Advice on Solar Covers vs. Their Inherent Manufacturing Defects

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GoGrabTheNet

GoGrabTheNet

0
Dec 13, 2015
81
Surprise, AZ
I am looking to buy a new solar cover in the very near future. My pool is on the north side of the house, and in the winter (despite residing in the Valley of the Sun) is in 100% shade of the house. The pool heater can't keep up and therefore the pool is shut down for the winter. Luckily, the time is short...basically between mid-November to end of February.

For the last two years I have put a solar cover on it, which drastically cuts down on water evaporation and chemical usage. After the second year, however, this pool cover has failed. It did not rip, tear, or otherwise degrade making it unusable. Instead, it appeared that almost every bubble was filled with water. This made it extremely difficult to roll up on the roller as it was very heavy. Upon closer inspection, every bubble had a little pinhole in the middle of it, most likely part of the manufacturing process. The holes were perhaps once a little bump where the mold or air-injection "port" once existed while it was being made. This, IMO, is a critical flaw in this particular solar cover, and I know for sure that I will not be buying one from aforementioned manufacturer ever again (whomever it may be)!!! I tried to find the paperwork on it, but could not find it, and I don't remember the brand.

Thinking about it a little bit more...perhaps the pinhole and water infiltration was exacerbated by the large temperature swings we experience here in the Valley. It is not uncommon to see a 30+ degree swing between day and nighttime temperatures. This could have caused expansion/contraction (i.e. pressure/vacuum) inside the bubble, basically sucking up water every time.

Does anyone else have any experience with this particular type of failure? Also looking for recommendations on solar covers that do not fill with water and/or have the issue with the pinholes on each bubble. I thought about just flipping the solar cover upside down, but not sure if it will sink or just be a complete mess on the water.

Thanks!
 
Yup. That's a common failure mode in EVERY bubble cover. You won't ever get more than 3 years out of one and the one I bought 2 years ago was dead after one season. It doesn't matter if you buy a thicker cover or not, they all fail.

TFP recommends simply getting the cheapest and thinnest cover you can and just toss it when it develops leaks.

Also, you have to put the cover bubble side down. If you put it flat side down it will partially submerge and be a bear to remove from the pool.
 
If you don't get a lot of wind around the pool, you could try to use the CoverFree liquid cover stuff to help cut down on evaporation. It doesn't do much for heat loss but some do report lower evaporative water loss with it. Bubble covers are obviously the best approach but I have found them to be too difficult to manage with my free form pool.
 
This what extreme degradation looks like after two seasons -

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When the cover is off the pool, do you have it completely out of the sun (covered by a tarp or in the shade)? I had my cover's cover come partly off last summer for a few days when we were away, and the area that was exposed got brittle and the bubbles broke.
 
I agree, they are all disposable. I decided to buy one with a 10 year warranty...a season and a half and it's tearing easily and yellowing (it's a clear cover). It heated the pool extremely well here in San Diego (inland).

So my plan now is to buy the cheapest one I can find and replace it yearly.
 
jpitt916 said:
So my plan now is to buy the cheapest one I can find and replace it yearly.
Click to expand...

Hundreds of square feet of plastic straight to the dump. Not recyclable, AFAIK. Extremely wasteful, but what can we do? That's today's throw-away society. Not calling you out though. It's a fact of life for everyone.

As I mentioned previously, I don't recall the brand that has failed me with the tiny little "air holes" that let water in. The bubbles are still perfectly intact, unlike the pictures in post #4. However, the manufacturing defect of the "dimples" causes the overall failure. If anyone can recall the brand, the solar cover has diamond-shaped bubbles.
 

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What about a more sturdy cover, like what is use at commercial or community pools?

Something like this: http://www.lincolnaquatics.com/pool-and-spa-covers-and-accessories/1010-std-cover-weighted-1-299-sq-ft/product/84-016?

At $3.45 per square foot for a custom-fitted cover, if it lasts 3-5 years it seems like it would be worth the cost.

I am considering something other than the plastic bubble cover, as I too have gone through about 1 per season and struggle with dumping all that plastic into a landfill each year.
 
Sunandsky said:
What about a more sturdy cover, like what is use at commercial or community pools?

Something like this: http://www.lincolnaquatics.com/pool-and-spa-covers-and-accessories/1010-std-cover-weighted-1-299-sq-ft/product/84-016?

At $3.45 per square foot for a custom-fitted cover, if it lasts 3-5 years it seems like it would be worth the cost.

I am considering something other than the plastic bubble cover, as I too have gone through about 1 per season and struggle with dumping all that plastic into a landfill each year.
Click to expand...

My concern is that an opaque cover would not let enough sun in to heat the pool during the day. For a public pool that has employees opening it every day that's probably not an issue, but I don't take our cover off every day. In most cases, the translucent/transparent solar covers don't assist in heating much during calm sunny days, but they don't hurt either like a solid cover might.
 
I seem to be very lucky. My pool covers usually last 3-5 years. Of course they are only on the pool 2 to 3 months a year. Otherwise they are stored inside our garage. My pool is ten years old, and I am on my second set and still holding up.
 
I don't know if it's my region where the sun is less intense, but
I have had so far / so good results with my cover.

It has been used 2 seasons now and I can see it will definitely
make it for a third. The only damage it got this season on
a few days i did not cover it (rolled up in reel), was a bit of blistering that separated
the top half from the layer below it in a 4inch by 4inch area.

Don't remember the exact name but the box said "SUN---something"
(not sun play)

It is listed on amazon as being sold by "In the swim" if that helps any.
It is 8 mil blue.

ALL of the bubbles are intact and flexible.
 
What I may need is an "insulating pool cover" rather than just the standard, run-of-the-mill solar cover. After all, my main purpose for the cover is to retain heat from the heat pump and to reduce evaporation losses (heat, water, and chemicals) during the winter months. From what I gather, an insulating pool cover is basically a solar cover but with another flat, vinyl sheet bonded to the opposite side.

Anyone have any experience with these and/or can provide recommendations for brand, availability, or purchase location? Are they worth it? I'm sure they cost more per square foot. How about durability?
 
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