Need some suggestions or ideas ...

[TizMe]

When we opened our pool this spring after the winter season we had a tremendous amount of leaves and rain water on the top of the cover. This year I have been thinking about getting something to float in the center of the pool to "raise" the cover up and stop it from "sagging" into the middle of the pool and holding all that water and other stuff. We had a siphon thing hooked up but it didnt work to well... I had thought about getting a couple of large inner tubes and setting them in the middle and them putting the cover over them but not sure if this will work or not. Can anyone give me some ideas or tell me what they do to close an AG vinyl pool for the chilly months. Typically we drain the water lever below the return line and drain the filter and of course do the winter chem thing too ...

 

[JasonLion]

It is common to use an air pillow to hold up the center of an AG pool cover. An inner tube would probably work in the same way, though I am less sure it will hold up well in very cold temperatures.

 

[TizMe]

Where can we purchase these air pillows from and how many will we need ? Is this something we can use again or are they for single season use?

 

[JasonLion]

Any pool store should have them. I have seen them for around $10. They typicaly last a couple of seasons. You usually only need one, though larger pools might need two or three.

 

[waterbug]

We used an air pillow last year, but it was a bit of a pain, everytime it rained we had several puddles to drain off. We wondered this year about forgoing the pillow and just having one middle puddle when it rains, that we can then siphon off quickly as we have a little pump and hose set up for this.
what do you think?

 

[JasonLion]

Most people say that an air pillow makes it easier to get the water off of the cover. It also helps reduce the stress the cover places on the walls a keeps it more uniform. I have have an in-ground pool so I'm just repeating what others are saying.

 

[TizMe]

Waterbug, I was hopeing it would raise the cover enough that water could run directly off it if it rains during the winter. Last year ours sagged into the center and in the spring we a lot of standing nasty rancid water and leaves to get rid of. We bought a pool siphon but could never get it to keep water off the pool cover because so many leaves piled on the top and they seemed to plug the siphoning ability of it.

 

[waterbug]

We found the air pillow in the middle made it so we had to move the pump 3 or 4 times every time it rained. Leaves aren't too bad here. I was thinking one puddle in the middle would be easier to care for, I hear that it might be more pressure on the walls - we'd need to be quick about removing the water.

 

[Butterfly]

Hi Tiz,
Are you sure you want to cover your pool? We don't use a cover and really enjoy looking at it during those winter days! Also, the pool reflects the sunlight back INTO our house and it dances on the ceilings! It helps brighten the spirits for me!

We are in SC and last year DH did not drain the pump, but he did put a heavy blanket and a tarp over the pool equipment and held them in place w/bricks and large rocks. Around noon when it got warm, I'd use the leaf net on a 10 FT. alum. pole. Took less than 10 minutes every other day or so to keep the leaves cleaned out.

We thought very seriously about getting a cover last year, but are glad we did not. There have been lots of posts on TFP about folks that do not use them anymore because of the mess they had when they opened.

Just throwing another idea out there for you. Take care.

Joyce

 

[TizMe]

Hi Joyce, We have alot of green leaf trees and pine trees aroun d our pool and if we dont cover it we would really have a mess with it in the spring. I was going to take the trees down last winter but other circumstances prevented it. They will come down this winter though after the leaves are off! I just wonder what the lesser of two evil's is going to be !?We already have a cover I'm just wondering how to prevent another mess in the spring?

 

[duraleigh]

Tiz,

How about a leaf net?.......they pretty easy to work with and not too pricey. I live in roughly the same climate as you and choose not to cover my pool but I do use a leaf net.

 

[TizMe]

Hey Duraleigh!

With a leaf net, do I still not have to put a pool cover on ? I was under the understanding that the leaf nets make removal easier in the spring but that you still needed to cover your pool?

Do you drain and close your pool at all Duraleigh?

 

[duraleigh]

Depending on the size of your pool, you can likely get by without an additional cover. Floating an innertube in the middle of your pool (or possibly more than one) should give the leaf net enough support. The trick is to dump the leaf net fairly often so that the leaves don't get watterlogged or become to numerous to prevent easy removal.

I use no other cover. Debris still gets thru the mesh but it's pretty easy to get up with the auto-vac. Other than the leaf net, I make no attempt to winterize my pool. On below freezing nights, I simply let the pump run to avoid any ice forming in the plumbing.