Two weeks with a solar cover

[C3Cl3N3O3]

So I've had an old solar cover that I dragged up from my basement going now for two weeks. So far so good. I have a technique to get it on and off without too much fuss. The water temp has remained around 80 which is great and today was a wonderful October pool day. Overnight temps have been in the 60's with some 50's the week before. I do have some questions:

- How do you determine when your solar cover is shot? I can see many of the bubbles turn opaque when the cover is on from water intrusion, probably 1/3 of them. So that's probably not good.
- I'm getting a fair amount of plastic shedding off into the water, enough to be annoying. Is that normal, or is it shot?
- Once a cover is shot, does it make sense to hang on to it to cover the pool during the winter? Keep the pump running and pool "open", just with a solar cover to keep most debris out and reduce chlorine demand.
- Can you walk on these when they are on the pool deck? I've done that once or twice with flip-flops and didn't really hear any popping. The Dang thing blocks access to the patio area when it is off the pool.

Next week looks to be a rainy washout with temps in the 70's. I hope to keep this season going somehow!

 

[derekm]

Sounds like it's shot. I had yellow algae once, stuck in the bubbles of a cover I kept too long. It returned whenever I put on the cover. Took me a while to figure out the source!
I roll up the solar cover onto my reel and install a separate winter cover held on with water bags for the off-season.
Despite using a propane heater, it looks like my season ended yesterday here in Canada, as the "high" today was 52 F and it's dropping to 39 Monday night. I only lost 5 degrees since I heated to 79 yesterday, but north winds made it not worth swimming today, and the overnight losses will start to increase.

 

[C3Cl3N3O3]

Sounds like it's shot. I had yellow algae once, stuck in the bubbles of a cover I kept too long. It returned whenever I put on the cover. Took me a while to figure out the source!
I roll up the solar cover onto my reel and install a separate winter cover held on with water bags for the off-season.
Despite using a propane heater, it looks like my season ended yesterday here in Canada, as the "high" today was 52 F and it's dropping to 39 Monday night. I only lost 5 degrees since I heated to 79 yesterday, but north winds made it not worth swimming today, and the overnight losses will start to increase.

Yeah I've fully closed the pool in the past with a normal cover and water bags. That is a major pain and that cover is long gone. Really the idea of half-closing it sounds attractive for the reasons given.

 

[derekm]

Yeah I've fully closed the pool in the past with a normal cover and water bags. That is a major pain and that cover is long gone. Really the idea of half-closing it sounds attractive for the reasons given.

Water bags ARE a real pain. Yes, with a variable speed pump (I have a 2-speed and run it on low) and a solar cover it would quite doable. I open mine when the ice melts, around April 15, but don't start heating and swimming until around June 1st and it doesn't need much chemical maintenance with the cover on. In my case, I am able to use the Rainbow 320 puck/tab feeder until swimming season as my CYA disappears over the winter (and it would be too cold for a SWCG). You could peel back the cover by a jet and add some liquid chlorine from time to time, turning up the pump speed for an hour or two to distribute it. Demand would, of course, be greatly reduced with solar cover on and cooler water, and you should never have a green pool.

 

[C3Cl3N3O3]

Today's water temp was 75, down from 77 yesterday. I'm still getting my laps in, but we're getting near the end.

Tomorrow's forecast is slightly warmer, but that can't overcome these cool nights and shorter days.

 

[derekm]

Today's water temp was 75, down from 77 yesterday. I'm still getting my laps in, but we're getting near the end.

Tomorrow's forecast is slightly warmer, but that can't overcome these cool nights and shorter days.

My last swim here in Canada, with help from a propane heater, was October 7. Once I lose more than 5 deg. F overnight it gets too expensive to be practical. Closed it yesterday.

 

[Eauclaire]

Derekm, just curious, what ice thickness develops in your area? Does snowfall accumulate continuously over the winter?
Thanks!

 

[derekm]

Derekm, just curious, what ice thickness develops in your area? Does snowfall accumulate continuously over the winter?
Thanks!

Variable. Some winters we get very little snow, some (like 2014-2015) we are inundated with many feet of the stuff. Snow seldom arrives in any quantity before Christmas. I've never measured the ice in the pool, but it's likely no more than a couple of inches. Our temperatures on the east coast of Canada are more moderate than in central Canada, with temps rarely going below minus 20C/minus 4F. Normally the ice is all gone from the pool by around April 15.

 

[Eauclaire]

So looking at the pool cover picture, do you set the water level low enough, so that it can accommodate all rain and snow until April? Or do you pump water off the cover during a mid-winter thaw?

 

[C3Cl3N3O3]

Today's water temp was 74, I still got my laps in.

I'm curious how the 74 compares with other pools in the area (with solar covers or without)

A heater would be a nice accessory at this point.

 

[C3Cl3N3O3]

I picked up a degree, now I'm at 75. The nights haven't been quite as cold.

 

[C3Cl3N3O3]

Looks like a nice extended pool season day today with a 75 degree water temp!