Most equipment problems trace back to one thing: the stock gear that came with the pool was never sized for the job. This category covers pumps and filters, cleaning equipment, covers, heaters, and liners, with the actual GPH math behind pump upgrades instead of marketing claims. The above ground pool equipment guide is where to start if your current setup is not keeping up with your pool volume. It also covers when a liner needs replacing versus repairing.
An above ground pool winter cover is built to survive a full season of weather, not just keep leaves out for a weekend, and in a cold climate it only does its job properly when it is paired with an air pillow underneath it. This guide covers what a winter cover actually protects against, the … Read more
A solar cover can raise above ground pool water temperature by 5 to 15 degrees Fahrenheit in direct sun and cut evaporation loss by thousands of gallons a year, which matters a lot if you’re filling from a well. What it cannot do is keep anyone safe. A floating solar cover is not rated to … Read more
Above ground pool covers are not interchangeable, and mixing them up is where most owners get into trouble. A solar cover heats the water and cuts evaporation. A winter cover, paired with an air pillow, protects the pool structure during closing. A safety cover is the only one built to keep a person or pet … Read more
An above ground pool does not have a dedicated vacuum port the way most inground pools do, so the whole manual vacuuming process runs through the skimmer instead. Get that connection wrong, or skip priming the hose first, and you end up pushing air instead of pulling water, wondering why the vacuum head is barely … Read more
Most robotic pool cleaners sold at pool stores are built for inground pools, and dropping one into a vinyl-lined above ground pool is one of the more expensive mistakes I see owners make. An above ground pool robotic cleaner needs a different brush system, a lighter frame, and often a cordless design to work without … Read more
An above ground pool suction cleaner connects to the skimmer opening and rides on the suction your existing pump already produces, so it needs no extra electrical connection and usually costs somewhere between 30 and 100 dollars. It is the cheapest automatic cleaning option for an above ground pool, and for a lot of yards … Read more
Above ground pool cleaning equipment is not a one-size-fits-all category, and a lot of the confusion I hear from owners comes from shopping guides written for inground pools. In this guide I walk through the three cleaning options that actually work on an above ground pool with a vinyl liner: suction-side cleaners, robotic cleaners, and … Read more
A federal regulation that took effect in 2021 changed what kind of replacement pool pump manufacturers are allowed to build, and most above ground pool owners only find out about it when their old pump dies and the replacement options look different than they expected. The short version: the rule targets self-priming pumps, which is … Read more
Sand and cartridge filters both clean your above ground pool water, but they ask something very different of you week to week. A cartridge filter needs pulling out and hosing down every week or two. A sand filter mostly just sits there until the pressure gauge tells you to backwash it, which takes a few … Read more
Sizing a pump for an above ground pool comes down to one number: how many gallons per hour it needs to move to turn over your entire pool volume in 8 hours. Horsepower doesn’t answer that question, GPH does. This walks through the exact calculation for the common above ground pool sizes, shows where the … Read more
The pump and filter are the life support system of an above ground pool, and when they’re undersized, nothing else compensates, not chemicals, not vacuuming, not a better cover. This guide covers the three things that actually determine whether that system is doing its job: whether the pump is sized correctly for your pool’s volume, … Read more