What the heck do you do with your solar cover?

[AllenA]

Hey @TheDeuce,
Would you mind sharing the cost of that system. Looks like a perfect solution to me. Not fully automated where it would be thousands yet still easy to use and well hidden. Did you have it professionally installed? Do you know the cost of the product alone as I imagine installation costs can vary greatly depending on many factors. Also, do you know if it would be possible to replace the cover with a generic one as I imagine replacing with the OEM may be more costly.
Allen

 

[Newdude]

I always pulled mine into the yard and washed it with soapy water then rinsed it, all the while creating a grownup slip-n-slide.

in hindsight I should have just used a bleach solution with the cover in place and the pool brush. Anything that got into the pool doing this would have gotten into the pool anyway without the cover so it wouldn’t be a big deal.

 

[Adamphotoman]

I agree with New Dude. I don't worry about a little dirt. My cover was defective and the company I bought it from made me cut it in half and take pictures before they sent me out a replacement at N/C. The funny thing is that a number of folks on this site cut their's in half anyway. At this point the [defective] cover is still in service and the replacement is in it's packaging.
I riveted the cover back together using clip together plastic tarp grommets. This leaves 4-4 foot slits. Usually pool water gets on top especially when covering. I have to brush it off, so the cover gets a bleach treatment everyday. I also have an extra long flap that fits inside the skimmer opening. One can hose off the top right into the skimmer.

 

[mariane]

Does anyone else wash their covers?

I don't bother. I'll admit I'm lazy. That's why TFP works so well for me. A lot less work when following the best guidelines.

 

[Newdude]

I don't bother. I'll admit I'm lazy

I would have gladly been in the same boat but the pollen and tree crud would stain my cover nasty shades and smelly gunk would grow under the seams. I brushed the water off after each rain or sprinkler usage but there still was always stagnant water on top somehow. My laziness won when the thing finally popped, which of course took 5 years because I hated the dang thing.

 

[TheDeuce]

Hey @TheDeuce,
Would you mind sharing the cost of that system. Looks like a perfect solution to me. Not fully automated where it would be thousands yet still easy to use and well hidden. Did you have it professionally installed? Do you know the cost of the product alone as I imagine installation costs can vary greatly depending on many factors. Also, do you know if it would be possible to replace the cover with a generic one as I imagine replacing with the OEM may be more costly.
Allen

We had ours done as a part of our pool construction and it was an additional $6,000.00 (Canadian dollars) less a 10% (iirc) promotional discount. I checked out the installation manual that I'd found online somewhere and it definitely wasn't a DIY for a non-construction guy like me. I don't think the cover itself was included in that price so you could likely use a generic cover - in fact, that's what I think we have.

The cost was pretty cha-ching but I've learned to subscribe to the philosophy of 'buy once, buy right'. Interestingly, I have no idea if we grossly overpaid or not since it's impossible to find pricing info online. Moreover, the cost of adding it to an existing build might be significantly different. YMMV etc...


m.

 

[AllenA]

Hey @TheDeuce ,
Thanks for the info. Yeah, it seems like a product that may only be sold through installers. One side of my decking has pavers and I figured that all that is needed is to remove some and cut some others to match the housing size. Drop the box in, screw it down and that's it. I could even call back the paver installer to do the work. Should be easy for them. I wonder if they would sell direct. Maybe I'll give them a call.
Allen

 

[KAZR]

We’ve got a 9x18 rectangle solar cover, and as we’re still figuring out all the new routines I have just been laying it out on the lawn adjacent to dry and then kinda bundling it up and leaving it on the ground.

Other than getting an attached roller-upper unit, what do folks do with this thing during the day?

I ordered one of these from Home Depot. I kept my solar cover on its reel and put this all-season cover on it. I then stored the (covered) reel to one side of the yard for the winter & fall. Worked perfectly...no problems or damage to solar cover.

 

[Adamphotoman]

Something I have mentioned on another thread has to do with protecting your solar cover/blanket. I purchased a white plastic sheet that I quickly cover the blanket with. Bungie cords help to keep the sheeting in place especially when windy.
Once the solar blanket is rolled up one needs to immediately protect it from the sun. Resist the urge to first pick up the debris which has fallen into the pool. First, protect the Solar Blanket from the sun and then go around and clean the pool.

I now will roll the rig over to the shade under the tree.

 

[TheDeuce]

Protection from the sun - another bonus of the Cleardeck system.


m.

 

[Bpursley]

I have the clear deck system as well. It was actually designed by a local pool builder who created it and now that’s all they do is make those. We had ours installed for about $3000 last year, something you need to do at install or cement time as it is sunken into your deck area. One of the best add ons we did by far, super easy to get the cover on and off. As for rolling up the cover and it bunching, I haven’t had that issue, I do find when pulling the cover across the water sometimes you have to go side to side to get it out straight and then it pulls out nicer/easier

 

[Adamphotoman]

Have you tried using a rope to pull the cover on?
I inherited our 25 year old pool when I bought the house 3 years ago. The clear deck system looks very cool, but it is not in my future.

Also a question. How does the below grade enclosure not fill up with rain water and snow melt?