Solar Blankets....really worth the trouble ????

[tenax]

got mine about 3 weeks ago for 18 x 28 IG pool and i'm a big fan. with the reel, it's a 5 minute job to take off, 5 minutes to put back on with one person..honestly...and the water evaporation saving is visible along with the heat retained. i'm still burning through the chlorine pretty quick when it's off, but not using stabilizer (i get that today)

short story- i wish i had spent the $400 canadian for reel, cover and casters when i got the pool 3 years ago.

[JimSentry]

Those Solar Rings seemed like a good idea until I read about having to inflate/deflate, then where to store them when its taken off.

I think I'd prefer the liquid fish.

I also have an automatic cover but it looks like crap after just a few seasons. Worst 6K investment I've made.

[prh129]

I guess the climate where you live affects how much of a benefit you'll get. The "swim season" in the northeast is so short that adding a few weeks in the spring and fall is a big plus.

Now that the weather has been consistently warm, I leave the solar blanket rolled up with the white cover over it until the nights start getting cool again. When the day temp is in the 70s but the night temp is only in the 50s, I think the cover makes a huge difference.

Actually the debris issue gives me an idea - make a solar cover with say a 10 ft wide fine mesh collector with one side tied to the solar cover and the other side has a float along the top so that all of the debris falls into it as you roll your cover off. If your reel is outside of the pool, then you dump the collector after the whole thing is rolled up.

Peter

[day1]

You can have mine!! I used it for a few days last year for the helluvit, (since it came with our package), and it caused cloudiness under it. Not sure why, but I rolled it right back up and stuffed it back in the box. Well, most of it made it into the box. I want to figure out how to use my winter cover to shade our pool...with 101 degree days, ours feels like a warm bath! I'm thinking a huge tarp going from the roof edge to the 8' fence on the other side of the pool! It's ridiculous!

[pool newby]

day1,

check your PM.

[JETTA]

Last season I purchased an 18' solar cover, which was a square so it had to be cut to become round. I, the scholar, decided to fold the cover up and trace 1/2 a circle and cut it out to open into a round circle.

Well I did not plan this very well as I had two 1/2 circles after I was done.

After being frustrated, I realized that this was a good idea. It makes it a lot easier to put on and off.

[medvampire]

Next year I am going to use solar heating and liquid blanket and see if that works. I guess mine will end up in the shop with the Nature 2 after I replumb the system this fall.
Steve