Merced County, CA Swimming Pools & Spas: Above-Ground Pools (2026)

The Merced County Guide to Building Permits & Inspections lists a specific exemption for above-ground pools. Under the section on Pools, Spas and Water Tanks, prefabricated swimming pools and spas accessory to single-family residences, duplexes, or lodging houses are exempt from a building permit when entirely above grade and not exceeding 5,000 gallons capacity. The Guide adds two important qualifiers: plumbing and electrical permits may be required, and the owner must observe all State-mandated pool barrier requirements. The State definitions reproduced in the County Guide make clear that a swimming pool includes both in-ground and aboveground structures intended for swimming or recreational bathing that contain water over 18 inches deep, so an above-ground pool deep enough to swim or bathe in is still a regulated pool. That means the California Pool Safety Act still governs the barriers and drowning-prevention features for above-ground pools at private single-family homes when a permit is issued for the project: at least two of the seven prescribed safety features, and, where an enclosure is used, the 60-inch enclosure and self-latching gate standards of HSC 115923. For above-ground pools that exceed 5,000 gallons, that are not entirely above grade, or that are not prefabricated, a building permit is required just as for any in-ground pool.