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Hi all-
No burning questions, although I am groping around for low-budget low-effort ways to warm my pool a bit :-). I'm here to prove I'm human so I can read all the wisdom you folks have gathered; most things seem to say I don't have permission right now.
-Mitch
Welcome to the forum! The best way to get a little warming is to get a solar pool cover. They work by preventing heat loss due to evaporation. http://energy.gov/energysaver/articl...ng-pool-covers There's some good information on them.
Membership updated . . .
Kelemvor is right; solar is the only "low-budget" heating method.
Since you are in California, you may also want to look at some of the polyethylene solar panels. They will give you more warming than a pool cover alone, but of course, they cost more.
Heaters -- gas, propane, heat pump -- are expensive to buy, and at least moderately expensive to operate.
I don't heat my pool but I've been intrigued by the solar panel idea and even more intrigued by the idea of running water through a coiled hose loop. I got this idea earlier this year when I ran my garden hose. The hose had been stretched out a full 100 feet in the sun and when. I opened the spigot, walked to the end of the yard where the hose end lay and turned it on. The water that came out was super super hot and it made me wish I had run it into my pool. Later I thought it would be a good idea to somehow run a set up off the pump that took cold pool water in and pumped it back in the pool after a circuit around a stretched out sun heated hose. Well...I checked youtube ( http://www.youtube.com/results?searc...be.nRTVaqD97Xg ) and don't you know there are dozens of all kinds of jury rigged set ups using hoses....check out the link...
Several folks here use such a setup. However, any actual heater system (including these) would be much more effective with a solar pool cover. That's a first step, then heat the water. Otherwise you're having to add more thermal energy to the water than is lost through evaporation and it makes the job a lot more difficult.
The solar covers DO work. They come in two flavors: Transparent and opaque. Both act as insulators and prevent evaporation. Transparent allow a greenhouse effect to heat the water. Opaque transfer heat by contact with the water. Both can work, and work well. Combine that with solar panels and you can extend your swimming season without actually heating your water with gas or electric. I've been using both a cover and panels for over a dozen years.
We have just tried a cover that looks like bubble wrap, we had it on for the morning and the pool temp increased by 2 degrees, we are in the Bahamas so have plenty of sun, still we were impressed.
Oh, Hey! The folks on Elbow Key! Yeah, the solar cover should be ALL you need there. Use the cover when you are not swimming and:
1) on sunny days it acts as a greenhouse to heat the water
2) on cloudy, rainy days and at night, it acts as an insulator.
3) keeps stuff from getting in the pool
4) inhibits water evaporation, reduces chlorine loss.
5) inhibits pH rising by reducing natural aeration