That’s amazing! On behalf of my fellow rescue peeps - THANK YOU!

😂

Thanks! But more frustration and desperation. 😂

Hi. I used 2, 8 foot strips. I wanted to go beyond the step insert on both sides so the corner wouldn’t tear from pulling. Drilled the holes with them together so it would be even. They aren’t stiff. I mean, if you pick them up from the middle they’ll arch. I got them at Lowe’s and the 8 foot were the longest they had. I’m pretty sure they’re vinyl. It’s a salt water pool so I wanted something that wouldn’t get eaten by the salt. I spaced out the nuts/eye bolts just by eyeballing distance between.

Heres a link with a bit more detail? kzfaq.info/get/bejne/ntWkg69ox9nJc4E.htmlfeature=shared

@@renate19861958 thank you. Got the link as well. I’m having trouble finding the vinyl strip. Can you provide me the width and thickness of the ones you used? Or perhaps even a link. I have not been able to find it at Home Depot or Lowe’s.

@@marcgordondotca hang on. Let me go to the web site. I’ll be back. 😂

@@marcgordondotca I apologize. It’s PVC I believe. When I got it, 10 years ago, I went to the baseboard trim area in lowes. It’s the lightest weight. Mine was 8’x2”x1/4”. Not exact measure on the 2” & 1/4”. We have a downpour here so I kind of winged it. It’s raining. Depending on how heavy your cover is you may want something wider. I think the PVC is lightweight. I’d go to Lowe’s and make sure it’s lightweight. I knew I didn’t want wood. www.lowes.com/pd/Royal-Building-Products-0-625-in-x-1-5-in-x-8-ft-S4S-PVC-Trim-Board/5013353083

Hope you enjoy

OMG! Thank you so much! I am so happy for you! I’d love to see a pic. Tag me if you post one!❤ love the knots idea!

Yes. I tried to makes sure I had enough. How about I video a better closeup tomorrow and tag you?

I’m sorry. Totally forgot to get the pic for you. Bear with me.

Great! This is such a good idea , I want to get it right. Thanks for responding @@renate19861958

Hi. Yes. Two pieces one on top of the cover and one below with the solar cover between. I’m glad the trim is 8 foot. My step opening is 6’ so I made sure the trim extended evenly on both sides so the cover wouldn’t tear. Before that, I put the two pieces of 8’ trim together. I drilled a hole through both at the same time. That way the holes line up. It’s easier to be in the water to put it all together. There’s a total of 5 bolts. They are, in order, 1 bolt, 2 eye bolt, 3 bolt, 4 eye bolt, 5 bolt. Getting those covered nuts on was the toughest. To get the right size bolts & nuts, I took the trim (got it at Lowe’s) to the hardware section and had the guy help me get the right length bolts to go through the two pieces of trim & the cover. (If you have a piece of solar cover, take a piece with you so you get the right length) Make sure the eye bolts are under the cover so when you pull, and it lifts the cover, it doesn’t scoop a bunch of water. I used one length of rope. I fed it through one eye bolt, then through the next and knotted it in the middle. Kind of like a triangle. Make sure there’s enough rope for the length of the pool. Mine is at least 24 feet. I have a salt water pool so the rope does deteriorate after time. I have arthritis in my hand and a thicker rope is easier to pull than a thin piece. Any more questions, just ask!😊👍

At about 45 seconds in you can see the bolts.

At 1 min 42 seconds you can see how the rope is attached. The bolts you buy should give you the size on the pack so that’s the drill bit you would use for the holes. The lowes guys are super helpful. Show them the video, just those sections I mentioned, and they should fix you up.

Uploaded a video of the bolts.

Video is up.

Hi. Leaf blower doesn’t work for me. Leaves are still damp on the cover. Leaves are a pain. Leaves came early here in PA. We usually don’t get them until October. Sadly it’s my creeper and the net. There is a remote controlled leaf picker upper for the pool. Not sure of that would help.

Absolutely it stops evaporation. The bad part is if you have several days of high temps, the solar cover will make the water pretty warm. But I keep my pool at 86°. I have a heater. On a hot day I can go from 86 to 90 and more depending on temps.

@@renate19861958 thank you for answering me so quickly ,.. and again. ,.. I love your invention !

Yes, with a solar blanket, your pool will lose no water to evaporation. What's more, evaporation doesn't just lose water, it loses your pool's heat, too. And lots of it! Transforming liquid into vapor takes a tremendous amount of energy (and that energy goes with the vapor!). As an example, think about how long it takes to boil a pot of water on your stove. That's just raising the liquid's temperature from tap water temperature (55 degrees F) to boiling (212 degrees F). Now consider how much longer it takes for that pot of boiling water to completely evaporate! That water is still 212 degrees F, and all that additional added boiling energy simply goes into transforming water's physical state from liquid (at 212 F) to vapor (at 212 F)! Pool-temperature water actually takes more energy that boiling-temperature water to make that liquid- vapor transformation because the liquid molecules are vibrating less energetically... so they are more strongly bound to their neighboring water molecules. So, when your pool is losing an inch of water per week due to evaporation, you can also view that as an equivalent energy loss (to the air) of boiling all that water on your stove. Once I figured that out, I regarded heating my pool like heating a ginormous (35,000 gallon) pot of water on the stove. Crazy! I stopped heating my pool, and instead bought a great-fitting solar blanket pool cover. And for swimming during winter (here in the SF Bay Area the pool gets down to 53 F in the dead of winter) I just bought a shortie wetsuit and neoprene hood.

