Ok, another 1st year newbie with closing questions. Bought a winter cover with the cable and ratchet, and double grommets every 3'. I put a 4' x 4' pillow in the middle, moved the cable up unto the resin part of the vertical supports, cinched it down...and was not at all impressed. The wind gets under the cover, and I'm concerned that the cable will eventually scratch/mar the resin. Today I took off the cable, and hung 29 1 gallon jugs partially filled with water from the grommets with bungees. I like it a lot better this way, but my question is, what about water on the top of the cover? As it gets water on it, will it raise the jugs and fill in the edges, or will it just put pressure on the sides of the pool? If it puts pressure on the sides, can I just raise the jugs up and let the water fill in up to the edges, and then hang the jugs back? Or do I need to pump it occasionally? Any advice would be appreciated. I've included a couple of photos of how it looks now.

I would not have the cover so tight unless your water level is up that high, which I don't think it is. The cover should lay on top of the surface of the water so as to not put any strain on the cover and the outside edges of the pool. If you are in a location that freezes in the Winter, this is even more important because any water collected on the top of the cover would freeze and could damage the cover and the pool. You must keep an eye that not much water collects on top of the cover due to rain and snow. It is good to have <1 inch of water on top to help keep the cover from lifting when the wind blows. I also use the cable and cover clips that you put on the outside ledges of the pool and clip the cover over them. This helps alot in keeping the cover stable. Don't skimp on the amount of clips used between each vertical support. I use 5 clips between 5 foot verticals. The clips are about 5-6" long. I have some clips that are 48" long and they are perfect for me because they fill the space perfectly. I don't have enough for my whole pool, so I use both types, long and short. I am looking for more of the long ones but I cannot find them. If you happen to look for them and find them, could you please post that information?

I hope this information helps you.

There is also another way to seal the circumference of the pool cover by using plastic food wrap (aka Saran Wrap). The pool places sell their higher priced stuff too. I would go to Costco, BJ's, or Sams Club and pick up a restaurant size 18" wide roll and have someone hold one end on the outside of the ledge and you walk the roll around the pool 3 times or more. The pool store version might be thicker, but more wraps of the warehouse stuff would be stronger. Be careful of how tight you tie off the pillow that is not too tight. That could possibly cause some strain on the side walls if you tie it to them taughtlly and either alot of water/ice collects on the cover and it pulls the cover down which raises the pool water level at the same time. I had used ground anchors that I screwed into the dirt and tied off the pillow to that. Some years I didn't use any pillow and just put the cover on.

Thanks for your reply and input, poolpsycho. The water on the cover (picture) is actually resting on the pool water, but as you can see, the other side of the cover is not resting on the pool water.

So are you saying that you would recommend not using the 1 gal jugs? The saran wrap concept is interesting...have you used it before? And if not, anyone use that method, and have pros/cons on it?

You also mentioned how tight to tie off the pillow.....(puzzled look)....tie off the pillow?? Didn't have a clue. Something I should do, I guess?

Again, thanks for the info!

I like the jugs. As the cover fills with water they'll allow the cover to lower onto the water surface and as you pump it off they'll raise the cover which will divert all the water to one place which makes it easier to get the water pumped off.

Do you fill the jugs just full enough to allow them to expand when frozen?

I would leave enough room in the jugs for the ice expansion. 1/2 to 3/4 full is good. Also, the more water in the jug, the more weight pulling on the cover. I haven't used the saran wrap yet. If you are concerned about the edges of the ledges and the other protruding parts of the top edges damaging the cover or vice versa, I would think you could use the saran wrap on the outside circumference of the ledges, or the sides where the cable rides, would protect that area too. Look online at a pool supply site about how the saran wrap is wrapped around the cover and you can put it on the pool under the cover too. I sometimes use the jugs too, in conjunction with the cable and the cover clips. I wait till the weather gets windy here in the Jersey Winters and adjust accordingly. Most of the wind in my area in the Winter comes from the East.

I made an error in the distances of my pool verticals and the long pool cover clips yesterday. We put the cover on earlier this afternoon and I measured the same areas. My verticals are 52" apart and the long cover clips are 42" long. They work great. Being I didn't have the money to buy enough for my pool, I just put the 5 that I have on the side that has the prevailing Winter winds. This works good for me
I didn't put the pillow in this year. The water was too cold to go in to bring the cover up and over the top of the pillow. I tie mason cord or light rope to the eyelits and string them to the other side of the pool to pull the pillow to the other side, then do the same with the cover. It is not easy to pull the cover over the pillow. I try to center the pillow in the middle of the pool and just tie it off on opposite sides of the pool with a tie down that is screwed into the grass/dirt to keep it from moving around. I like the pillow in the center of the pool thinking that it is keeping the forces equalized around the cover and not putting undue stress on one area. I have had about 6-8 inches of ice on the cover in some Winters and that puts alot of stress on the cover. It also pushed out about the same amount of water from the pool itself. I must have been working during some Winter snow storms and wasn't able to come home some nights. We had a pretty snowy Winter here last year.

I am assuming that you are in or near Ohio. You didn't say where you are or what kind of Winter conditions you have.