Plans for next year

[postgame]

Ok so the pool has reached a temp the kids will no longer go into (67ish). So I will be draining it this week and putting it away for the winter. Anyhow I am already thinking ahead to next season and upgrades that I can do to make the already great experience with our pool even better.

Right now the pool base is sand but I have heard of some putting 2" styrofoam insulation under the pool to help in keeping heat. I have read a mixed bag of reviews on this. Any other thoughts/ tips on this would be great. Along the isulation line of thought has anyone tried some form of insulation for the sides of an intex style pool? There is alot of movement while the kids are playing in my pool so overcoming that may be challenging. Or is the idea of side insulation silly as most of the heat is lost out of the top of the pool. I will also be putting my support legs on pavers to provide even more support for them. My worry there would be the liner contacting the paver and rubbing a hole in it. Is that a non-issue or should I be placing something between the two.

As you can see I am mainly concerned with heating the pool as to extend our season. Also note that I have an extra summer escapes pump and I will be trying to rig it to a solar panel for heating.

 

[msgtdan]

We put an intex sand filter on ours after the OEM pump died, a lot more water flow. Putting a solar cover on the pool definitely help keep it warmer when things started cooling off. We liked the pool so much we've acquired a "free" 27' metal sided pool we're going to put up.

 

[BBBliever]

Postgame, I too am looking for ways to keep the heat in my pool. This was my first year with an AGB. I bought a cheap $150 12 foot summer escapes and just put in right on my yard with no prep. Lot was only off about 2 inches so it worked out fine.

For next year I have upgraded to an ultraframe. I will level the lot and was going to use 1 inch foam under that. What is the mixed bag of reviews you have heard about the foam? To me it seams more stable and easier to work with than sand.

I don't think you can insulate the walls on an intex. IMHO most of the heat is lost from the top and bottom. If you have camped out without any insulation under your sleeping bag you know how quickly the cool ground will drain the heat from your body. I think this is what contributes greatly to the 8 to 10 degrees of heat loss nightly in my pool. I do use a solar cover and that makes a 5 degree or so.

 

[duraleigh]

Very little benefit to insulating the bottom but perhaps the extra smoothness/stability of foam makes it worth it. Solar cover and solar heat are the two best "bang for the buck" ideas on heating a swimming pool.

 

[BBBliever]

Very little benefit to insulating the bottom but perhaps the extra smoothness/stability of foam makes it worth it. Solar cover and solar heat are the two best "bang for the buck" ideas on heating a swimming pool.

Duraleigh, For now I am happy with the intex style pools and they will need to grow with my kids. When I am ready for a more premanent pool I was thinking of a semi inground Radiant Metric as they are fully lined with 2 inch EPS Foam. Does this make a differnce or is it marketing hype???

 

[postgame]

Yeah the solar cover helps huge. Where I live the temps swing bigtime between day and night. I might try giving foam a shot next year as I can then put my support posts on pavers and not worry about the liner touching them.

 

[cramar]

I don't think comparing a human sleeping on the ground and pool bottom heat loss is a relevant comparison, right now I can tell you that the ground where I live is warmer at night than the air is, and will probably be this way for many weeks until the real winter cold sets in. I also don't notice any sort of chill or coldness on the bottom of my pool when I walk on it, if cold ground were having an impact I'm sure it could be felt.
Insulation will give a great smooth bottom but I can't see it impacting spring/fall pool temperature.

Solar cover will help, wall insulation definitly won't keep heat in as there simply isn't enough R value to it.

I'd recommend a think solar blanket (personally I like clear ones), a solar heater and removing any trees shading the pool. Other than a pool heater I don't think there's much more options.

 

[postgame]

... and removing any trees shading the pool. Other than a pool heater I don't think there's much more options.

There lies the real problem that I am dealing with. I have two trees in the back yard that shade the pool at various times of the day/season. There is a third but it is going to get cut back do to disease this fall. I am (at least for now) unwilling to remove the trees, with the exception that a tree is needing to be removed. So I will have to stay with my blanket and try solar heating next year. I also see the logic given about loosing heat out the bottom or sides of pool.

 

[BBBliever]

I don't think comparing a human sleeping on the ground and pool bottom heat loss is a relevant comparison, right now I can tell you that the ground where I live is warmer at night than the air is, and will probably be this way for many weeks until the real winter cold sets in. I also don't notice any sort of chill or coldness on the bottom of my pool when I walk on it, if cold ground were having an impact I'm sure it could be felt.
Insulation will give a great smooth bottom but I can't see it impacting spring/fall pool temperature.

Cramar, this is my first year with a AGP so I claim to be no expert but here is what I have noticed in my location of California.

I just put up a 4x20 fafco solar panel on my 12 ft, 2000 gallon pool. Overkill maybe, but I want the swim season to last as long as possible for my 3 and 1 1/2 year old kids. Anyway I have a clear solar cover and with the solar panel my pool temps got to 92 yesterday. The kids love it and its nice when I go to the pool around 10:00 in the evening, ambient air temps are around 80 with a breeze so the warm water is very nice.

Last nite when I was swimming across the bottom of the pool I noticed the bottom 3 inches or so of the pool water was drastically cooler than the walls or upper layer of water. I still contend that heat is lost from the ground absorbing the energy. This effect would only be noticeable with warmer water temps. That is why full insulation is so important with hot tubs.

If you want to maintain the longest possible swim season I would say a clear solar cover, solar panels, and foam insulation on the bottom would make the most of it. I have no science to back my claims up just my experience. With your cooler temps I would take advantage of every possibility to keep the temps up.

 

[mcoonan]

Being from the "Great White North" I can tell you that the foam under the pool DOES make a difference. I have had it both ways and the pool stays warmer with the foam. The cool damp earth does absorb the heat out of the warm pool. The 1st I learned about it was from a friend that has a perm AGP and tried it with my 18' intex easy set w/o a solar heater but did have a solar cover. I would say the pool was about 3-4 degrees warmer after putting the foam under the pool. (82 vs 78 aprox). Now I have 3 solar panels, an Intex Ultra-Frame and 2" foam under the pool. There were days that the pool was over 93 and had to leave the cover off and run the panels at night to cool it down. (but BBBliever is right, it is nice to jump into 92 degree water after 10:00 PM with the spouse.)

 

[postgame]

Ok so its time to revive this thread for the new year. Its looking like a warm dry swim season this year or at least I'm hoping for that. Anyhow I will be putting foam under the pool for sure. I am changing my plans though for a solar heating system as $ are short with other home renos this year. So I came up with a little idea that I hope really turns out as I think it has some potential. I want to take rigid foam insulation and cut out a lid and adhere it to the extra cover I have. I will allow it to hinge for folding/removal purposes and put it on at night. I am hoping to trap heat in during the night as just the solar blanket does not cut it. Last year out day/night temps were vastly different so I am hoping to midigate that. Any thoughts? I will post pics when I have it put together. This may not be for a few weeks as kids hockey/gymnastics schedule is still busy, so I am religated to taxi service.

 

[cramar]

That sounds crazy enough to work!

Post some pics when your done.

 

[mcoonan]

I also like the idea! Kind of like the cover on a hot tub X3. Cut foam to fit inside pool, glue edges together making 3 pieces, tape all seams with Gorilla Tape, spray adhesive tarp/cover to foam leaving enough space to fold the 3 pieces onto each other (left side ontop of middle, right side on top of right or something like that).
The only thing that I can think of is the expence of the cover might not be worth it. Cause if I remember correctly, most of the heat is lost due to evaporation. But if you build it, let us see pics!