Question about installing Mesh winter cover

[Likesspace]

Hi guys....
I recently purchased a mesh winter cover to replace my aging "tarp style" solid cover and have a question about proper installation.
I'm not exactly sure of the best way to place this cover over the pool.
My hope is that it will drain the water off of the cover while catching the numerous maple and oak leaves that fall each year and then since the leaves are not sitting in a swamp I can use my leaf blower to remove them from the cover once they dry out.
My question is how to place the cover....
Do I stretch the cover tightly over the pool so that all of the water can fall through, into the pool or do I lay the cover on top of the water? I figure if it is stretched tightly the water will fall through easily yet if it is resting on top of the water the leaves will stay wet and will not blow off easily.
I had an incident this year where my cover slipped into the water dumping a years worth of leaves into the pool and I'm trying to prevent something like this from happening again.
Btw....My pool is a 24 foot above ground if this information helps.
I'm hoping to close within the next two weeks so a quick response from the experts would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Dave

 

[JasonLion]

A standard mesh safety cover is not strong enough to hold up snow and ice unless it is resting on the water. But it is strong enough to hold up leaves. You should be able to adjust the tension so that it holds the leaves above water, and then release some of the tension so that it sits on the water for most of the winter.