About Our Solar Covers
With a solar cover you can keep the heat in your pool for FREE! We carry a variety of solar cover styles that can help to maintain the temperature in your pool. Whether your pool is too cold to enjoy consistently throughout the summer or you’re currently spending a fortune heating it, you’ll be able to extend your swimming season and save money with a solar cover. Solar covers are designed for inground, semi inground and above ground pools. The bubbles should face down into the water when you put your solar cover on.
Invest In A Solar Pool Cover
While it wont heat your inground or above ground pool as much as a traditional electric or gas heater will, any type of solar pool cover will keep more heatand more waterin your pool.
But it doesnt have to be a one or the other choice. You can use any kind of solar pool cover in tandem with an electric or gas heater, which will help you save money on utilities, water replacement, and pool chemicals. For such a modest upfront investment, you cant afford not to have one.
Happy Swimming!
Keep Bugs And Debris Out
Although its not one of their primary purposes, solar blankets do shield your pool from bugs and debris such as leaves and twigs. If your blanket does trap debris, use a hand skimmer to scoop it out before removing the cover.
The more debris you can keep out of your pool water, the less you have to run your pump on high to vacuum, and the more you can save in energy costs.
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How To Properly Store Your Solar Cover
At the end of pool season, itll be time to break out the safety cover, and store the solar blanket. But before you do that, you must make sure the solar blanket is clean and completely dry so you dont get a nasty, moldy surprise when you open it up next season.
To clean your solar blanket, remove it from the pool, and lay it on a soft surface like grass. Concrete can damage the bubbles, making the blanket less able to float and do its job.
Once you have it spread out flat, use a soft push broom or soft scrub brush and clean water to scrub away dirt, algae or buildup, then rinse. Dry the blanket well by hand, using a leaf blower, or hanging it up to dry.
Tip: Dont ever leave your solar cover out to dry on your lawn. It can burn your grass.
After you wash and dry your solar blanket, reel it up. Some pool cover reels come with a weather- and UV-resistant storage cover so you can store it outside if you dont have any indoor space for it. If your reel didnt come with a cover, you can always pick one up.
If youre folding your blanket up, place it in a container with a sturdy lid to keep pests out. Then store the container somewhere cool and out of direct sunlight to prevent the cover from shrinking, and the plastic container from deteriorating.
You Can Remove Liquid Solar Cover But Why
Although we cant think of any reason why youd want to, the only way to remove liquid solar cover from your pool water would be to drain the pool and refill it, and no one wants to do that if it can be avoided.
The thing is, if you decided to stop using liquid solar cover for any reason, all you have to do is wait a while. The chemical naturally dissipates over a certain period of time, depending on how large your pool is and how much liquid solar cover you have to use.
For this reason, for as long as you want to use it, liquid solar cover must be added to your pool on a regular basis, so be sure to add it to your swimming pool maintenance schedule.
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Why Trust The Spruce
Erica Puisis has been covering the best products for outdoor and indoor living at The Spruce since 2017. Her research and areas of expertise have included pool heaters, cleaners, and water testing equipment. To find the best options for this essential pool accessory, she considered the thickness of each solar cover, its ability to retain heat, block UV rays, or provide passive heating for pool water, and the length of any warranty periods.
Solar Covers Transfer Heat
If you laid a sheet of plain bubble wrap on top of your pool water, all the little bubbles would act as magnifying glasses and would transfer some heat to the water. But regular bubble wrap is too flimsy to use for this purpose. Enter the solar blanket.
Depending on the color, opacity, and type of solar blanket you use, you could very well get some actual heating benefit from it. A light-colored, clear cover will allow the suns UV rays to pass through to the water, thereby heating it. A dark, opaque cover may still let some through if the material is thin, but not as many as the light, clear cover.
To get the most heat transfer from a solar blanket, look for one that is white or clear on top, with dark or black bubbles. The dark color will absorb the suns heat and will transfer that heat to the water theyre touching.
If heat transfer is one of your goals in buying a solar blanket, keep these features and benefits in mind so you can choose the right one for your pool:
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What Is The Best Solar Pool Cover
There are three types of solar covers: blankets, rings, and liquid. Here are our top picks for all three.
