Pool cover: How much water on top is too much, and why hole punch size holes in it

[rj2222]

Hey everybody. Had two questions that have been bugging me.

1) How much water on top of a cover in the moat created by a winter pillow is safe? Nothing's froze here yet but getting there, but rain water is building up on top.
2) The cover I have has what I'd say are hole puncher sized holes in various spots on the cover. What's the purpose of those? And if I put a little like $15 hardware store pump probably made more for backyard ponds and the like on top of the cover to slowly get the water off, if that hole gets into the water am I really just draining my pool at that point?

 

[ajw22]

if that hole gets into the water am I really just draining my pool at that point?

Yup.

You thinking of a pump you put on the cover to drain water off and then remove? If you supervise the pump you can turn it off and remove it when the moat is empty and not let it pump[ pool water.

Or a pump with a float switch you can leave sitting in the moat to drain water?

 

[rj2222]

Yup.

You thinking of a pump you put on the cover to drain water off and then remove? If you supervise the pump you can turn it off and remove it when the moat is empty and not let it pump[ pool water.

Or a pump with a float switch you can leave sitting in the moat to drain water?

more like a cheap submersible fountain pump I already had which would slowly suck all the water out of the moat if i threw it in there.

 

[ajw22]

more like a cheap submersible fountain pump I already had which would slowly suck all the water out of the moat if i threw it in there.

Supervise the pump but if any of the holes are in the moat on the water it will not drain.

 

[rj2222]

Ok, so will have to pull it up by the holes to de-moat it

 

[phonedave]

Did your cover come with holes, or is it just wearing out?

As for a safe amount of water, if you get too much water on the cover, then it will begin to push the pool water out of your skimmer (if it is open) or over your pool walls below the top rail.

Depending on the situation with the holes you have, you may find benefit in placing your pump on an inverted frisbee or bucket lid. As covers get porous, a pump can start to suck pool water right through the weave of the cover.

 

[rj2222]

Cover came with them, almost looks like they used a hole punch every once in a while as they're real clean factory made circles.

 

[Mdragger88]

Sounds like an intex cover. No clue why they chose to add holes except to prevent collapse from water accumulation if there wasn’t enough water in the pool to support the cover.
Unless you think the pool will overflow with the amount of water I wouldn’t worry about it.
If you’re able to “lift” the holes so they don’t rest in the pool water then you can pump water from just the cover. Otherwise you’ll be draining both the pool & the cover. You want to be sure that you don’t put yourself in a situation where the cover is no longer properly supported by the water in the pool.

 

[rj2222]

Yeah, maybe the holes are there to balance it out like you said. Never drained any water from it, so maybe I'm alright here. Guess the water on top mixing with the pool water through the holes isn't a huge concern?

 

[Mdragger88]

The mixing obviously isn’t ideal for the cleanest outcome but it’s nothing like having a mesh cover. It probably won’t make that much of a difference- you may want to try to keep it scooped out so you don’t have decaying leaves sitting there all winter. I recall trying to fight the holes when trying to get it pumped off for a clean removal. At that point I knew I could safely pull the cover more taut as I pumped the water since I was actively removing it.
Mine was a thin black slightly stretchy material that felt like a thick balloon with a very inadequate shoelace to secure it.
I have seen some newer ones that seem much more robust & have fancy clips that go around the legs- not sure if they come with some pools now or if they are purchased separately. Also not sure if they have these holes or not.

 

[rj2222]

Definitely been trying to get the leaves off it as much as possible. Sounds like we might have the same one maybe, mines black with the holes and an almost worthless draw string to tighten it