Solar cover storage/removal options

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M

mithesaint

0
Jul 1, 2015
43
Fremont OH
Looking for someone who has a better idea than I do.

I have an 18 x 33 above ground pool, and use a solar cover to help keep the pool a bit warmer. In the past, I've used a roller for the cover. Roll the cover up, pick the roller up, put in shed for the day. Presto, gone, out of the sun and out of the way for the day, put it back on that night.

My roller is worn out now, and I'm slightly hesitant to spend $250 on a new one. It didn't seem to last very long, and the roller/cover combo is heavy! I'm not as young as I was 5 years ago, and I didn't enjoy the task of moving the roller at the beginning of the day.

I'm thinking about doing a DIY of the "saddle" style racks. I assume the cover needs a sheet or something over it while it's bunched up on the saddle rack? Anyone use the saddle rack style and like it? We have a lot of wind, and I can see the cover being blown all over the place while on the rack. What does everyone else do?

Thoughts?
 
I put in 2 4x4 posts and mounted this:

Amazon.com : Doheny's Above Ground Solar Cover Reel Systems (Fits Pool Up to 18' Wide, Premium Aluminum) : Patio, Lawn & Garden

Amazon.com : Doheny's Above Ground Solar Cover Reel Systems (Fits Pool Up to 18' Wide, Premium Aluminum) : Patio, Lawn & Garden
www.amazon.com

When not in use I just cover it to protect it:
 
I'm on my third year with the saddle holder for my cover. I'm 70, and I can easily stand outside the pool and pull the cover off by myself when we're ready to swim. Takes less than ten minutes, and that's going slowly to drain as much water as possible. I then cover the whole works with an old sheet that my wife cut in half and sewed the two long skinny pieces together. When done swimming, take off the sheet and put it away. It then takes me about 4-5 minutes to pull the cover back on from inside the pool. If I have one helper, we can slide it back on before swimmer #3 can get out of the pool! LOL.

In the manufactured ones that we have, the tubing is aluminum and won't rust. All hdwe. is stainless steel. It also comes apart and you can leave the mounting bracket on the pool all year long. In the spring, I just bring the tubes out of the basement, screw them onto the five mounting brackets (one screw and nut each) and I'm ready for the season.

I have seen some posts that disparage the saddle because it would be a lot of weight hanging off the top rails. The entire saddle kit itself might weigh 4-5 lbs. My new cover just came a couple weeks ago, and the shipping weight was 22#. Admittedly, you will also have some water on it, but that total weight for everything probably doesn't exceed 35 pounds. And that weight is spread across five top rails. Compare that to one ten-year-old standing on one top rail to jump in (when no one's looking, of course!) o_O

Overall, no negatives to report so far. We love ours.

A solar cover tip: Cut your cover to just cover the water surface, within an inch or so of the pool wall. With our 24" round pool, I usually have to cut about two inches off, all the way around. A pair of sharp scissors works well. You don't want any of the cover climbing up the wall. Then, when rain dumps on the cover, the water won't be trapped there to stagnate and grow some beautiful green algae. As soon as you can, get your garden hose out and push all the topwater towards your skimmer. I use hairnets in my skimmer, and usually catch most of the junk in them instead of in my filter.
 
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