How liquid solar pool covers keep your pool warm and money in your pocket.
If you would like to use your pool into the cooler months, but don’t want to spend a fortune on heating and don’t want to clutter your deck with a clumsy roll-up pool cover then a liquid solar cover is the way to go.
You might be asking yourself about a liquid pool cover. “What are liquid pool covers? And how can that work?”
Because we live in Plant City which is in Hillsborough county and near Polk county Florida, adding a pool cover is not something that comes up all that often.
And you would be forgiven if you thought the only type of cover was the big vinyl tarp that has to be rolled up.
In fact, there are a number of different types of pool covers.
Top 3 Pool Covers
1. Tarp style:
These are the ones most people are familiar with. They are some type of polypropylene or vinyl that covers the entire pool and usually require some type of rolling system that pulls the cover back and forth across the pool to cover or uncover it.
These pool covers tend to be expensive, hard to maintain, and clumsy to deal with. They are almost required if you live where it gets below freezing, but here in Central Florida, it is not something we worry about that much.
Pros:
- Provides outstanding protection for your pool. Dramatically slows fading protects the pool surface, keeps debris out of the pool
- Slows evaporation to almost nothing
Cons:
- Heavy hard to move around requires a mechanical device to roll up and pull out.
- Can be dangerous if not properly maintained. There have many instances of drowning if someone falls on the cover, when installed over the pool, and it collapses.
- Expensive to purchase and maintain
[Fun Fact: Evaporation Swimming pools lose energy in a variety of ways, but evaporation is by far the largest source of energy loss. Evaporating water has a dramatic cooling effect each pound of 80ºF water that evaporates takes a whopping 1,048 Btu of heat out of the pool. See Department of Energy swimming pool covers article]
Today Heat Pumps have become so efficient the cost of heating a pool has dropped to allow you to use the pool all year. Learn More on our heaters page
2. Bubble Stye
A bubble wrap type of pool cover has become popular. This cover looks similar to the bubble wrapping that comes in packages to protect products.
These covers are used to reduce evaporation and to provide solar heating. This type of cover can make a big difference in dropping your cost on chemicals, heating costs, and water evaporation.
Pros:
- Cheaper than the traditional tarp style, hundreds compared to thousands for the tarp style
- They reduce evaporation to almost nothing. Two types one is clear and the other type is opaque. Both reduce evaporation and reduce heating costs, but the clear one is designed to let the sun heat the pool even more, by magnifying the sun’s energy.
- Much easier to move around, it is nice to have a mechanical device to roll them up, but it can be managed by hand
Cons:
- These are still cumbersome to work with, to use the pool they have to be rolled up or somehow put away
- These types of covers also have a drowning hazard associated with them.
3. Solar Liquid Pool Cover
The third type is what is known as liquid solar pool covers. This is by far the most practical and economical type of cover.
Essentially a liquid pool cover works by pouring a small amount of the chemical into the pool and just like that you have a cover.
Do liquid solar pool covers really work?
A lot of people think that this is just some sort of gimmick for pool stores to sell more products, but research is pretty clear that these covers have a measurable effect on the evaporation and cooling of the pool. And remember it is evaporation that is primarily responsible for cooling the water.
How do liquid solar pool covers work?
They work by producing a film that covers the surface of the pool. Of course, the first reaction you might have is “Oh I’m not putting some slimy oily substance into the water I spend so much time and money to keep clean.” That certainly is a valid reaction, but liquid pool covers don’t work that way.
The coating the liquid cover applies to the surface of the pool is alcohol based so it has no oily feel, and it will not produce any type of “scum line”. It also naturally evaporates and will not clog or hurt any kind of filter or heater.
When swimming it splashes away it is biodegradable and will not harm pets or children if it is ingested while swimming or lapping up in the case of the dog or cat.
Pros:
- Cheap. You get a lot of bang for the buck. It is not going to heat the pool or stop the evaporation as well as the tarp or the bubble wrap, but cost-wise, it is hundreds less.
Research shows that a liquid solar blanket prevents pool temperature drops of up to 5 degrees.
- Easy peasy just pour it in.
No storage
No hazards
Cons:
The only downside to it is you have to reapply once a week or more depending on how much you use the pool. An average size bottle will last approximately 3 months or the season, again depending on use.
Save with holiday discounts
Pool Masters carries
Aqua Blanket
Aqua Blanket, the liquid pool cover, delivers water conservation by dramatically reducing pool water evaporation by up to 40% all year long. Conserve water AND preserve the beauty and instant availability of your pool with ease.
Features:
- Energy-saving invisible barrier
- Saves money
- Extends swim season
- Greatly reduces heat loss
- Dramatically reduces water evaporation
- Safe, non-toxic, biodegradable
- Compatible with all sanitizing methods
Safe for all pool surfaces, including vinyl
Enjoy all of the benefits of a pool cover without the hassle!