Cleaning the winter cover... why?

[waterbear]

Well, my mother taught me never to put away anything dirty!

Seriously, the only thing I could think of is that the stuff sitting on the cover all summer could cause damage or start to mold.

[Watermom]

Well, my mother taught me never to put away anything dirty!

And we all know that Moms know best!

[Spensar]

I don't clean it. I lay it out to dry and fold 'er up. We don't have a good spot, with the best on the driveway plus garden plus lawn, so it would be clean one side, flip and the other is full of dirt from the ground anyway - so, no wash. I'm in a solid winter area so I open and close to clear water and the cover is frozen solid most of the time. I put it on as late in the year as possible to, so it is pretty clean. There are plenty of maple tree seeds, leafs and other vegetation to clean up anyway, and the bit of extra dirt from the cover is marginal.

[CarlD]

My winter cover is similar--comes off pretty clean as it's a safety mesh and when the spring melt comes the water dissipates.

[Watermom]

I do clean my cover on years that I use it (although some years I don't bother with it) and I agree, it is a big pain to clean! I spread it out on my driveway and hose it off. Sometimes a little scrubbing with a broom is needed. Let it dry, turn it over, repeat. Then, fold it up and put it away. A big pain in the rumpus but I just cannot put it away dirty. Not my nature.

[scottturner]

I haven't cleaned mine for years and have had no issues. I make sure it is dry and swept off, but the time it takes to scrub off the dirt/stains (I feel) is better spent elsewhere.

[Watermom]

I don't use my winter cover anymore. Too much trouble. I just leave the pool uncovered. No problems.