Keeping Your Pool Covered Can Save You Work

Pools can be a hassle to clean. You have falling leaves, grass clippings, mud, algae, and other debris cluttering it during the summer and winter months.

Pool covers can keep the debris out of the pool so that you can have more fun enjoying it then cleaning it every year. There are several different pool covers available. You can purchase mesh covers that allow rain water to drain into the pool but keeps larger debris out. You can also purchase solid covers.

If you have kids and pets, it’s best that you have a safety cover over the pool when it is not in use to prevent dangerous accidents. When winter comes, you can switch over to a winter cover designed to handle the weight of snow and ice build up. Follow these three tips in placing a cover on your pool.

Tip #1: Clear The Area Of Debris

When you are covering an in-ground pool or an above ground pool with a surrounding deck, you need to ensure that the area around the pool is free of debris or protrusions that will effect how the cover will lay across the pool. If you cannot move the objects from around the pool so that the cover can lay flat, cover the objects with padding, foam or carpet so that they do not tear at the pool cover’s material.

Tip #2: Check the Width Of The Deck

Decks for above ground and in-ground pools should have a width of 3 feet so that you can properly anchor the cover. Most pool covers will have an overlap of anywhere between 9 inches and 18 inches. Springs and strapping to secure the pool cover will take another 17 inches of space from the edge of the cover. So 3 feet of decking material will give you enough surface area to secure the cover.

Tip #3: Maintain The Appropriate Water Level

When you first cover your pool, the pool safety cover or winter cover should be stretched out taut. In time, stretching will occur mainly due to rain water and snow laying on top. The cover is designed to touch the surface of the water. So your pool should always be filled when covered, and the water level should never go below 18 inches from the top of the pool.

Check the water level of the pool and fill it up if it goes below 18 inches. This will prevent extreme tension that can rip the material of the cover or pull out the fasteners that hold the cover on the pool.