Automatic pool cover won’t open

[Tomas2121]

I have an automatic pool cover that won’t open. When I turn it on, the shaft in the photo turns, but doesn’t engage the rope reels.
The manual just says to call the company if the cover doesn’t work, but it’s a holiday weekend so they won’t be around for 4 days and it’s super hot here.
Wondering if it’s something simple like a shear pin? There is a black rod, the size of your pinky finger, that looks like it goes through the shaft. Maybe that breaks or something?
I’m not the most mechanically gifted person…

 

[ajw22]

Welcome to TFP.

What manufacturer is the automatic pool cover mechanism?

 

[CoverGuy99]

It's an APC (Automatic Pool Covers, Inc) system. The Double Dog (DD)gear needs to spin backwards to catch the Single Dog (SD) gear to uncover the pool. Try putting a large flat head screw diver in the space on the otherside of the double dog gear (where it meets up with the other single dog gear closest to the rope reel. You may be able to wedge it just enough so that it catches the single dog gear that is closest to the cover fabric/rollup tube. But be careful to get screw driver out of the way quickly (so 1 person on the switch while you try to pry the dd gear over.