I have a 24 ft AG and a solar cover. It is amazing the difference in the water temp when the cover is used. I had one a few years ago that got destroyed thanks to my two dogs. (The edge of it was hanging off the deck and they managed to get a hold of an edge, pull it into the yard, and have a party.) It didn't take too many days after I no longer had it on the pool to realize how much heat we were losing at night. Yes, they are somewhat of a pain to take on and off. I am still thinking about the easiest thing to do for my pool, but in the meantime, I just drag it off my pool and put it on my deck. I can pull it off easily myself - takes about a minute. (Granted, I am not folding it and covering, etc. like I should. I just pull it off the pool and drag it under a large umbrella to shade it during the day.) In the evening, I usually put it on right before I get out of the pool. Again, not hard to drag back on the pool - 2-3 minutes to get it all spread out. If I'm not in the pool, it it easier to have somebody on the opposite side of the pool to help me put it on.

A little bit of a pain, but definitely worth the couple of minutes. My water is currently about 86 degrees. Without the cover, I struggled to keep it at 78-80 - and that is even with my solar heater. Like I said, still trying to find a good way to roll it up and remove it from my pool. Don't really want to pay $150 to buy one of the reels, but ultimately may have to if I can't figure something else out. Anyone with a large round AG with a good idea, please share and show pics.

(Carl noted that the cover collects a lot of stuff in the spring. That is true, but without it, the stuff would be dropping in the water anyway.)