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Swimming Pool Solar Panels

Prolong Your Pool Season

Swimming pool solar panels are a great way to extend your swimming season by several months each year.  Use these pool solar panels with a solar pool cover and possibly a pool heater and you will be swimming year round.

above ground pool solar blanket

These units are quite easy to install.  They attach into the return line.  The hose going from your filter back into your pool.  You just need to lower the pool water level below the return, or cap off the return and skimmer.  Hook the return hose to the solar water panel and add a second hose back to your pool return.

Your existing filter powers these units so you have no additional electric output.

swimming pool solar panel
Solar heaters for above ground pools are becoming more popular every year.  It was not long ago you had to make your own or adapt a standard house unit to your pool.  Now they are made by several manufactures and include all of the hardware needed to attach to just about any above ground filter system.

Adding extra swim time each season, or adding a few more degrees, is as easy as adding another panel.  They can be mounted on a roof, next to the pool, in a field or hanging from a fence.

If you do need to install the unit a long distance from the pool a separate pump is recommended.  Otherwise your existing filter pump is all you need.

The Sun Heater is a good economical choice for your first solar pool heater, or an add on to an existing system.  In The Swim carries these solar pool heaters for above ground pools and can ship one to your house in time for early summer swimming.

AquaQuik Aboveground Solar Pool Heater
These are new for above ground pool owners and offer an affordable way add a few degrees of warmth to a pool.  As you can see, this unit takes up a lot less space than a standard solar panel, and that could be an important consideration for many pool owners.


 

Pool Solar Panel

SmartPool SunHeater-Solar Heating System (#ad)

 

Solar Panel Reviews

I have not used this unit but it is one I would try. The positive reviews are great, you can pretty much expect an increase of 10 degrees in your pool water temperature. The negative reviews were mostly about leaks. This is also a problem with all above ground equipment. It comes down to this, teflon tape alone will not prevent leaks. I tape and pipe dope all my fittings and never have leaks. The first reviewer agrees with me.

Nice system easy to connect everything but the connections all leak the unit being all black the connections are still loose even with a ton of Teflon tape on the threads going to use joint compound to seal everything and try again, when I did have it connected you could feel a noticeable temp diff in the water and raised the water temp 2 degrees after only a few hours.

A tad apprehensive, but this product warmed our 15x30 above ground by 10 degrees in 4 days.

I live in central Minnesota and have been using this to heat my 18 foot Intex pool. The last few years we have had a 10 foot pool without a heater and the water has always been on the cold side so I purchased this hoping it would make the larger pool more comfortable. What a difference. By the second day of use with this our pool was warm enough for us to swim in for hours at a time. Make sure to attach the intake and return on the correct side of the heater or the water will not warm. There is a sticker on the tube of the end that should be connected to the pump and then back out to the pool. If it is not marked or difficult to determine just uncap the tubes and look through them. The end tube that is divided in the center is the tube to hook up to. As you look at it, you will see a small hole in the center divider which I am assuming is for pressure relief. The other end tube has nothing blocking the water from entering through the intake and going directly back to the pool.

Warms the water about 10 degrees.

Works good.

These really do help bring the temperature up quickly. We had one last year and added one more this year.

I have a 24 ft round above ground pool. I bought a pair of these 10 years ago. You can expect to raise your pool temp 5-10 degrees with this system. Prior to using this system I was using a solar blanket ( which worked, but not as well, and the taking off to swim, then putting it back on, became a real chore- I no longer use the blanket at all). One of the pair must have been a factory defect, because I had to plug several of the channels in that unit over the last 10 years because of leaks. Finally this year, and yet another leak, caused me to purchase a replacement unit. So far all is well, and the other unit is still going strong. I recommend this system( even with the factory defect) because 5-10 degrees can make a real difference in choosing to swim or not. I would recommend you consider purchasing the optional diverter valve which allows you to use the solar heater or bypass it. I bypass the heater at night( which keeps the heated water in the pool), then turn the valve in the morning to use the heater. As a note: I obtained 6 wooden pallets, painted them black, set them on the side by side next to my pool, rolled out the solar panels onto the pallets, made the connections, easy peasey. In the fall, I disconnect, roll up the solar panels, stack the pallets and solar panels out of the weather. In the spring I start over again- it's worked well for me.

There are pros and cons but this is a unit I would try.

 

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