Re: set-up for rigid panel solar pool heater, solar blanket
nicks...@ece.villanova.edu
>We have bought a rigid plastic panel solar heating set-up for our
>above ground pool...
>
>At this point, we are planning to have the solar heater laying flat on
>the ground, next to the pool, the only location int h e back yard to
>get sun much of the day...
Is the pool itself in the sun?
>Should we put some kind of barrier down on the grass, or build some
>kind of lumber frame or platform, instead of having it on the ground?
No.
>Also will be buying a solar blanket for the pool, which is 24' round
>above ground...
Solarcovers.com has nice clear vs blue solar covers...
>Any tips for a cheap way to manage daily placement and removal...
They also have interesting $30 60" diameter "sun rings" with 6 magnets
to keep them in a hexagonal kissing pattern (one circle surrounded by 6)
and make them stick and slide together so they can be removed by a person
standing in one position. They recommend 12 for a 24' round pool, which
would leave 48% of the water exposed.
You might make your own 6'x5.19'-tall sun rhomboids with 31 ft^2 of solar
cover and a bent PVC pipe and a 60 degree elbow and 4 magnets... 12 would
cover 83% of a 24' pool in a tight hex pattern, except for the perimeter,
which could have a 2'x12' greenhouse polyethylene film skirt attached to
the pool wall.
Or make a 24' greenhouse polyethylene film pillow with a perimeter PVC
pipe ring and a small tube running across the diameter inside and a float
with an opening at the top of the tube in the center. Deflate the pillow
so it sinks to the bottom for swimming, and reinflate it to float it.
>... Rochester, NY area, if that matters.
With a dark bottom, 1080 Btu/ft^2 of unshaded sun might keep the pool
34.3+0.9x1080/24h = 74.8 on an average 34.3 March day and 51.1+0.9x840/24
= 82.6 in October. For more sun, you might add a reflective half-cylinder
above the north wall of the pool. For more insulation, you might inflate
the pillow with soap bubble foam at night.
Nick