Loop-loc cover removal

[bdenehy]

I am attempting to open our pool on my own for the first time this year. I have a friend to to help out and luckily he has a much better handle on basic plumbing than I do. We have a "free form" pool about 45' long. Any tips I could get on removing/cleaning/storing the cover would be much apprecitated. since it is a loop-loc safety cover, and porous, should I hose/powerwash the cover while it is still mountend to the deck? Is there a folding technique I should use for storage and ease of use when it is time to close up?

Thanks in advance.

 

[duraleigh]

Hey,

I'm no help for the cover questions but wanted to "bump" your post a little. I bet some of the opening gurus from the colder climates will be on board soon to offer some good advice. :-D

 

[JohnT]

Is it a solid or mesh cover?

I drag my mesh cover onto the pool deck folded lengthwise and rinse it with the hose if needed. For the next 3 days or so I leave it out to dry as much as possible, folding it loosely and putting it in the garage if it looks like rain. Once it's dry, I just fold it and cram it in the storage bag.

I do essentially the same thing with my solar cover in the fall.

 

[spishex]

An easy way to remove the cover is to start at one end, remove all the straps on that side, then start working down the sides folding as you go. Kind of rolling it up like a can of sardines. If you're going to clean it and dry it out on the deck then just flop it to one side, but folding it like this makes it very manageable so you can move it to another part of the yard.

 

[waste]

If it's pretty clean, nothing wrong with hosing it off before removal, otherwise, move it to where you can properly clean it.

The fold we use on the pools we open we call a 'fan fold' (a/k/a sailor's fold). Starting at one end, once all the springs are taken off the anchors and the anchors are screwed down, 2 people pull the cover onto the deck so that the first set of panels is on the deck. Then skip one spring and grab the next and pull that to be even with the edge of the cover, repeat until you have the cover one panel wide. Starting from the ends of this, fold it in 1/2 squares, meeting at the middle and fold one side over the other so that you end up with the entire cover 1/2 panel wide and 1 panel long. Slide this into the bag and store someplace for it to dry and, once dry, store it somewhere that ants and rodents won't get in and chew it up.

We also put the gizzmos and plugs in the bag, that way everything is together when it's time to close the pool

 

[chrisexv6]

My pool is a "Grecian" shape, so you cant just grab the corners and fold backward. But I leave one side of the cover anchored in, release the other side and drag the cover over the pool folding back onto the anchored side. Prevents most of the "oh shoot it fell into the pool".

Once folded that way I release the other anchors and take the cover out of the pool area. I have enough room in my yard to open it up flat, then I hose it off and scrub any stubborn stuff (i.e. bird poop). Let it dry (I usually wash the cover only on a sunny day), then start folding in halves until the cover is one "column" from one end of the long dimension to the other. Then I start folding in 1/4's inward. Eventually the two 1/4 folds meet and I fold one over the other. Then put in storage bag and we're done.

Also, as you are folding, spread a little bit of Borax in it. Keeps insects away.

 

[tnthudson]

It definitely helps to have another person around when you take the looploc cover off (or put it on, for that matter)!
I fan-fold ours, which I just took to mean folding one end (I start with the end that is away from the stairs) back maybe 10 feet onto the cover, then folding that section under the first fold, etc. (like a hand-held 'fan')...then at the end I kind of roll the whole thing up from one side, so that it can fit into the looploc bag (which thankfully is actually big enough to hold the folded cover).
It's all mesh, so I let it sit outside for a few days to drip-dry and then I store that sucker 'till fall. So far, so good! 8)
OH and when you put it on (or take it off), you may need to do a criss-cross pattern - or at least alternate from side to side - in order to be able to stretch the loops over all the anchors in your concrete. Of course you can adjust the straps, but you want to keep them pretty taught.
AND I started putting anti-seize stuff on the brass anchors before screwing them down for the summer, it seems to help when you need to unscrew them in the fall.