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A solar cover is critical for a pool for various reasons, like keeping it warm and ensuring it remains clean. Below I have reviewed the top five products that you can add to your facility.

Top 5 Solar Cover for Above Ground Pool Reviews

Here are the top five solar covers that you should consider adding to your pool. 

1. Sun2Solar Blue 10-Foot-by-16-Foot Rectangle Solar Cover

If you are like me, you should go for a bubble pool cover like this Sun2Solar model. It features thousands of bubbles that help to retain the heat during the chilly days and nights.

I also find the blue color to be attractive, and it is model that minimizes water evaporation by 95%. That means you can save on water and pool chemicals.

It is also easy to trim the edge to ensure that it fits perfectly around your pool. And it is a cover that keeps the dirt out of a pool.

2. Sun2Solar Blue 4-Foot-by-8-Foot Rectangle Solar Cover

Another model from Sun2Solar that I find to be effective is this 4-by-8-foot cover. It has an appealing blue color and can minimize water evaporation by up to 95%. 

The model lets you and your friends jump into the pool during the evening without worrying about cold water. You can also trim it to fit your need, and you don’t need a professional to do that.

It is also an affordable model that gives value for the money.

3. Blue Wave NS515 14-mil Solar Blanket 

I love the Blue Wave brand for providing high-quality solar pool covers, and that is true of this model. It can easily cover your pool and even increase its temperature by 15 degrees F during the sunny days. 

Besides, it is a cover that reduces heat loss during cold days and nights. I like its 14-mil material since it makes it durable, giving you value for money.

The model also minimizes evaporation by 95%.

4. Thermo-Tex 2831224 Swimming Solar Pool Cover

Thermo-Tex 2831224 is a model that can prolong your swimming season and minimize your pool’s heating cost. It is also able to reduce water loss, meaning that you don’t need to add chemicals to your pool regularly.

I love the UV stabilized polymer material that this cover is made from since it enables it to last for years. It also comes with a three years warranty and is a lightweight model.

5. Intex Solar Cover for 12Ft Diameter Easy Set and Frame Pools 

I love this pool cover because it easily fits on a 12 feet round facility without any problem. It can minimize evaporation by up to 95% and retains a lot of heat. 

One thing I found to be useful with this cover is the drain holes that let rainwater to pass to prevent damage. It also comes in a storage bag that you can use to carry it to your store.

Conclusion 

The best solar cover for the above ground pool plays many roles, such as heating the water, retaining the heat, preventing dust from entering your pool, and reducing evaporation. Choose a durable model that can last for years. 

Having a swimming pool means that you need to check the chemical composition of its water. Testing for total chlorine, calcium hardness, and pH should be part of your weekly maintenance. 

Sometimes, problems can develop that lead to discoloration due to metals or algae in the pool. Iron can make the water to look greenish or brown, and copper can result in greenish water. 

Manganese can make the walls to have black stains. To clean these metals out of your pool, you need a pool sequestrant. 

What is a Sequestrant?  

Sequestrants or chelants are chemical compounds made to bind liquified metal salts in a pool. You can add them to your cleaning formula for two main reasons:

• To dissolve scale on equipment surfaces 
• To keep hardness ions like magnesium and calcium from precipitating 

While acids dissolve scale, alkaline and neutral cleaning solutions often require sequestrant material to clean and provide hardness of ions.

Some models work by ensuring every hardness ion is kept bound (complexed) by a sequestrant molecule or stoichiometric sequestrants. These materials are needed for various cleaning systems, mainly when you reuse cleaning solutions, to provide stability of the cleaner against scale precipitation. 

Some sequestrants work as threshold cleaners. Their molecules effectively prevent the development of scale crystals in solutions so that a few sequestrant molecules can easily stabilize a huge number of scales creating ions. 

A threshold agent is mixed with an acid or alkaline solution to prevent scale formulation when rinsing your pool, especially hard water one. One strong sequestrant pool that is quite strong is ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid or organic acid, and it doesn’t act as a threshold agent. 

Carboxylate, phosphonates, and tripolyphosphate polymers can function as both threshold and stoichiometric agents. Thus, you can use them with strong sequestrants or individually, depending on what you are cleaning. 

Sequestrant for Pool Water: Cleaning Minerals 

Let’s look at the things you will need:

• Sequestrant 
• Pool test kit
• Pool shock 
• Muriatic acid
• Sodium carbonate 

Here are the steps that you will follow:

1. Test your swimming pool water to find out if it is unbalanced. 
2. Scrub the walls and bottom of your pool with a bush to get rid of metal particles and stains.
3. Add a metal sequestrant into your pool – follow the package’s instructions.
4. Leave the filter to operate for 48 hours to get the metal out of the water.
5. Remove and clean the filter at least four times during this process to get rid of removed metal.
6. Shock your pool using chlorine.
7. Let the filter to run for 24 hours.
8. Test the water pH and adjust accordingly using sodium carbonate to boast pH (alkalinity) or muriatic acid for lower pH (boasts acidity).

Note: Check your pool’s equipment like heaters and pipes since they can also cause corrosion. Replace them regularly.

Final Word

Sequestrants are a good product that you can add to the cleaning solution to remove metals from your swimming pool. You can follow the above steps to get a clean swimming pool (above ground pool or inground pool)

Having a swimming pool in your yard is amazing. But it is even better if your pool is heated. 

Sadly, the manufacturers of pools make it seem as though heating a pool is a complicated process. Although that process might seem like it requires rocket science, we are here to help you make your DIY solar pool heater using a black hose.

Let’s get started.

Do You Need a Solar Heater?

Some places enjoy warm weather that makes the pool to remain heated throughout the year. However, when night comes, the pool can become cold and be impossible to swim in. 

That is why it would be beneficial to make a black hose solar pool heater for warming your pool during the day to guarantee night use. Making such a heater is easier than you might have thought.

How to Make a DIY Solar Heater

All you need to make your solar heater is a black garden hose and something to coil the hose on and hold it in the right position. After that, you join it to your pool filter so that the water can pass via the system before it returns to your pool.

The idea behind that is to filter the water before it gets warmed up. Alternatively, you can use a water pump to take the water via the black hose system.

Another way is to connect the water heater between your pool and faucet to warm the water before it fills your pool. That way, you won’t need to depend on the pump but the force of the water as it comes from the faucet.

When it comes to the length of the heater, you can use a long tubing as you would want or a short one. About 100m is ideal for warming the water – a short one won’t heat the water completely.

You can coil the garden hose on thin wood pieces and hold it together with plastic ties. That is the most difficult part of making a DIY solar heater and the most expensive one.

The heater also requires some adapters to connect it with the filter. You should ensure that the tubing remains tight to prevent water from leaking out. 

How the Heater Works 

The working is straightforward. Since it is come in black color, the heater will absorb heat during the day and transfer it to the water. The longer the hose, the more the heat and the more the water that will warm.  

But you should note that a longer system will require the water pump or filter to work even harder to push the water via the tubing. Get the right balance between the hose length and the power needed to push the water via the tubing.

In Conclusion 

It is very easy to make your solar pool heater using a garden hose, some woods, and ties. With the right material, you can have a warm swimming pool that you can use during the chilly nights.