Surprised how much water I lost to wind this week, not a leak

Started by Bill Hartman · · 6 replies
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#1
Had a stretch of dry windy days here in Ohio and came out Tuesday to the water down almost two inches from where I left it Sunday. First thing I thought was great, now I got a leak to chase on a 15 year old liner. Grabbed a bucket, did the bucket test for a couple days and it tracked almost even with the pool, so it was just evaporation working overtime with that wind whipping across 27 feet of open water. Never seen it move that fast just from weather. Makes me think about finally trying a solar cover for real instead of just talking about it every spring. Anybody else get caught off guard like that or am I just slow to notice.

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#2
Bill, two inches in two days doesn't surprise me one bit, I've logged almost that much off my 20x40 during a stretch of wind without a drop of rain, it's right there in the binder next to last August's dates. Wind across open water does more than people give it credit for, more than straight sun on a still day in my experience. Never run a solar cover myself, safety cover's the only thing that's ever gone over mine in the off season, so can't speak to how much that would've saved you.
#3
Tom saying wind beats straight sun for evaporation, I'd push back a little, down here in Mobile it's the combination that kills me, still humid air actually slows it some but add wind and no humidity like Bill's dry stretch and it'll pull water fast either way.. good gauge for a leak chase though, bucket test never lies.
#4
Earl's dry air point matches what I saw, zero humidity that week and it was like the pool had a straw in it. Still debating the solar cover, mostly cause I know myself and it'll end up folded in the shed by June.
#5
Had almost this exact scare back in our first summer here, saw the water down a good inch and a half after a windy front came through and panicked thinking the fiberglass shell had a crack already. Did the bucket test like Bill and it matched right up, just evaporation, felt kinda dumb after but better than tearing the yard up looking for a leak that wasnt there. The dry air thing Earl mentioned tracks for us too, Texas wind without any humidity behind it just eats the water level. Never bothered with a solar cover myself, between three kids wanting to jump in whenever and me not wanting to deal with pulling it on and off I just top mine off with the hose every week or so and dont think twice about it anymore.
#6
We get that same thing here in Florida with the wind off an afternoon storm front, funny as that sounds since you'd think the rain would make up for it. I keep a grease pencil mark on the tile at the skimmer and some weeks I'm topping off a good inch and a half even with rain the night before, just from the dry air that blows in behind the front. Bill, your two inches over a couple days doesn't shock me a bit, those dry windy stretches are sneaky that way. Gene always says the pool looks calm as glass but it's working overtime underneath.
#7
yeah same boat, phoenix wind plus zero humidity is brutal on the swamp, i lost almost 2 inches over one weekend and had the same leak panic moment Dana described. did my own version of the bucket test and it matched the pool drop almost exactly so i just chalked it up to the air sucking it dry. still haven't pulled the trigger on a solar cover either, diving pool's an odd shape and i figure i'd be fighting it every time i wanted to jump in.