If you don't cover your above-ground pool, it's going to get dirt, leaves, and other debris in it. Even if you don't have any trees nearby, the wind will still blow debris into the water. Not to mention rainwater!
In dry and/or windy conditions, the evaporation rate of the pool increases. Therefore, it is generally beneficial to have a transparent or bubble cover on during daylight hours. In warm, humid conditions the evaporation rate decreases. In this case, it may be more beneficial to leave the cover off during the daytime.
Keep it covered.
Covering the pool is a good way to prevent algae growth. The right cover keeps algae from entering the pool, but it also keeps leaves, bugs, bacteria, and dirt from decomposing in the pool, providing algae with food.
If your pool isn't covered, you can expect all that rainwater to go straight in—and if it's a significant amount of rainfall, your water level is getting an acid-charged boost. Thankfully, most pools have an overflow system to handle extra water.
Rainwater is known to have acidic properties that can negatively affect your pool water chemistry balance. This can affect anything from the pH balance to alkalinity levels and more. The pH of rain across the US, which is all acid rain, is due to industrial gasses (i.e. NOx, SOx) which make nitric and sulfuric acid.
Because the pump is not waterproof, you'll need to protect your pool pump from the elements to keep it working properly. Our pool pump covers are designed to provide excellent protection from elements like wind, rain, snow, and even the sun.
Once algae gets into your pool water, they can turn into an algae bloom if you have nitrates, out-of-balance chemicals, warm temperatures, sunlight, carbon dioxide, or phosphates. Poor water circulation, poor filtration, and not sanitising your pool will also contribute to rapid growth.
Branches, rocks, and sticks can fall onto the pool cover, resulting in a hole. As you pump the water off of the pool cover, you may be actually pumping out the water from the pool via the hole in the cover. Examine the pool cover for any rips or holes to prevent the pool from losing any more water.
While vacuuming alone probably can't remove all of the algae in your pool, it does help with algae prevention: By promptly removing debris like leaves and other organic matter, you're keeping your pool water clean and discouraging algae growth.
In general, check the level at least once a week and add water as needed.
While tarps can come in handy, winter safety pool covers are a wiser choice. Both meshes and solid vinyl covers offer more durability, low maintenance, and higher protection levels. When it comes to installation, it's best to hire professionals to handle the heavy lifting.
Liquid pool blankets are an excellent and effortless alternative to conventional solar pool covers. Liquid blankets save energy by trapping heat and reducing evaporation.
Water Loss Through Evaporation
Evaporation is the number one cause of water loss. The rate of water evaporation varies depending upon location, temperature, humidity and wind, but it isn't uncommon for an uncovered swimming pool to lose 5mm of water per day on average.
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.
Pool Is Losing 1 Inch of Water Per Day
Losing more than ½” of pool water per day indicates you likely have a leak in your pool's structure or your pool pump system.
The differential that occurs between the pool water temperature and the air temperature on late summer nights causes water to evaporate at an accelerated rate. In some cases you might see a water level difference of 1-3 inches overnight. Depending on the size of your pool, that can be over 500 gallons of water loss!
Cloudy Water — If the pool water starts to become cloudy, milky, foamy or slippery, it's almost always an early indication that algae is starting to grow. If water goes from crystal clear to cloudy or the sides of the pool feel slippery to the touch, algae might have found a home there!
Adding shock to your pool super-chlorinates your water. And this extra dose of sanitizer will kill algae growth. The more serious your pool algae problem, the more shock you'll need. We recommend using calcium hypochlorite shock, or cal-hypo shock, as an effective algae treatment.
It's often recommended to shock your pool once a week. If you don't do it every week, you should at least do it every other week. This is necessary to maintain your pool's water chemistry. If you have a lot of people over in your pool or have a party, you may want to shock your pool more frequently.
Absolutely! A cover does nothing to interfere with the water circulating through your system. It doesn't touch your pump or any other piece of equipment you have.
If you do not run your pump for the requisite number of hours per day, your water will not be able to circulate through the filter system. This means debris and bacteria have free reign to remain in your pool, contaminating the water and making it unsafe to swim in.
It's also a good idea to stay away from your pool when it's raining because your deck and other surface areas can be more slippery than usual. If you slide and fall around the pool, you can seriously injure yourself on a hard concrete or wooden deck, but you can also fall into the water unconscious.
Super chlorinate the pool water with a chlorine shock to kill off any growing algae. Maintain proper filtration. A good filtration system can trap dead or circulating debris and algae. If an excess of soil and mulch got into your pool during a rainstorm, use a phosphate remover.