Category Archives: Pool Closing and Winterizing

Choosing A Pool Cover That Is Right For You

 Pool Cover

Choosing a pool cover can be confusing. Below, you will find an explanation of the four different types of covers that pool owners’ normally consider. By comparing the explanation and benefit of each with your own person needs, you are sure to find the cover or covers that perfectly fit your situation.

Winter Pool Covers are mainly used to protect your pool from harsh winter conditions and to keep large debris out of your pool. A winter cover also block sunlight to prevent algae growth. They are normally solid and use air pillows to allow for water expansion in freezing weather and water tubes or weight bags to hold in place. They make opening your pool easier and less expensive in the Spring.

Safety Covers are used for maintenance as well as to protect children and pets from accidental drowning in a pool closed for the season. A proper safety cover is securely anchored into the deck area surrounding the pool and lies flat so there are no gaps between the pool and the cover. They are available in mesh and solid materials. Because they are stretched tight across the pool’s surface, water does not pool on top. These covers are very important if you have children or pets.

Solar Covers, or solar blankets, are designed exclusively to help heat and retain heat in your pool. They can be used to raise your pool’s temperature by an average of 10-15 degrees. They also reduce heat and chemical evaporation by up to 70%.

Mesh covers, known as leaf nets, are made of an open weave material that fits over your winter cover or solar cover and helps you avoid accumulations of wet, heavy, saturated leaves and twigs on top of your winter cover. These nets ensure a quicker removal of leaves and helps prolong the life of your winter or solar cover. They are perfect for pool areas that are surrounded by trees. They make removal of your winter cover much easier in the spring.

How Will You Keep Your Winter Cover in Place?

 

When summer ends and you prepare your above ground swimming pool for a long winter’s nap, a major part of that process is using a winter cover to protect the pool through long months of harsh winter weather.  How do you protect your winter cover from wind damage and keep it from blowing off of your pool or from creeping slowly out of position over the course of the winter season?  Two inexpensive and super-easy options for protecting and securing your winter pool cover are Cover Clips and Winter Cover Seal.

Cover clips are eWinter Cover Clipsxactly that…clips that keep your above ground pool’s winter cover in place.  Cover clips grip your top rail, holding your cover on tightly.  They also help to reduce wind damage and general wear and tear on your winter cover.  It is recommended to use two clips per upright or approximately every 16 to 18 inches.  Cover clips are inexpensive and come in packs of 5, 10, 20, or 30 clips.

Another option for securing your above ground pool’s winter cover is Winter Cover Seal.  While it lookWinter Cover Seals a bit like the plastic wrap that you have in your kitchen, Winter Cover Seal is actually a tough poly blend film that wraps around your pool to seal out gusty winds and keep your cover in place.  A special blend of resins enables this unique material to stretch and hold tightly over a long period of time, even during extremely cold weather.  Winter Cover Seal is also packed with UV inhibitors so that the sun will not weaken it.

However you choose to secure your above ground pool’s winter cover, doing so is an important step in protecting your pool cover, which in turn protects your pool.

Quickly Drain Your Inflatable/Collapsible Pool

If you have an inflatable or collapsible pool that will be emptied and taken down when summer ends, you have probably struggled to find a quick and efficient way to drain the water. The Quick Drain is the perfect solution to your problem. Simple and easy to use, the Quick Drain is designed to make your life easier! It used siphon action to remove dirt, debris, and water from your pool. Since it has no moving parts, it is easy to operate and can drain a pool at a rate of 10-12 gallons per minute. Simply insert the suction tube into the pool or spa, shake the tube and the Quick Drain goes to work. You can add extensions hoses to direct water up to 24 feet away. Draining your pool could not be any easier!

Quick Drain Instruction 1Quick Drain Instruction 2Quick Drain Instruction 3

Air Pillows Are a Winter Necessity

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Usually made of heavy-duty vinyl, air pillows are a necessary addition when winterizing your above ground pool.  An air pillow, also known as an ice compensator, goes underneath your winter pool cover to help prevent the freezing and expanding winter pool water from cracking and damaging the walls of your above ground pool.  Air pillows offer the additional advantage of reducing the amount of water, snow, and debris that collect on your winter cover. 

Air pillows for above ground pools are very reasonably priced and are worth every penny if it means saving your pool from winter ice damage.

Winterize Your Pool and Save Big

Did you know that paying a professional pool company to winterize your backyard swimming pool can cost upwards of $500?  With just a few items and a weekend afternoon, you can winterize your own pool for much less and save hundreds, even thousands, of dollars throughout the life of your pool.

By winterizing the swimming pool, you prepare it for long months of sitting untouched.  Because of this, the water must be chemically balanced using winterizing chemicals, which will help prevent corrosion and scale build up over the course of the winter.  Also, the pool must be cleaned of any dirt and debris which may have collected over the swimming season.  Finally, a protective cover should top the pool.  Many home owners choose a winter pool cover for their above ground pool or in ground pool, while others choose to cover the pool all winter with a safety cover.  Growing in popularity are leaf nets, which are mesh covers that go on top of your winter cover or safety cover.  Leaf nets collect a majority of autumn leaves and other debris and make spring clean up a breeze.

Click the links to find detailed instructions for how to winterize your above ground pool or how to winterize your in ground pool.