Bonding a pool without rebar in the belly

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James L

James L

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Location
Kansas Cty, Mo, USA
Occupation
Electrician
I went to look at an in-ground pool that's being completely installed by a GC who is the homeowner of the property.

He was asking me about bonding, and this is one I've never dealt with. What I've seen is rebar tied and stubbed to tie into the deck rebar, but this is not built that way.

It has steel studded walls, and will get a liner
Looks like an aboveground pool in the ground.

There are no lugs to connect to, so wondering first how to bond it. Drill through and bolt single lugs to it? That seems rrasonable.

Then, how many times? I'm thinking there's nothing wrong with multiple points, and clamps/lugs are cheap.

I googled to get a look at the construction method and saw pics of a liner. And a pic of the actual pool I'll be bonding
 

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James L said:
I went to look at an in-ground pool that's being completely installed by a GC who is the homeowner of the property.

He was asking me about bonding, and this is one I've never dealt with. What I've seen is rebar tied and stubbed to tie into the deck rebar, but this is not built that way.

It has steel studded walls, and will get a liner
Looks like an aboveground pool in the ground.

There are no lugs to connect to, so wondering first how to bond it. Drill through and bolt single lugs to it? That seems rrasonable.

Then, how many times? I'm thinking there's nothing wrong with multiple points, and clamps/lugs are cheap.

I googled to get a look at the construction method and saw pics of a liner. And a pic of the actual pool I'll be bonding
Click to expand...
Is the floor poured concrete?

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If you have a non-conductive pool shell, you shouldn’t need a grid. You should probably bond the steel supports but I don't see what that would accomplish

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DrSparks said:
Are there any conductive surfaces in contact with the water?

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I'm not sure because I don't know how it gets finished out.

There will be 3 ladders bolted to the deck, but not sure about that shell. I'm thinking it's best to bond it
 
James L said:
I'm not sure because I don't know how it gets finished out.

There will be 3 ladders bolted to the deck, but not sure about that shell. I'm thinking it's best to bond it
Click to expand...
Yeah when it comes to pools and spas I always err on the side of caution. I would just bond all the metal. #8 copper isn't too expensive.

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DrSparks said:
Yeah when it comes to pools and spas I always err on the side of caution. I would just bond all the metal. #8 copper isn't too expensive.

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Yeah, I'll bond everything.
I'm curious how many times to bond that shell. If I bond the deck in 4 places it seems reasonable to me to catch the shell 4 times.

Maybe zigzagged between both.
Lugs are cheap, too
 
James L said:
Yeah, I'll bond everything.
I'm curious how many times to bond that shell. If I bond the deck in 4 places it seems reasonable to me to catch the shell 4 times.

Maybe zigzagged between both.
Lugs are cheap, too
Click to expand...
From what I gather from the Code is you don't need to 4 points with a non-conductive shell, but like I said, better safe than sorry. And yes lugs are cheap. Get some good cobalt drill bits. Use stainless steel bolts.

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DrSparks said:
From what I gather from the Code is you don't need to 4 points with a non-conductive shell, but like I said, better safe than sorry. And yes lugs are cheap. Get some good cobalt drill bits. Use stainless steel bolts.

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Click to expand...
I'm glad you mentioned the stainless steel bolts. I wouldn't have even thought about that
 
James L said:
I'm glad you mentioned the stainless steel bolts. I wouldn't have even thought about that
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I've done some metal pools that the sides bolted together. I took the bolts out and added a lug and put the bolts back in for the bond, which I did in 4 spots. You might have to enlarge the mounting hole on the lug depending on the size of the bolt in the pool walls. If you have a Fastenal store you get about any size stainless screws/bolts there and they are usually cheaper than Big Box on them.
 
Little Bill said:
I've done some metal pools that the sides bolted together......the bond, which I did in 4 spots.....
Click to expand...
I did just that - 4 spots close to the corners with a continuous #8 long enough to reach pool equipment on one end and the full roll on the other end to catch deck and stay continuous.

There were already extra 1/2" or 5/8" holes without any bolts. I used SS fender washers under the lugs and behind the nut.

I put extra lugs so I can jumper to the handrails, electric cover motor, etc. and I'll connect the jumpers to the continuous #8 with split bolts as well.

I know it's quite overkill, but the owner contractor asked me to make sure it's triple safe.
 

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James L said:
I did just that - 4 spots close to the corners with a continuous #8 long enough to reach pool equipment on one end and the full roll on the other end to catch deck and stay continuous.

There were already extra 1/2" or 5/8" holes without any bolts. I used SS fender washers under the lugs and behind the nut.

I put extra lugs so I can jumper to the handrails, electric cover motor, etc. and I'll connect the jumpers to the continuous #8 with split bolts as well.

I know it's quite overkill, but the owner contractor asked me to make sure it's triple safe.
Click to expand...
Are those lugs DB rated?
 

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