Solar covers

[Rclcmama]

Hi,

We're new to pool ownership (above ground 27' round pool) and are starting to believe the pool installers comment that 'the 2 best days of having a pool are the day you get it and the day you get rid of it!' We bought what we thought was all the stuff needed to make the pool easy to use but have come to feel that the words easy and pool don't really go together...

Seriously though, we are perplexed by the use of the solar cover. It took both my husband and I to man-handle it on to the pool the first time. Then, it filled up with rain water and it took a Herculean effort to get it off without letting the dirty (from leaves that had fallen on top of it) water go back in to the pool. I felt like we were baling out a leaky basement or something.

The pool store advice is to cut it in half to make it easier to manage. Seems a bit like defeating the purpose of a solar cover...

Is this just how it is if you use a solar cover? Do those of you who have a heat pump even use a solar cover? Does anyone use the liquid solar cover stuff and does it work? Are there any other alternatives that are easier to use.

 

[JohnT]

Welcome to TFP!

Some people do cut them in pieces for easier handling. It works, and it doesn't really affect the function of the cover. Solar covers work mainly by preventing evaporation, which cools the remaining water.

You can also use a reel. AG pools are a little tricker than inground pools when it comes to a reel, but there are solutions. Most people either build a deck at rail height, or set posts that hold the reel where you can pivot the reel on and off the pool to get the cover out of the way.

 

[joseywales]

Hmm...not sure why your pool is so much effort. touch wood, I've owned an 18' for 3 years and so far no issues at all. Now, your cover is larger, and I could see that being a bear to deal with. Cutting could solve that, however you will most likely get leaves/debris in the pool, when you pull it off - debris will fall in between when yo remove the cover. I have a similar plight and just skim the debris out right away. Rain does make them a bit of a hassle to remove, without getting debris in.

I can't imagine using the cover with a heat pump - although, wouldn't those leaves be in your pool anyway?

A reel can help and I have no intentions of getting one. I am told that with your length, it could still be a two-man op, as one person has to guide the cover so that it doesn't torque and get crooked in the reel. I don't know, just seems like a lot of dollars, but others can chime in on that.