Pool Fence Installation in Elizabeth City, NC
A pool fence is not a landscaping decision. In North Carolina it is a requirement, and it is the barrier between a child and an unsupervised pool. It is the one fence where getting the detail right is not a matter of taste.
What the barrier has to do
In broad terms, a residential pool barrier is expected to:
- Stand at least 48 inches high, measured from the outside
- Leave no gap at the bottom or between pickets that a small child could pass through
- Offer nothing climbable on the outside face — no horizontal rail at a height a child can use as a step
- Have gates that swing away from the pool, close by themselves and latch by themselves, with the latch placed out of a young child's reach
We build to the requirement rather than around it. That means the gate hardware is specified as part of the job rather than added at the end, and the fence line is set out with the barrier rules in mind — including what sits next to it, since a barrier with a shed, a retaining wall or a stack of furniture against the outside of it is not a barrier.
Materials
Ornamental aluminum is the usual answer. It meets the spacing and height requirements, the powder-coated finish holds up to pool chemicals and salt air, and it keeps the pool area open and visible, which matters for supervision as well as for the look. Vinyl is the alternative where you want the pool screened from a neighbor as well as enclosed.
Rental properties
If you rent out a property with a pool on the Outer Banks, the barrier is both a code requirement and a liability question, and it gets tested weekly by guests who did not install it and will not maintain it. The hinges and the latch are what wear — a gate that no longer swings shut on its own has stopped being a barrier, whatever the fence around it looks like. We can check a barrier between seasons and put right whatever has drifted out of compliance.
Replacing a barrier that no longer complies
Older pool fencing frequently fails on the gate rather than the fence. Self-closing hinges wear out, latches get propped open, and a gate that no longer swings shut on its own has stopped being a barrier. If you have inherited a pool with a house, or you are selling and the inspection has flagged it, we can assess what is there and put right what needs it. We handle the permit and schedule the inspection. On a pool barrier that is not a convenience — it is the difference between a fence that passes first time and a fence that has to be altered after it is built.
Albemarle Fence & Rail Company has been installing fence and rail out of Elizabeth City since 1976. We serve Pasquotank, Camden, Currituck, Perquimans, Chowan, Gates, Bertie and Dare counties Hatteras and the Outer Banks from Corolla and Duck down through Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills, Nags Head and Manteo to Frisco. Family-owned, locally run, licensed and insured.
Financing is available on fencing and railing projects. See financing options. https://app.gethearth.com/partners/albemarle-fence-rail co/jason/apply
Get a free estimate. Call 252-334-9671 or request an estimate online, and one of our two estimators will come out, walk the property with you and give you a written price. No charge and no obligation. Licensed, insured, and backed.
