Petals in my pool even with a cover?

[James Carter]

Every morning I see a bunch of petals floating around even though my pool’s covered at night. The trees nearby keep dropping stuff, so I’m guessing it’s slipping in somehow? Just wondering if anyone else has this happen or if my cover’s not sealing tight enough.

 

[Henry Thompson]

Yeah, that happens to me every spring, James. Even with a good cover, wind can easily sneak light stuff like petals or small leaves underneath the edges or through the gaps near the skimmer area. They somehow always find a way in.

If it’s really bugging you, you could try using some water tubes or extra weights around the edges to keep the cover sealed tighter. I also started running my skimmer basket sock during that season, it catches all the little debris before it sinks or clogs anything. Short of trimming the nearby trees, it’s kind of a losing battle, but tightening the cover and skimmer maintenance definitely helps keep things cleaner.

 

[Diego Rodriguez]

Yeah, that happens a lot. Wind can sneak small petals under the edges or through gaps near the skimmer, so it doesn’t automatically mean your cover is bad. I usually add a little extra weight around the edges to seal it tighter, and during that season I use a skimmer sock so the petals get caught before they sink.

 

[Ashley Hernandez]

Yep, this happens a lot. Wind can sneak petals under the cover edge or through a gap near the skimmer. I usually add a little extra weight around the edges to seal it tighter, and use a skimmer sock so the petals get caught.

 

[Matthew Collins]

I get the same thing during blossom season and it confused me at first too. One thing I noticed is that petals don’t always come in from the top. If the cover lifts even a tiny bit during windy nights, air moves underneath and basically funnels light debris in from the sides. Once the pump kicks on in the morning those petals float right out toward the middle and it looks like they somehow appeared on top of the water.

Another thing to check is the area around the skimmer opening. A lot of covers have a small gap there for the skimmer throat or the return line, and that’s enough space for really light stuff like petals or pollen to sneak through. I started noticing most of mine were collecting right near the skimmer first thing in the morning.

What helped a bit for me was tightening the cover edges and adjusting the pump timer so the pool runs early in the morning. That way anything that slips in overnight gets pulled into the skimmer basket before it spreads around the pool. During heavy bloom weeks my filter pressure even creeps up a couple psi because those tiny bits add up fast. Spring pool maintenance is a constant battle with trees honestly.