NOTE: These solar pool covers are available to buy on either Amazon and InTheSwim.com. Check both sites for availability. All the links are affiliate links which means if you click a link and make a purchase, we earn a commission at no additional cost to you. It helps us keep the lights on
For a classic solar cover thatll not only heat your pool but will also help reduce water and chemical evaporation at night, we like this lightweight clear solar cover. Perfect for both inground and above ground swimming pools.
Additional Solar Pool Cover Information
A solar cover saves you money and extends your swimming season. By absorbing and trapping the energy of the sun, a solar cover can heat your pools water by up to 15 degrees without using a gas heater or propane pool heater, thus saving you on heating costs by 50%-70%. This is the same on in-ground pools and above ground pools.
A solar cover also holds the suns heat in the water when the nights start to get chillier as the summer season wanes. By keeping the pool water warm, for free, youre extending the fun you can have in the pool for the season. It also works in spring, when the days and nights start to get mild, but arent too warm, the solar cover can kick start the heating process and get you in the pool early.
If having a large solar cover that always needs putting on a taking off the pool isnt your thing, In the Swim has a unique set of items called liquid solar covers. These products retain your pools heat without having a physical solar cover you always have to manage and move. Natural Chemistrys COVERfree liquid solar cover is a popular and very effective item that also decreases water evaporation. Put the Solar Fish liquid cover into your pool, two fish for larger pools, and its fin dispenses Heatsavr that is highly effective at reducing heat loss but not detectable by swimmers. The innovative Solar Sun rings holds insulating air to trap heat and use magnets to connect to each other to cover your pool for easy use.
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Are Solar Pool Covers Worth It
Solar pool covers can be a bit expensive. Oftentimes though, proper use can yield enough money savings to offset the cost of the cover. The benefits are greatest for those who live in areas that are relatively cool where free solar heating and insulation will be most valuable. Those in hot, dry locations will see some savings benefits by minimizing water replacement costs.
No matter where you live, a solar pool cover conserves energy, resources or both. In any case, conservation is good for the environment.
What Is A Solar Pool Cover
A solar pool cover is basically a large solar blanket. It is similar to very strong bubble wrap that floats on the surface of the pool. It doesnt need to be attached to the pool as the surface tension, and its weight, holds it onto the pool surface. In 8 years of having a solar pool cover mine has never been blown out of the pool or even been lifted and we get some pretty strong winds here.
It has bubbles on one side and a strong flat layer on the other. The bubbles help to act as an insulator to stop heat transfer out of the pool.
A solar pool cover is different from a pool cover. A pool cover is intended to cover the entire pool to protect it during the winter and/or to prevent children or pets from falling in.
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Can You Run The Pool Pump With Solar Cover On
Absolutely, and you should run it too. Your pool pump should run for the same amount of time each day when the solar cover is on as it does when it is off.
The water still needs to be filtered and the chemicals circulated whether on or off and no harm will come to the solar cover when the pump is running.
Cover Thickness And Color
Solar pool covers vary in thickness and it should be no surprise to hear that when it comes to the best pool solar cover thickness, the thicker it is the overall heat increase is likely to be higher. The lighter the color of the cover, or the clarity, will also result in more heat entering the pool .
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Solar Sun Rings For Inground And Above Ground Swimming Pools
If a solar blanket seems like too much of a hassle to put on, take off, and store during the swimming season, you may prefer solar rings or squares. These can even be decorative because some of them have patterns and images such as palm trees printed on them, while others come in fun shapes such as flowers.
Solar rings are sold individually for around $25 to $35 each, or in sets for around $140 to $160 or more, depending on how many rings come in the set. The number you need to cover your pools surface will depend on the sizes of both your pool and the rings.
How Long Do Pool Safety Covers Last
Our demo pool’s cover is more than 24 years old, and it still may have a few years to go. It is a rare example, but it gives an idea of the life expectancy of a pool cover. Swimming pool safety covers can easily last up to ten years. You will double the life expectancy of pool safety covers if you take care to keep pests out and prevent them from being damaged when stored.
