Does a solar cover help reduce algae growth??

[MTU 5.0]

I have a 24' x 15' AG that sees full sun all day long. I am looking into getting a solar cover and would like suggestions on who makes a quality cover at a good price. In addition, I have a question about algae growth and solar covers.

I know proper levels of free chlorine, cya, proper ph, etc and good filtration are the first step in keeping algae under control, but I am curious if a solar cover would also help deter algae formation? I guess the only way it would do this is by keeping the sunlight from using up the FC.

Assuming a solar cover does help retain FC, which kind is best? Does a colored cover work better than a clear one?

Thanks in advance!!

[brent.roberts]

I suppose to whatever extend a solar cover might sheild the chlorine from UV, I guess it will help.

But I for one am about to swear off solar covers. Our pool / house is located on a hilltop and we get a lot of wind and debris. With solar panels we can get the water to 85+ and lose a few degrees a day. But as time goes on all the little bubbles in the covers start to lose their gas. The cover does not float so well and it gets water on top. Once the water is on top the evaporation starts and we lose 5 degrees a night.

The clear one helped raise the temp faster than tinted or tinted and silvered. Next effort will be with shippers bulb wrap. Larger bubbles and half the price.

But for saving chlorine and fighting algae. I think a minimal effect. Do your topping up of chlorine after the sun is off the pool and let it stay effective all night and forget the bloody cover is you don't need it for heat... and if you do need it for heat ... they're not very good.

[jmcst25]

I have the same question - and would like additional thoughts.

I've noticed that after I leave the solar covers on for a few days straight it may on occassion get slightly cloudy - but then remove it and it clears up. Even though I test and maintain FC levels at night. Looking for leaving it on or off for vacation.

Also -- if you are you dealing with Algae -- should you keep the solar cover on to help maintain CL level or leave it off to let the sun help? (This is just a what if question - and I understand what to do with bleach - jjust looking for how the solar cover effects algae.

Thanks!!!!

[itstoohot]

If you are dealing with algae and you are following the recommended strategy of the folks on this forum, then your chlorine levels will be at shock level for a few days. The solar cover is not as resilient to high chlorine levels as a liner is. The short answer - I think it should be left off for that reason alone.

[huskerfan]

I wouldn't be without my solar blanket/cover. I bought a heavy Magni-clear from Holiday Pools last year and love it. I can't say as that it would reduce algae growth, but it definitely helps keep the temperature of the water stable overnight, and helps keep your chemicals from evaporating too. The biggest asset to me, being surrounded by trees, is that it helps keep my pool clean! Everyone who swims in my pool - and we share it with a lot of our friends and family, can't get over how clean it is! The debris that collects on top of the solar blanket blows off, or it drops off outside and inside of the pool when I roll the cover up, then most of it floats right into my skimmer. I have an awesome setup for my reel, though - off the end of my pool. There are other threads about reels you can check out - many others on the forum use the same method I do. If my cover gets excessively dirty... I roll it up off my pool onto my reel, then unroll it onto the ground on the outside of my pool. As I roll it back up onto my reel I rinse it with a hose with a good sprayer on it. All the debris goes onto the ground and the blanket is nice and clean again. Last winter I left it rolled up on my reel and it wintered just fine.

It is recommended to uncover your pool for at least 2 hours a day, though. I would leave it off longer if you are fighting combined chlorine over .5. I'll admit, though, if we don't swim, I don't take my cover off and have not had any problems. We use our pool almost everyday, though, unless the weather is bad... We get some pretty hefty winds here in NE, and I've never had problems with it blowing off. It's a heavier blanket, though- is stiffer, rolls up and pulls off the reel back onto the pool easily. Can't imagine being without it!

[huskerfan]

PS. The morning after I first put our solar blanket on our pool, I had a scare! One of our cats walked on top of it and was sitting out in the middle of our pool on it! Mind you - we have friends who had a cat get in their pool and it tore up the liner trying to get out, so you know what was going through my mind! The blanket didn't even give as I called her over to the side as she walked on it. I took her off- then swatted her and yelled at her to get away from the pool, lol. Last time I seen her on it.

[chem geek]

I have an electric cover which is thinner than a solar cover and more opaque. It reduces the overnight temperature drop in half -- from 6ºF to 3ºF (when nights are around 55ºF and the pool starts out at 88ºF). It also cuts down chlorine breakdown (loss) from sunlight significantly. It also keeps all the junk out of the pool -- I forgot to close the cover this morning and my wife complained this evening about all the stuff that blew into the pool. It also keeps me from having to clean the cartridge filter (water is very expensive and sometimes in short supply where we live) more than once per season.

It is true that solar covers only last a few years and even the electric cover we have is only warranteed fully for 3 years and then pro-rated after that for a total of 7 years (so you can expect a life of 5-7 years). For us, the cover is worth it, but I can understand the hassle for some of rolling up a solar cover and the expense of having to replace it.

As for your original question about a solar cover and algae, I don't really know the answer. Following this forum's BBB method and Ben's chlorine table should prevent algae. A solar cover will still let sunlight in which algae could potentially use (while hopefully keeping out UV rays that breakdown chlorine).

Richard

[matt4x4]

Based on experience I have to say you should "air" your pool for 2 hours a day minimum while running the pump. If you miss a day, give it an extra 2 hours. If you leave the solar cover on indefinitely, you WILL get chlorine lock within a week, then algae will set in.
2-4 hours of "breathing" allows the chlorine that is eating algae (the chlorine that makes the pool smell) to gas off and leave only the free chlorine in your pool. Some think it keeps their chlorine in the pool longer, in a way it does, but it also keeps the wrong chlorine in your pool which is a bigger problem.
FUI - just because your pool is clean and clear, does not mean you have chlorine in there "waiting" for contminates, it is a continuous cycle without rest, ther chlorine is ALWAYS fighting something whether you can see it or not, I find if you can see it you're on your way to a problem, so keep it where you can't see it.

[chem geek]

Based on experience I have to say you should "air" your pool for 2 hours a day minimum while running the pump. If you miss a day, give it an extra 2 hours. If you leave the solar cover on indefinitely, you WILL get chlorine lock within a week, then algae will set in.

By chlorine lock, do you mean that the chlorine stops working? When this happens, do you measure CC > 0?

This has not been my experience with my opaque cover, but then it isn't a solar cover so perhaps keeping most of the light out inhibits algae growth. I agree that it is absolutely required to have air circulation when shocking and in theory if the chlorine is doing work continually then its byproducts should get "aired out". However, in practice, this hasn't been a problem for me. I'm guessing that in my particular case, there just isn't stuff in the pool for chlorine to "work on" except when we are using it in which case it is opened up for several hours (2-4). The pool gets used about 2-3 times during the week and 1-2 times on the weekend so it does get opened up about every other day or sometimes 3 days. I need to add chlorine about that often anyway.

Since adding liquid chlorine or bleach to the pool seems to perform a bit of a "mini-super-chlorination" effect (at least locally), and since SWG systems seem to have less trouble with their more continual dosing, it would seem that manually adding chlorine every day and keeping the cover open for an hour or two after doing so would be more effective. I've probably just been lucky I haven't had algae problems. Thanks for your post.

Richard