It's now the latest trend in swimming pools. You don't need to be told that with the cost of energy where it is, heating a pool by conventional means can be quite expensive to say the least. So the hot catch phrase now, is solar heating. So how easy is it and is it in fact cost effective?

Now Thats a Lot of Water to Heat!

The number one biggest problem in heating a pool is the exceptionally large amount of water thats contained in it. You've seen the trouble and expense that people have gone through to have panels installed on their roofs, just to provide heated water for their homes haven't you? Now just imagine the cost and trouble of heating 100 times that amount of water.

Get Ready to Compromise

Even so, the fact is that it is done but to say the least, you're going to have to accept some stark realities. For instance, you will most likely have to compromise your expectations on how warm your pool will actually be. This particularly holds true in winter months when the days are cold and short.

Costs of Heating Solar Swimming Pools

Or if you're determined to have a nice warm pool, all done with solar power, you're going to have to come to terms with what it's going to take in terms of financial resources to do that. You see it might take a heck of a lot of money.

Consider the Combination System

Another thing you may want to consider is the possibility of a combination heating system that uses a standard water heater along with perhaps a passive solar heating system, such as a good quality solar pool cover.

The Bottom Line on Pool Heating

With a system like this on swimming pools the solar pool cover gathers and holds what heat it can, while the standard gas or electric heater brings the temperature up to levels that you have in mind. Also in the spring and fall, you may find that the passive solar system is perfectly adequate operating alone.