Better Than Traditional Swimming Pool Covers: The Water-Heating Alternative From Home Depot

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Every pool owner knows the importance of a good cover. When you aren't using it, covering your pool is worthwhile to keep animals, leaves, and debris out, and it can help lower energy bills by preventing heat loss after the sun goes down. Available at The Home Depot, the Karl Home Rectangular Blue Solar Pool Cover is a type of bubble cover, an upgraded alternative offering several benefits over a traditional pool cover. Unlike a regular tarp, this solar pool cover is like a giant sheet of bubble wrap, with small air bubbles that trap warm air.

A solar cover not only prevents heat loss but can actually warm up your pool a bit by allowing the sun's heat to transfer to the water. A good pool cover helps keep your pool warm by preventing evaporation, the main source of heat loss, by up to 95%, but the Karl Home rectangular solar pool cover goes a step further. Its bubbles trap air that gets heated by the sun, actively warming your pool when the sun's out and preventing heat loss. A solar cover is a cheap way to heat your pool, though it's not a complete replacement for a heater, and its effectiveness depends on available sunlight. In sunny conditions, it can raise the temperature from around 5 to 15 degrees Fahrenheit during the day. By preventing evaporation and providing a little extra heating, solar pool covers like the Karl Home product could help you lengthen the swimming season.

The Karl Home rectangular solar pool cover has a 12-mil thickness and comes in two sizes, 32 feet by 16 feet and 36 feet by 18 feet, priced at $130 and $168, respectively. While the warranty isn't as long as many competing products, customers praised the pool cover's effectiveness and ease of use, with most reviews citing its durability. One review noted, "This cover is very heavy weight and the seams are perfect making the cover lay flat on the pool surface." However, one buyer did report durability issues, saying their cover started to degrade within nine months of use. A couple of other users noted that the seam on their cover was off-center, requiring extra attention when attaching straps for use with a pool cover reel.

Aside from the heating and efficiency benefits, another advantage of a solar pool cover is that you can cut it with sharp scissors to fit your pool. The Karl Home solar pool cover is rectangular, but if your swimming hole has a unique geometry, such as a circular or organic shape, you're able to form the solar pool cover to fit, provided it's large enough or you buy two and layer them. Note, however, that unlike many tarp-style covers, this one is not anchored to the edge of your pool; it simply floats on top of the water. This means it's not a replacement for a proper safety cover.

The Karl Home solar pool cover is easy to move, which you'll likely do often during the swimming season. Simply unfold it and slide it onto your pool with the "bubble" side facing down. To remove it, pull it off and fold it up. It's safe to store outside in warm weather, but keeping it in a pool shed or in the shade when not in use could extend its lifespan by reducing sun exposure. Alternatively, you can invest in a pool cover reel. When the swimming season's over and it's time to winterize your pool, make sure your solar pool cover is clean and fully dry before putting it into storage.

One major caveat with solar pool covers is that they're not made to last forever. Compared to a standard tarp-style cover, solar pool covers consist of multiple layers, and the "bubbles" are somewhat thin. Over time, due to handling and continued exposure to UV rays, your solar pool cover will wear out. Bubbles might break or the layers might begin to separate, reducing the cover's effectiveness at warming up your pool. You can typically expect a solar cover to last anywhere from two to five years.