WA pool rules for renovations
Pools with water over 30 cm deep need a compliant safety barrier, and it must stay safe during works.
Whether you need a permit depends on the work, so check with your council before structural or barrier changes.
Your pool fence stays safe during the works
Pools with water over 30 cm deep need a compliant safety barrier, and councils inspect pool barriers at least every 4 years.
The barrier must stay safe while we work. We keep gates shut and the fence compliant from start to finish.
Council barrier inspections
Councils inspect pool barriers at least every 4 years.
A renovation is a good time to make sure gates close and latch properly.
Permits depend on the work
Whether a renovation needs a building permit depends on what is being done.
Check with your council before structural changes or barrier changes. We tell you early if your job heads that way.
Electrical bonding is a separate trade
Electrical bonding near pools is done by a licensed electrician.
If your job touches anything electrical, we flag it in writing before work starts.
Pool water can't go down the sewer in Perth
Water Corporation does not allow domestic pool drainage or backwash into the sewer.
Ask your council how disposal works where you live. Never run it to road drains, a neighbour's place or parkland.
The water is dechlorinated first. We plan the drain-out with you before day one.
Quick checklist before work starts
- Ask your council if the work needs a permit
- Agree how the barrier stays safe during works
- Plan where the pool water goes
- Know if any electrical work is involved
- Agree access through gates and side paths
Questions people ask about this
Do I need council approval?
It depends on the work. A new surface on its own is different to changing the structure or the pool fence.
Check with your council before structural changes or barrier changes.
We'll tell you if anything in your job is likely to need that conversation.
Does an empty pool still need a fence?
The barrier must stay safe during works.
We keep the fence compliant and gates shut from start to finish.
Can the fence come down while you work?
Not without a plan to keep the area safe.
Talk to your council before any barrier changes.
How often are pool fences checked?
Councils inspect pool barriers at least every 4 years.
Who does electrical work near the pool?
Electrical bonding near pools is done by a licensed electrician.