Other than going out with our pump does anyone know of a way to keep gallons and I am talking 10 or more gallons of water from pooling on our winter cover? we do have a pillow in the middle, have the cable tight, and also jugs hanging hoping to keep it taunt. Well first hard rain last week, it is all still caving in. There has to be an easier way or am I possibly doing something wrong?
is there a way to keep GALLONS of water off cover
- Thread starter jshinklin
- Start date
Water will always accumulate on a pool cover. You need to remove it one way or another. The approach that requires the least effort is an automatic cover pump, but that is also the most expensive (though not all that expensive). Other options include manually activated pumps and syphons.
I use a couple of short sections of old garden hose. Once the siphon is started the water drains from the cover to the ground.
launboy
0
You could get a taller pillow(if they make them) or use an excersise ball with strings running in a * pattern pulled taught so the water would just run off.
HTH,
Adam
HTH,
Adam
Well I do have a semi tire tube that I could inflate and put under the pillow that would make more of a dome in the middle, is that what you are meaning?
I had to buy a pump for my kid's science fair project (efficiency of solar water heating as a function of flow rate), so I bought a simple Wayne self-priming transfer pump (not submersible) from the local Lowe's store. About an $80 item (watch for the refurbs on e-bay; good deals). It's like siphoning without getting a mouthful, and the flow rates are faster than gravity. Plus, I have a quicker, easier way to lower my water level for next year's closing. And it worked great for the science fair project (greatest efficiency at the high flow rates).
Kelly
Kelly
You can buy siphon pumps at places like Harbor Freight, or at your local auto parts store. They're usually less that $10. Weight the end of the hose that's going on the cover, drop it in the puddle, pump till you get water coming out of the pump into the drain hose, and then walk off and let 'er drain.
Here's the one I use: pump
Here's the one I use: pump
I have a small pump that I bought for my basement, it is small and round...and fits inside the top of my floor drain. I would say it is a bit bigger than a large can of tomato soup. It is completely submersible, and when the water level gets to be too much on my winter cover I just go out and throw it on the deepest side of my cover and let it run for about 20 min. It takes the water off fast. It was about $50 at Home Depot, but I just keep it connected to an old piece of garden hose...and drain it off into the yard. We had about 3 inches of rain earlier this week and after about 20 minutes I was down to just the regular balast level that I had prior to the rain. I am just going to keep it ready to go until the snows come. Just plug it in and put it on the cover...Good investment in that it also helped to drain the pool down to the proper winter level.
I siphon water from my AGP cover by hooking up a hose to my water spigot then put the other end on the cover in the puddle of water. I then turn on the water and allow some water to flow onto the cover then turn off the water unscrew from the spigot and put it on the ground. The water will back flow from the pool and continue until all the water in the puddle is gone or until something blocks the flow.
That is how I do it too. You can use several hoses if you want to like this.Countrygirl said:
I am under the impression that having water on top of the cover helps keep the wind from whipping it around. I just leave it there until spring. Although I am tempted to drain it now and clean the leaves off of it so it is not a mess come spring time.
Well here in the east we have been cursed with bad weather this season. One weekend we have had several inches of snow followed by rain and then several days of temps in the single digits. The result is a skating rink that remains on my pool cover with no way i can see to remove it. Even as it warms up a little now the temps most days dont go too much above freezing really to make a dent.
Next year i think i will "fill" the pool with pillows and try to increase water run off.
Spring cannot come fast enough, i want to revisit the lovely days of summer.
Next year i think i will "fill" the pool with pillows and try to increase water run off.
Spring cannot come fast enough, i want to revisit the lovely days of summer.
We had a very WET fall here in New England, and a VERY snowy winter. Being a brand new pool owner who just dropped a total of $12K on a pool, deck addition, and needed accesories I am extremely cautious about the adverse weather compramising my pool's lifespan. I can't tell you how many people I have talked to up here in NE that had an AG pool get crushed from snow/ice buildup.
That being said, every snowstorm, I was raking off my cover. What a friggin' huge PIA, but I guess it was worth it, as my neighbor who had a 5 year old 25' round AG, incoured major crush damage this past winter when the ice formed. Next winter I am buying a Toro electric snow shovel to make the snow removal job quicker and easier !
I also do all I can to keep water off my cover, as excessive water really stresses the cover. All my cover is , is a glorified oval tarp, nothing more. I bought a simple Flotec 110V pump from Home Depot that uses garden hose to pump off excessive water. I mounted the pump to an old kitty litter container, and it works awesome. Pumps my cover almost dry in about 1/2" hour max.
That being said, every snowstorm, I was raking off my cover. What a friggin' huge PIA, but I guess it was worth it, as my neighbor who had a 5 year old 25' round AG, incoured major crush damage this past winter when the ice formed. Next winter I am buying a Toro electric snow shovel to make the snow removal job quicker and easier !
I also do all I can to keep water off my cover, as excessive water really stresses the cover. All my cover is , is a glorified oval tarp, nothing more. I bought a simple Flotec 110V pump from Home Depot that uses garden hose to pump off excessive water. I mounted the pump to an old kitty litter container, and it works awesome. Pumps my cover almost dry in about 1/2" hour max.
spishex said:
Haha! Yeah, we saw that. There are some odd things that people have made. We found the site while looking for chicken tractor plans. I had a ton of pvc pipes. DH ended up making a bike rack for our camper with some of them. Then we saw the pool cover and decided that we had to give it a try.
The pool cover I got (Blue Wave) has instructions to leave the water there. It says it will not hurt the cover and it prevents wind damage. In fact, it advises to lower the pool level up to 18 inches to form a good sized puddle.
Yes, place 6 or more large inflated beach balls underneath the pool cover to force water run off the pool cover.