Dang! I think I knocked several months off the life of my pool cover today.

[bertschb]

I've been using a solar cover for my pool for the last month during the night. We roll the cover up on it's reel in the morning and place it in the shade. The sun then hits it from about 12:00 until 1:00 when we move it again so it's in a new shaded area the rest of the afternoon. Well, today I forgot to move it into the afternoon shade. The high today was "only" 98 so it wasn't that hot. Even so, when I unrolled the cover and placed it on the pool, the last 3' or so that was rolled up against the reel was melted and the reel (which was covered by the pool cover) was so hot I couldn't touch it. The cover acted like a poor man's microwave oven and the sun baked it against the reel. I was hoping to get two seasons out of this cover but I'm pretty sure that 'aint gonna happen now. Newbie mistake. At least my water chemistry has been right on since I took over the pool in December.

EDIT- "Melted" is too strong a term. The cover didn't turn to liquid. Instead, the portion nearest the reel is no longer soft and pliable. It appears to have been severely overheated (which it was).

What's weird is I thought the exposed portion of the cover (the outer layer) is what would get ruined by the sun, not the portion wrapped around the reel. Word of advice for new pool owners living in a hot climate and using a solar cover - do NOT leave the cover on the reel in the sun for even one day!

As long as I have this thread rolling I'll mention one more thing-
My neighbor is gone for the summer and the water temp of his uncovered pool is 75. I've been covering mine only at night and my water temp is 86. Pool covers makes a huge difference!

 

[PoolStored]

I bought some of this material from Amazon (link below). Cut a strip 2-3 feet wide and tape together once in the middle. Will be enough material for a 20' wide pool. Adjust to your taste. Black side down over your cover/reel. A bungee at each end. Stays cooooool, even in the full sun. Picture and Amazon link. My brother showed me this.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08XH6JQBJ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

My neighbor is gone for the summer and the water temp of his uncovered pool is 75. I've been covering mine only at night and my water temp is 86. Pool covers makes a huge difference!

Trespassing.

 

[bertschb]

My neighbor is gone for the summer and the water temp of his uncovered pool is 75. I've been covering mine only at night and my water temp is 86. Pool covers makes a huge difference!

Trespassing.

Hah! Actually, I test his water each week and report the results back to him. I'm his hero.

 

[bertschb]

Here is a picture of the damage:

 

[1Sammy]

Get a cover as mentioned and no need to move that heavy thing around. If you can bolt the reel to your deck and will make it much easier to use.