Thanks, guys. One more question..what would you consider "normal" evaporation in the fall with this type of mesh cover, if evaporation is indeed possible? Assuming a 1" loss/week with a couple breezy/windy days and minimal rain one day (basing it on last week's monitoring). The only reason that this drop really caught my eye was the Aquador and the failure of it to keep the water in (with the crack). Otherwise, if I had drained down below the skimmer, I honestly don't know if I would have caught it by now.
I figured this summer that I didn't have any noticeable leaking. The pool went through some water loss that I attributed to evaporation, nothing out of the ordinary that I would consider substantial water loss. The lowest the pool got was halfway down the skimmer during a dry stretch in August with a max level near the top (we had a couple straight days of substantial rain in July)
Thanks for the cover tip. I was thinking about that as well, and if I can't find the leak,and repair it soon, I will have to go that route as an extra precaution.