Solar Bubble Pool Covers Can Warm Your Pool and Cut Heat Loss, Here’s What to Know About the Karl Home Option

Solar pool cover bubble cover heating alternative Home Depot, Digi Mart USA News: Pool owners often cover their pools to keep out animals, leaves and debris and to reduce heat loss after sunset. According to a House Digest publisher article, the Karl Home Rectangular Blue Solar Pool Cover, available at The Home Depot, is a bubble-style cover offering benefits over a traditional tarp-style cover.

Unlike a regular tarp, the cover resembles a large sheet of bubble wrap, with small air bubbles that trap warm air. The article says the bubbles can capture heat from the sun and transfer it to the water, which may help warm the pool somewhat while also limiting evaporation, the main source of heat loss.

The article states that a good pool cover can prevent evaporation by up to 95 percent.

The publisher says a solar cover is an inexpensive way to add some heat but is not a full replacement for a pool heater, and its effectiveness depends on sunlight. In sunny conditions, the article says it can raise water temperature by about 5 to 15 degrees Fahrenheit during the day, which may help extend the swimming season.

The Karl Home cover has a 12-mil thickness and is offered in two sizes: 32 feet by 16 feet, priced at $130, and 36 feet by 18 feet, priced at $168. The article notes the warranty is shorter than many competing products. Customers praised its effectiveness and ease of use, and most reviews cited durability, though one buyer reported the cover began to degrade within nine months and a couple of users noted off-center seams that needed extra attention when attaching reel straps.

The cover can be cut with sharp scissors to fit unusual pool shapes, or two can be layered if needed. The article cautions that it simply floats on the water and is not anchored to the pool edge, so it is not a replacement for a proper safety cover.

It should be cleaned and fully dried before winter storage.

The publisher notes that solar covers are not designed to last indefinitely. Because they have multiple layers and thin bubbles, exposure to UV rays and handling can cause bubbles to break or layers to separate, reducing effectiveness.

The article says a solar cover typically lasts about two to five years.