For safety reasons; if someone should end up under the pool cover, air will come in through the holes. These small holes prevent a large pool of water from getting on the pool cover.
Secure the Cover
These are holes around the edge of the cover with metal rings. If you just use a plastic tarp, it may not have grommets, and it'll be more difficult to secure. If you buy a winter cover designed for above ground pools, it should come with a cable and a winch to ratchet down the cover.
Water displacement in above ground pools is quite common. Over the winter, the weight of the snow and ice push down on the cover, which can cause the cover to displace some of the pool water. The displaced water spills out harmlessly onto the deck, unbeknownst to the pool owners.
If it is warm enough, remove as much debris off the cover as possible. Remove the cover, lay it out in the yard and cut the size of the patch that you need to repair the large holes. Reinstall the cover. For safety covers, a panel replacement is usually done for large holes.
Small holes protected by heavy-duty grommets located throughout the solar cover are a pathway to eliminate water on top of the cover to ensure an effortless removal. This makes the solar cover lighter and easy to use.
Small holes protected by heavy-duty grommets located throughout the solar cover are a pathway to drain water on top of the cover to ensure an effortless removal. This makes the solar blanket lighter and easier to use, reducing stress on both your cover and solar cover reel.
We hang jugs of water tied with twine from the grommets and no cable. On the deck portion, we lay the shallow end portion of the cover on the deck and put the ladder/stairs weights on top of the cover. Holds it in place well.
Pool Cover Safety Information
The cover must be kept tight enough to the deck to prevent a small child from reaching the water by crawling under the edge of the cover or through any area of the cover such as a raised wall or ladder cutout.
HOW TO TELL IF A CLOSED POOL IS LEAKING WATER. Keep an eye on the water level during winter. If the pool is covered, you can tell by how a solid cover lays across the pool surface. If it becomes very tight, or begins to slip toward the pool, that's a good indication that some pool water is escaping.
While covered throughout winter, water is sure to build up on the pool cover. This is when a cover pump is essential to keeping water off the cover. Automatic pumps can be left on the cover. But Aqua Pools recommends removing the pump, including the hose, and bringing it inside during freezing weather.
Canvas tarps are water resistant. They are treated with oil & wax to make them water & mildew resistant. Thus, if canvas tarpaulins are pitched or angled properly the water will run or slide off the cover. However, if water pools or collects, eventually the tarp will begin to perspire, absorb moisture or seep.
Heavy snow can stretch and damage the cover, but you generally don't have to be concerned until there's two feet of snow or more on your cover. That said, more inexpensive plastic covers damage more quickly and more easily than expensive mesh or solid safety covers.
A winter cover is essentially a large tarp that goes over your pool in the wintertime to help keep out debris. They can protect against damage to the pool as a whole, which will help things run more smoothly during come Springtime. Winter covers: HELP KEEP THE DEBRIS OUT OF THE POOL.
Winter Covers
A winter cover is essentially a large, oversized tarp to prevent debris from getting into the pool, and minimizes algae growth over winter. Winter covers can last on average 3-5 years and will then need to be replaced with new.
A small bit (1/4″-1/2″) of rain water is OK, but more than that could stress the cover, and 6-12″ of water will push pool water over the edges, lowering pool water (see above). Pump regularly with a pool cover pump like our manual or automatic 350 GPH pump or the non-electric Cover Saver siphon pump (shown).
How Tight Should a Safety Cover Be? Safety covers should be drum-tight, with only a slight deflection in the middle. When covers are too loose, leaves can blow under easily, and a high water level in springtime quickly traps leaves and turns your cover into a giant tea bag.
If a pool cover is durable and is installed properly, it can hold a considerable weight and therefore it is enough to be walked on, if necessary. Fortunately, you can always refer to the ASTM standards that will help guide you in purchasing a quality automatic pool cover. The ASTM standard is labeled as ASTM F1346-91.
Safety covers are permeable which allows water and light to pass through the material. This feature saves you money on water bills; the snow melts into the pool in the spring which allows you to spend little or no money refilling it when you open the pool. Plus, you'll save on the time it takes to refill the pool.
On average, pools with minimal obstacles as well as medium to large pools will generally take 1-3 hours for installation. That is from the point the cover is unfolded, laid out over the pool, preliminarily fit, all anchors are drilled, and any treatments are installed and properly fitted.
For this reason solar covers (unlike solar rings) will actually block sunlight and keep heat out of the pool during the day – not magnifying the sun like many people will assume. So for these reasons a solar cover should be put on in the evening and removed in the morning, for maximum benefit.
You can leave your pool cover on any time you're not swimming. In fact, it's recommended. During daylight hours, the more you keep the pool cover on, the more efficiently it will heat your pool.