How Tall Is a Pool Fence?

Fence Height

• Pool fences must be 4 feet or higher to provide a secure area that kids cannot access, but some communities have a 6-foot requirement. A 6-foot wooden fence will keep kids out, but it also will provide privacy. The fence cannot be anymore than 4 inches off the ground, or a small child can crawl under the fence to the pool area.

Fence Types

• Fences must not have any type of foothold or handholds that children can grasp onto and climb over the fence. Any type of fence can be used -- unless specified differently for your community -- that meets other requirements. For fences with slats, the distance between each slat cannot be more than 1 3/4 inches. With chain-link fences, the diamond sizes cannot exceed 1 1/4 inches in diameter. Basically, any fence is acceptable as long as it has no space for kids to get through.

Latches

• All fences must have self-latching, self-closing latches. The gate must open outwards from the pool, spring shut and automatically latch. Fences that have gates that stay open and that need to have someone push it closed are not safe or legal according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Latches must be at least 54 inches from the ground and 3 inches from the top of the fence so kids cannot reach over the fence and unlatch the latch.

Special Conditions

• Above ground pools will not need a fence as long as all ladders and stairs are removed from around the pool when not in use. If a deck is surrounding the pool, access to the stairs must be blocked so no one can climb onto the deck and enter the pool. If the pool has a barrier around the top of the pool, the bottom of the barrier cannot be more than 4 inches off the top of the pool.