"There's too much at stake." The vacuum effect in pool drains is powerful enough to hold swimmers, especially children, to the bottom of a pool. ... Swimmers can die from drowning or evisceration. From 1999 to 2008, according to CPSC data, there were 83 reports of suction entrapment, including 11 deaths and 69 injuries.

Has a pool drain ever killed anyone?

Several children have lost their lives in drain entrapment incidents, while others have suffered life-threatening injuries. Drain entrapment has also injured and killed adults, catching their hair, jewelry or clothes and trapping the victim underwater. A pool drain can impose hundreds of pounds of suction on a swimmer.

How dangerous are pool drains?

Because pool drains use suction to filter things out of the water, they put people at risk for entrapment. If a small, light person gets too close to a pool drain, they can become trapped underwater, which can lead to a host of injuries including accidental drowning.

Can a swimming pool drain disembowel you?

Pool suction drain injury, also known as suction entrapment, occurs when the drain of a wading pool or swimming pool suck in a swimmer's jewelry, torso, limbs, hair or buttocks. Evisceration, also known as disembowelment, could happen in case of buttock entrapment.

How did Salma lose her intestines?

Salma Bashir, then five, was on holiday with her family in Alexandria, Egypt, when she accidentally sat on a pool's suction valve. The force was so strong that it ripped her small intestines from her body before anyone had a chance to pull her away.

Swimming Pools Drain Accidents

20 related questions found

Where does the water go when you drain a pool?

How do I drain my swimming pool? The first choice for draining swimming pool water should be to drain pool water into the sanitary sewer. In-ground pools typically have a sanitary sewer drainage inlet near the pool equipment.

What is the fear of pool drains called?

Anyone else deathly afraid of pool drains?: submechanophobia.

What is the purpose of a pool main drain?

A swimming pool main drain uses suction to pull pool water through it. Heavy particulate matter that sinks to a pool's bottom is often sucked away through a main drain.

Why are empty swimming pools scary?

'Simple' phobias are the fear of something specific - such as an empty swimming pool. ... These phobias produce symptom of a racing heartbeat, panic and nausea. 'Social' phobias are about the fear of social situations, which cause the sufferer to do anything to avoid them.

How strong is the suction of a pool?

If you swim too close to them, your hair, jewelry, fingers, or any other body part can get sucked in. The average suction pressure of pool drains can be as high as 700 pounds, making it impossible to remove you once this happens. This is called suction entrapment, and it can be fatal.

Should pool main drain be open or closed?

For proper water circulation, it is best to position the flap so that it is about 2/3 closed. This will allow for more flow through the main drain than through the skimmer, which will promote a "bottom-to-top" circulation throughout the pool.

How do I know if my pool main drain is working?

you can tell if your main drain is working by perhaps putting a leaf on it. If it sticks, its working. In any case though, the main drain is not why your pool is having a problem. It has nothing to do with your pool turning green.

Should I Use main drain or skimmer?

Skimmer Vs. Drain. If the pool receives a lot of leaves and other debris, more suction may be required at the skimmer than the main drain to adequately strain debris floating on the surface. Conversely, if dirt on the bottom of the pool is the principal contaminant, more suction is required at the main drain.

Are pool main drains necessary?

Main drains are an essential component for water circulation within an inground swimming pool. Drains provide circulation in the deep end of the swimming pool, ensuring water clarity, proper distribution of water chemistry as well as maintaining a constant water temperature throughout the swimming pool.

How many drains should a pool have?

Most pools have two main drains, but a small pool may have only one. The drains are positioned at the pool's deepest point.

What causes Submechanophobia?

Submechanophobia could be caused by a fear of the unknown, and the common terror of not knowing what lies beneath the waterline. Objects could be visually distorted by water and its movement, which could make them seem alive, and thus, possibly harmful.

Is it OK to drain your pool into the street?

In simple terms, you cannot drain pool water into the streets, curbs, catch basins, gutters, ditches, channels, and ultimately, into storm drains (which flow directly into local streams)! ... Also, conduct research on which plants in your yard can thrive with pool water being released.

How long does it take to drain a pool?

Draining a pool can take up to 14 hours, depending on the size, so be sure to drain it on a day when you have sufficient free time. You need to be home to check on the pool, the hoses, and the pump frequently. Do not let the pump run dry or it can become damaged.

Does an inground pool need a bottom drain?

Main drains are not required in an inground swimming pool, however, they are strongly recommended and can be extremely useful in some circumstances. ... This is useful when replacing your pool liner. Main drains are also helpful in the filtering of water and dirt from the bottom of the pool.

Can I run pool pump without skimmer?

Depending on the location and type of your pool, you may decide that running it without a skimmer is too much work. If so, you can either turn the skimmer back on, or have one installed if you did not have one previously. In general, however, there is not problem with running a pool without a skimmer.

Why are there 2 holes in the bottom of a pool skimmer?

The second hole in the skimmer is connected to a pipe called an equalizer. ... It prevents the pump from taking in air if the pool's water level dips below the skimmer opening. If the pool water is low the pump pulls water from the equalizer line so the pump doesn't run dry.

Should pool skimmers be on all the time?

Although it's generally recommended that all the pool water undergo filtration every 24 hours, the pump does not need to run all the time. A proactive, productive and energy-saving maintenance activity is to remove the debris floating on the pool surface with a hand-held skimmer.

Where is my pool main drain?

The main drains are usually located on the lowest point in the pool, so the entire pool surface slants toward them. Most of the dirt and debris that sinks exits the pool through these drains.