R392-302-17. Inlets

  (1) Inlets for fresh or treated water must be located to produce uniform circulation of water and to facilitate the maintenance of a uniform disinfectant residual throughout the entire pool.

  (2) If wall inlets from the circulation system are used, they must be flush with the pool wall and submerged at least 5 feet, 1.52 meters, below the normal water level or at the bottom of the vertical wall surface tangent to the arc forming the transition between the vertical wall and the floor of the pool. Except as provided in Subsections R392-302-31(2)(l) and (3)(e), wall inlets must be placed every 10 feet, 3.05 meters, around the pool perimeter.

  (a) The Department or the local health officer may require floor inlets to be installed in addition to wall inlets if a pool has a width greater than 50 feet, 4.57 meters, to assure thorough chemical distribution. If floor inlets are installed in addition to wall inlets, there must be a minimum of one row of floor inlets centered on the pool width. Individual inlets and rows of inlets shall be spaced a maximum of 15 feet, 4.57 meters, from each other. Floor inlets must be at least 15 feet, 4.57 meters, from a pool wall with wall inlets.

  (b) Each wall inlet must be designed as a non-adjustable orifice with sufficient head loss to insure balancing of flow through all inlets. The return loop piping must be sized to provide less than 2.5 feet, 76.20 centimeters, of head loss to the most distant orifice to insure approximately equal flow through all orifices.

  (3) If floor inlets from the circulation system are used, they must be flush with the floor. Floor inlets shall be placed at maximum 15 foot, 4.46 meter, intervals. The distance from floor inlets to a pool wall shall not exceed 7.5 feet, 2.29 meters if there are no wall inlets on that wall. Each floor inlet must be designed such that the flow can be adjusted to provide sufficient head loss to insure balancing of flow through all inlets. All floor inlets must be designed such that the flow cannot be adjusted without the use of a special tool to protect against swimmers being able to adjust the flow. The return supply piping must be sized to provide less than 2.5 feet, 76.20 centimeters, of head loss to the most distant orifice to insure approximately equal flow through all orifices.

  (4) The Department may grant an exemption to the inlet placement requirements on a case by case basis for inlet designs that can be demonstrated to produce uniform mixing of pool water.