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Round Oval & Rectangular Solar Covers
Solar covers are basically a summer must-have as a cost-effective way to heat your pool and keep it warm while preventing water loss from evaporation. It even helps maintain the chemical balance of your pool water and keep out debris.To help you get the right solar cover for you and your pool, we offer a variety of different quality tiers at different price points. We also have covers available in different colors including the classic blue solar cover and clear. Youâll be able to find the right solar cover for you in the size you need in no time! To get the best solar cover for you and your pool, we recommend covers from Sun2Solar®. They create products to heat your pool without relying on fossil fuels and specialize in solar covers. Youâll be able to find a solar cover that fits your budget. All Sun2Solar® covers also include a warranty.For more help finding the right solar cover for you, check out our check out our Solar Cover Buyerâs Guide and FAQ.
Solar Cover Bubbles Up Or Down
Believe it or not the question of do the bubbles go up or down on a solar cover is one of the most frequently asked questions on the many pool forums. It is a good question as it is not really obvious.
However, the answer to whether you have solar cover bubbles up or down is always bubbles down into the water.
The bubbles side has a larger surface area than the flat side so heat is transferred into the water more efficiently than if the pool blanket was the other way around.
The bubbles contain air and this is heated up by the sun and the heat is then transferred by the process of conduction. The flat side is the tough side whereas the bubble side is generally the least tough side. So having the bubbles facing down on the pools surface means they are protected from anything which may drop in the pool.
The smooth side therefore faces upwards. The additional advantage of it being smooth is that it makes it easier to clean. You can run the hose over it before you remove it from the pool.
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How Do You Clean A Solar Pool Cover
An effective method of cleaning your solar pool cover starts by removing loose debris with a garden hose and sprayer. Then, mix gentle soap and water and lightly scrub any stubborn areas with the solution and a soft brush. Rinse the entire cover with the garden hose. Allow it to dry thoroughly before storing. Always avoid the use of harsh chemicals to clean the cover.
What Is The Best Pool Solar Cover Thickness
There are a few things to consider when it comes to choosing the thickness of your pool cover.
| Thin covers | |
| heavier so harder to cover and uncover the pool | |
| do not last so long | more expensive |
The normal range of solar cover thicknesses runs from 8 mils to 16 mils. In case you are not aware a mil is one-thousandth of an inch .
12 mil solar covers are the most popular thickness as they do a good all-round job, are easy to handle and last quite a few years.
You really get what you pay for when it comes to solar blankets. Buying cheap can be a false economy.
One of the most popular brands of solar pool covers is Sun2Solar. They produce them in all shapes, sizes and colors.
Sun2Solar Ovalfrom 10ft x 15ft to 21ft x 41ft
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My Experience Of Using A Solar Cover
We live in the Canary Islands, which are off the coast of north Africa, so the climate here is pretty warm generally. We have solar heating panels on the roof which obviously heats the water up quite well, but without a solar cover, much of that heat is lost overnight.
We are not masochists, and dont want to die of shock when we get in the pool, so we want the temperature to be at least 82ºF/28ºC before we put a toe in.
Before we bought the solar cover we usually managed to swim comfortably from mid-April until mid-October. With the solar cover we are often in the pool by early March and swim until mid-November at least..
My pool normally loses 1.5-2ºF overnight without the cover on but hardly loses anything overnight when it is on.
In the summer, on a sunny day , without our solar heating on, I often see an increase of 2-3ºF during the day when I have the solar cover on.
Interestingly, we had a power outage for just over 24 hours last summer and I had the pool cover on. My wife and I wanted to swim late afternoon so I rolled the cover back and in we went. The water temperature in the top foot was much higher than the water below by at least 10ºF. Of course the pool pump had not been running so the water had been undisturbed which is why this was so noticeable.
As an aside, it was amazing how the warmer water had such a defined edge to the cooler water below. It was not a gradual transition from hot to cool as I would have expected but a sudden change.
Solar Covers For Above Ground Pools
Our durable above-ground solar blankets can warm your above ground pool by up to 15°F and are made to give you maximum heating properties combined with long life. Solar blankets are loaded with thermal bubbles designed to retain heat at night and on cool cloudy days and allow the maximum amount of solar rays to reach you pool for optimal heating.
All of our blankets are U.V.-protected so they last under the most intense sunlight.
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