Above Ground Winter Covers

An above ground winter pool cover has a harder job than most people give it credit for. It has to shed a season of leaves, take the weight of snow and ice, and stay put through every winter wind that comes across an open yard, all while hanging off a thin top rail rather than a concrete deck. This collection carries round sizes from 12' up to 33', plus ovals, so you can match the pool you actually own.

Start with the size and the overlap. Order by your pool size, not the cover size. The manufacturer adds the overlap, which is the extra material that drapes down the outside of the wall and gives the cable something to pull against. Most GLI and Swimline above ground covers use a 3' overlap, while the Doughboy Deluxe covers use 4'. More overlap means more cover hanging down the wall and a more secure hold in wind, and it also means you should not mix up the two when you measure.

Every cover here is a solid cover, so nothing passes through: no sunlight to feed algae, no leaves, no dirt. They install the same way, with a coated cable threaded through the hem and a metal winch that ratchets it tight around the outside of the wall. Three brands cover the range. GLI Pool Products builds the Classic, Estate and Estate Plus lines, stepping up in fabric weight and warranty term as you go. Swimline supplies SuperGuard, SupremeGuard and the heavy-duty SilverKing. Doughboy rounds it out with the Deluxe series.

Two accessories matter more on an above ground pool than an in-ground one. An air pillow goes under the cover before you tighten it: it crowns the cover so debris and meltwater run to the edges instead of pooling in the middle, and more importantly it absorbs the expansion when the water below freezes, taking that pressure off your pool wall. Cover clips and wall bags add a second line of defence against wind. The rest of the closing list lives in pool winterizing and closing supplies, and if you also run an in-ground pool, those sizes are in in ground winter covers.

Closing the pool properly is also the season when a cover doubles as a barrier, which the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance treats as one layer among several rather than a substitute for a fence or a ladder you can remove. Measure your pool, pick your line, and browse the full range of above ground winter pool covers above.