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BETTER
SAFE THAN SORRY
By
Eric Glazer, Esq.
Published September 15, 2014
If you listened to the show last week, you know that my
wife and I dodged a huge bullet.
Our children were swimming in our pool and as they were
swimming toward the deep end, they began yelling at each other
that they both felt like they were getting zapped with
electricity. They
immediately got out of the pool and my wife called me at the
office in a panic.
I immediately called
one of our show’s sponsors, Elcon Electic to get out to my
house and see what in the world was going on.
They raced over. As
soon as the electrician got there, he noticed that all of the
electricity in the backyard was not working and a ground wire
that should have been attached to my pool pump was simply
sitting on the side, disconnected.
I literally froze. The
problem was real, my kids weren’t imaging anything, and
somehow, some way they were shocked with electricity while
swimming in my pool and lived to tell about it.
Believe me, my wife and I are still shook up.
Like probably all of
you, I have a “pool guy” that cleans the pool.
Over the years, if a problem comes up, like a blown pump,
he tells me about it, let’s me know he can put one in, and I
say “of course, please fix it.”
Well…..I was wrong.
Very wrong.
I’m no electrician,
so in layman’s terms I will tell you that Elcon also realized
my wiring to the pump motor was installed incorrectly.
The outdoor outlets were not GFI outlets and they should
have been. Most
importantly, they now installed a sensor that grounds the water
supply and immediately shuts off the power should there be any
electrical charge in the water.
I was told in a nice way that when it comes to cleaning
the pool and putting in the chemicals, the pool guy or pool
company is qualified to do that.
However, when it comes to doing anything that mixes water
and electricity, that needs to be done by a licensed
electrician. Period.
There is no room for error.
So, needless to say, when the motor on your pool pump
goes out next time, please call an electrician.
While at your property, ask them to make sure that the
pool is safe and properly grounded to avoid a potential
catastrophe.
I know that we often
times feel bothered when our local municipality asks us to pull
a permit and get an inspection for repairs in our home.
I know we sometimes think that many jobs are small, the
city is over reacting and you don’t need to be a graduate of
M.I.T. to perform the repair.
There’s a reason however that licenses are required for
certain skilled professions and why the county or municipality
employs experts to make sure the repairs being done at your home
are being done right. The
reason is simple. It
saves lives. Take it
from my wife and I.
Michael Berkman is the
former Chief Building Official and Code Enforcement Officer for
for Boca Raton, Sunny Isles Beach and North Bay Village.
I told him what happened and here are his thoughts:
I can't begin to tell you the importance of
pool maintenance; especially where the electrical system is
concerned. Pool lighting, in an outside pool is critical but
there are also unseen dangers such as ungrounded pumps,
reinforcing wire and bar, ungrounded pool ladders and power
outlets around the pool deck. Electrical
companies have the proper equipment and know how to make
sure that all is electrically well with your pool. This is not a
Do It Yourself activity.
So, I would suggest that pool owners get their systems checked
out every few years. Stuff happens in the ground such as
moisture intrusion, corrosion, and just plain old ground
movement as well as systemic wear. Regular pool maintenance
companies do not usually do electrical system checks as long as
the pump and filter work, so it is up to the owner to get it
checked out. I'm glad you found this out before your kids or
someone was seriously injured. Death by electrocution is
possible and has happened, which is why the codes now requires
electrical grounding of metallic pool assemblies and components
and the use of rated electrical components. You would do a
mitzvah by publishing an article.
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About
HOA & Condo Blog
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Eric Glazer graduated from the University of
Miami School of Law in 1992 after receiving a B.A. from
NYU. He is currently entering his 20th year as a
Florida
lawyer practicing |
community association law and is the owner of
Glazer and Associates, P.A. an eight attorney law firm in
Orlando
and Hollywood. For the past two years Eric has been the host of Condo Craze and
HOAs, a weekly one hour radio show on 850 WFTL. See: www.condocrazeandhoas.com.
He is the first attorney in the State of Florida
that designed a course that certifies condominium residents as
eligible to serve on a condominium Board of Directors and has
now certified more than 7,500 Floridians. He is certified as a
Circuit Court Mediator by The Florida Supreme Court and has
mediated dozens of disputes between associations and unit
owners. Finally, he recently argued the Cohn v. Grand
Condominium case before The Florida Supreme Court, which is
perhaps the single most important association law case decided
by the court in a decade.
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