Did I goof with winter cover?

[Jerry Reeves]

We spent the weekend getting our AG pool ready for closing and finally installed the winter cover yesterday. After the appropriate water treatment for the last week or so, we got the pool sparkling clean, lowered the water level well below the skimmer and return, put the air bags in place and installed the winter cover. I should add we just had the pool installed this summer and are new to swimming pools. Upon opening the winter cover package and reading the instructions, they said that the cover should actually touch the surface of the water and that we should then add water to the top of the cover to about a 4 inch depth once installed to keep the wind from whipping it around. While I certainly understand the principal, I thought the idea was to have the water and debris "roll off" the cover over the winter season. Did we make a mistake with the way we installed the cover? How about if we tied a couple of straps over the top of the cover to help minimize the effects of wind?

[IMherDad]

Your water won't just roll off like you thought. You want some water on top of the cover to help hold it down when the wind comes whippin later in the fall and winter. Some water on top is good. Too much water can be a bad thing.

Best way we found to help hold the cover down is go to your local Home Depot or Lowe's and find yourself some clips (that look like jumper cable clips). They are covered in a rubber material and cost around maybe .79 cents each. The make one size that is a large and then some little ones as well. We got both last year and never had a problem.

Hope that helps!

[Jerry Reeves]

Thanks for the tip ImHerDad. We did use cover clips in conjunction with the cable that threads through the cover eyelets. It certainly seems quite secure around the perimeter. We'll keep an eye on it and see how badly the wind whips it. Do you happen to use airbags or inner tubes under your cover or do you let it touch the water?