Do I Really Need A Pool Cover?
When we want to install a pool in our backyard, we think of so many things before we think of a pool cover. Most of us overlook just how essential a pool cover is in maintaining a pool and truly caring for it.
In fact, if you take a second and think about it, you will realise all the advantages a simple pool cover brings with it. You may be putting in all the effort to keep your pool pristine and beautiful, but a pool cover is something you will have to buy sooner or later – and sooner is better. So let’s get into it.
What is a pool cover?
As the name suggests a pool cover is literally a cover for your pool. The main purpose of this cover is to keep the pool clean. Other reasons to employ a pool cover depend on the type of cover and can range from wanting to insulate the water to limiting evaporation from the surface.
Why do I need a pool cover?
People employ pool covers for any of the following reasons:
To keep dust, debris, and leaves at bay
The most straightforward use of a pool cover is to keep things that aren’t supposed to be in the pool outside. Be it dust, dead insects, dried leaves and whatnot. Try imagining an uncovered pool in suburban Melbourne right when a major cold front is sweeping in and picking up God-knows-what to dump in your pool! Your time is much too precious to be spent on fishing weird things out of your own pool, right?
Decreases the amount of chemicals needed
No one wants a pool full of chemicals in their backyard. Having a pool is so much fun. You get to go for a refreshing swim at your convenience, host the best get-togethers and let’s not forget those lovely pool-side spring barbecues. All the many advantages of having a beautiful pool at home go right down the drain if everyone keeps getting rashes and whatnot from all the chlorine and chemicals. Using a pool cover has been shown to decrease chemical use. If done well, this decrease can be anywhere from 35 to a whopping 60 per cent!
Reduces heat loss
Pool covers help massively by trapping heat inside. Especially if you have a heated pool, utilising a pool cover smartly can help conserve heat and cut down your heating and energy costs. Even if your pool is not heated but receives sunlight during the day, covering it up at night will help keep the water warm for a swim early the next morning. You can even invest in a nice solar pool cover to make the most of the clean, green energy from the sun. In fact, you don’t need to invest a bomb in an expensive cover. Chances are even a low-cost vinyl cover will go a long way in keeping the water temperature just fine.
Helps you put safety first
A pool cover makes extra sense especially when you have kids. If you are a parent, just the idea of having an uncovered pool as the kids run around will give you the chills. Unfortunately, we have all heard of multiple incidents of kids making a run for it at the mere sight of water. Invest in a solid pool cover if you have kids, there are just no two ways about it. The same logic applies to pets. While your dog may know how to swim, do you really want to spend a lovely afternoon fishing out dog hair from your pretty pristine pool? Or something even worse? Probably not.
Makes pool maintenance easier
The entire process of maintaining a beautiful, pristine pool can be quite cumbersome. When you use a pool cover you help yourself by reducing your own workload. With the cover used well, you will need to vacuum a pool a lot less than usual.
Reduce surface evaporation and loss of water, heat
Basic science tells us that water evaporates from the surface. So a pool cover can help you escape from the annoying task of having to fill the pool again and again. This is especially important if you live in a drought-prone area and want to use water as efficiently as possible. Studies confirm that in some cases this saving can be as high as 80%. What the cover does is it traps the water vapour inside and doesn’t let it escape. This is true for heat in a heated pool as well. It sounds insane but an uncovered pool can lose up to 100 litres of water a day just from surface evaporation. This number comes down significantly to just 3 litres using the right pool cover. that is a whopping 97% decrease.
As you can see the advantages of a pool cover are too many to ignore. Now that you can see how important it is, let us find out more about the types of pool covers.
Types of Pool Covers
There are three main types of pool covers: solid, mesh and automatic.
1) Solid Pool Cover
Usually composed of vinyl, these provide a sturdy covering to your pool. They prevent any kind of debris from entering the pool such as dirt, bush and tree sheddings. The great thing about solid pool covers is that they can be custom-made according to the shape and size of the pool. Solid pool covers are also great to make sure a minimal amount of surface evaporation takes place.
2) Mesh pool cover
As the name suggests, a mesh pool has holes in it to allow sunlight to reach the water in the pool. This helps keep the water feeling fresh and can also help in heating it up if you are in an area that gets a lot of sunlight. The major disadvantage, though, is that it does not stop debris from entering the pool. The sunlight may also promote the growth of algae.
3) Automated pool cover
Automated pool covers give all the benefits of a solid cover with the additional advantage of convenience. This is because you can cover or uncover the water with the touch of a single button. Automated covers are solid and sturdy and retract and fold up, usually on one side of the pool.
