Solar Fish??

[rmeden]

I'm sure this was in the old forum but should probably be asked again...

Anyway, has anyone used those cheap "Solar Fish" instead of a bubble cover?

The theory is it places a thin layer of something (oil?) to reduce evaporation.

It supposidly works better if you don't run the pump (or maybe redirect the returns from the surface)

Does it work? I don't want to mess with a bubble cover, but could use some cheap heat gain.

Robert

[waterbear]

I did some online research on the solar fish a while back. The liquid inside is also available in gallons by the company that manufactures it for commercial pool use. It has some type of propriatary material in an isopropol alcohol carrier and if there is NO disturbance of the water surface from anything (even the wind) it can help keep a couple of degrees of heat in the pool overnight. Once the water surface is disturbed the effect is lost until it is calm again. It might work for you. I decided it was not worth the money for me to try it.

[Brock]

Since we have an indoor pool we tried it when it first came out. It was better then nothing, but not by much. If I had to guess I would say no cover was 0 and the bubble cover was 100% the fish was about 20%. We even actually dropped what was rated for our pool surface area, and then tried doubling it with little added effect. Not enough to allow us to leave the cover off, but again better then nothing at all. The heat loss was still way too much and the humidity never really came back down after swimming until we covered it.

Better then nothing, but not by much and as water bear said if it was outdoors and windy I wouldn't think it would do much of anything.

[Waterworks]

I have literally hundreds of customers that swear by the solar fish. I swear I must be losing money in my store from lost solar blanket sales. Of the hundreds of happy customers, we have probably 10 or so who have said they would not use them again. This product has been around for many years (~30?), and apparently there is science to support the manufacturer's claims. The fact remains that wind, water flow and someone jumping in the pool will disturb the surface tension of the water, thereby negating the positive effect of the fish.

Brad
www.waterworkspools.com

[CarlD]

I have literally hundreds of customers that swear by the solar fish. I swear I must be losing money in my store from lost solar blanket sales. Of the hundreds of happy customers, we have probably 10 or so who have said they would not use them again. This product has been around for many years (~30?), and apparently there is science to support the manufacturer's claims. The fact remains that wind, water flow and someone jumping in the pool will disturb the surface tension of the water, thereby negating the positive effect of the fish.

Brad
www.waterworkspools.com

Brad:
It sounds like you are truly baffled as to why they use them. Me too! How many does the average customer spend per year, how much is the average solar cover--per year? If the Fish annual expediture is more than the per year cost of a cover (say a cover costs $200 and lasts 5 years--that's $40/year). So in my example, if they spend more than $40/ year on the fish, you are makin' bucks, bro!
Carl

[waterbear]

Brad:
It sounds like you are truly baffled as to why they use them. Me too! How many does the average customer spend per year, how much is the average solar cover--per year? If the Fish annual expediture is more than the per year cost of a cover (say a cover costs $200 and lasts 5 years--that's $40/year). So in my example, if they spend more than $40/ year on the fish, you are makin' bucks, bro!
Carl

I did a quick check on prices. the basic fish are about $10 a pop and it takes two to treat an inground pool of 16x32 or bigger (one fish treats up to 350 or 400 sq ft surface area).
The deluxe fish with the built in dosing pump( about $20-$25 a pop) will treat 800 sq fot for a month or 400 sq ft for 2 months but I have read either on here or on a different board I visit is that the pump and battery don't last that long and they go dead in a week or 2.
The heatsavr liquid by the gal costs about $60. Dont know how much or how long it will treat but it does have to be dosed on a regular basis since it biodegrades in a few days.

Seems like a solar blanket and reel is a better deal to me!

[rmeden]

Due to the size and shape of my pool, a bubble cover would be a pain and I know once folks start swimming it wouldn't go back on!

If the fish help a little over the next 30-60 days, that's a plus for me. I have some floor returns so I can keep the water pretty still. (as long as the wind isn't blowing)

I'll post how it goes!

Robert

[martyhammer]

The reason I tried to avoid replacing my solar bubble cover by using the fish, regardless of apparent/real price difference, was because of the inconvenience I found with daily use of a cover. While the cover is on, nothing dropping onto the cover, e.g., leaves, dirt, etc., moves to the skimmer (which is essentially useless while the cover is on). It's real easy to roll up the cover for a swim session, but then all the dirt from the cover dumps into the end of the pool where the spool is, and then I've got a major amount of junk to try to scoop up with a net. In other words, my pool stays much cleaner, with much less effort, with no cover.

All that said, I count not perceive any positive contribution via the fish and hence I'm coverless and fishless.

-Marty

[PhantomAndy]

I don't mean to repeat what may have already been written, but I'll try to be brief.

I tried this last year and here is what I found (I'm located in Kentucky where the temps are moderate).

The fish are utterly worthless. They probably only reduce evaporation by 20-30% (I'm being generous I think). Additionally, to get any significant effect, you MUST turn your pump/filter OFF at night when the temps are the lowest to get the maximum benefit.

Additionally, the first fish I used last year, failed when the fish was 1/2 empty, leaving 1/2 of the 'liquid solar blanket' still in the fish (I used the 'Turbo' model with the 'computer controlled' pump).

The company replaced the defective fish (I was very surprised) but of course it is still very ineffective.

With experience with both the liquid blanket, and a standard bubble cover - I'd have to say that the bubble cover is well worth the effort (just ordered a new one).

If you are frustrated with your bubble cover style solar blanket and don't have a solar cover reel - spring for the $150 or so for an inexpensive model. It only takes me about 30 seconds to remove my 18x40 blanket, and about 2 minutes to put it on (by myself). Very little time, and very effective heat retention.