump off that would be very easy to do and very cheap these days.

It seems we like to blame others for everything these days and take no responsibility for our actions or those of our kids. I remember when I was little that my parents told me to be careful of the drain in a swimming pool. Sometimes accidents just happen, but it seems like most people believe that is not true and that someone should pay anytime something bad happens. I was glad to hear that was not the case in this report.

[KurtV]

There are apparently some builders who have been building main-drainless pools for a while.
http://www.allbusiness.com/periodica.../517444-1.html

[PoolDesignnet]

I don't know.... The Florida code is: 2 main drains per pump. Meaning you can't just have one. 2 MD 3' apart on or different planes for anti-entrapment. I'm not sure it says anything about not having any main drains. I'll have to check. And I don't know why anyone would want to fight it anyway.

BTW similar accidents happen with vacuum cleaning lines if a spring loaded cover is not installed.

[mustBnuts]

We installed a 13 x 30 fiberglass pool on a do-it-yourself basis in '05. We decided not to install a main drain since the pool will never be drained anyway. We didn't want to worry about it leaking or entrapment.
As far as circulation goes, there are 2 inlets in the shallow end and 1 in the deep end which keep things pretty well stirred up. It needs vacuumming 3 or 4 times a week, which is about par, I suppose. 1 skimmer in the deep end is all that feeds the pump. There is a sump line under the pool to pump out ground water if it should need to be drained, a submersible pump could empty the pool fairly quickly.
Hindsight being 20/20, I wonder if I should have some sort of vacuum breaker in case the vacuum hose gets blocked?

[mwsmith2]

Cool! That's a really nice, peaceful setting for your pool.

Michael