This was the only way I figured out how to do it. The video was for the volunteers in the rescue but it’s all over. And that’s cool. I’m not sure what those plastic things are you’re taking about? There’s that thing where the yarn goes up through the hole and your basically knitting? Good luck!😊

LOL thanks.

Hi. I’m single. It was a choice between a new car and a saltwater pool. I chose to wait with the car. $32,000. Saltwater is easiest to maintain and better for my psoriasis skin. This was in 2008. I live in central PA and, since I’m older, I also got a heater. I maintain the water at 86°. This helps with arthritis, keeps the pool open longer and i can stay in for hours and not get too cold from hypothermia. If you decide to do this, let me know. I’ll give some things to keep an eye out for when they build. Example: - more jets. Especially in the steps if possible. Great on your back. If the jets are strong enough, you can swim in place too. The basic jets keep water circulating. - Hand holds that aren’t metal because they get way too hot. - careful where the pump and heater are so you can access all the buttons. - have your pool fuse box near your pump and all that or you’ll be running inside to your breaker box. - pool lights for at night was a waste of money for me. - get the creeper cleaner (dolphin). Worth every penny. The wifi connection is a joke though. Have to be within 3 feet of the base to connect. I can push a button if I have to go within 3 feet! I opted for no diving board because it’s a smallish pool and I didn’t want the liability. Probably more info than you expected. 🤪 And all my animals learned how to get out of the pool from all areas within just in case they accidentally fall in. And they will. I pay about $300 to close the pool every year because I don’t want to be worried about pipes freezing. Opening the pool is simple but the winter cover is a pain. You’ll need 2 people.

Oh - seal the concrete. Salt water wreaks havoc with concrete. Be careful with the edge. Mound the soil over your pipes. After a year or 2, dirt will settle. I ended up with a little pond there. Had to fill the dip with dirt. Double check the cost of the water. May be cheaper to fill with a hose. I do like the variable speed pump. If you put a fence around it? Watch how the gates swing. I got a double gate for more room at the end.

No. The one you see in the tutorial is 1” wide by 10” I believe. And I’ve done 2” by 20”. Sadly I’m not mathematical enough I figure ratios. So I experiment. About double the length of what you want the toy to end up being would be a good start?

We sell them for various rescues at $1.00 each. I can get 40 out of one yard if I remember ow to cut them. LOL but I don’t sell online. Too cheap and the patterns change depending on fabric on sale.

Hi. I don’t sell them except at local fundraisers and craft shows. It’s hard now for so many and I wish you the best of luck.

OMG! That’s amazing! As a rescuer myself, you don’t know how much this kind of thing is appreciated by the staff and the animals.

Thank you for taking the time to comment! 🥰

Hi! I mass make these for a rescue I work with. We sell them for $1.00 each. It would be too labor intensive to put Velcro on or any other opening to put fresh in. 😉 but we’re a rescue so we want repeat customers. You could get a catnip spray and spray it after you wash it.

Hmmm…I suppose you could. Not sure how to do the ends. The hardest part is how long 3 pieces of solid fleece strip you’d need. May be better off using three loooonnnggg lengths of rope. Then google knots (sailing sites) and find a knot that does what you want with the ends you are using. I imagine mountain climbing sites can help with that as well.

Hi. It just means to go forward and backward. On seeing the pillow closed the ends hold better when the cat chews on the toy.

Thank you! Every once in a while my brain cells fire!😂✌️

You can do what you like with the colors. It’s when you have patterns your looking for in the finished product that makes a difference. I used 4 colors to make it easier to see but when I use two, I make sure to braid it the same color order. If the pattern doesn’t matter, go crazy 😜 🤣👍

Okay Tysm!

Holy cow!! That’s amazing!

Thanks. Getting ready to put a new cover on.

Thank you. He was such a sweetheart!

Thank you very much!

The only thing I’d change is I would tie the rope in a knot at the eye bolts so the rope triangle doesn’t shift off center.

Yes. I was taking my mom t see her husbands grave.

What a marvelous idea. Maybe make extras and donate to a rat rescue! Hmmm wonder how natural materials would work.

No problem! Thank you for responding!

Yoir welcome. I sell these for a rescue group. Keep them consistent with good colors and you can make a few bucks.