28/04/2026
It was a Saturday morning in Midlothian. Carol was sitting at the kitchen table surrounded by fiberglass pool brochures, a cup of coffee going cold beside her. She'd been dreaming about this for two summers now — a pool in the backyard where the grandkids could splash around, where the family could gather on July afternoons, where she and Bill could actually enjoy their own backyard again.
Bill walked in, refilled both their cups, and leaned over her shoulder.
"You're still looking at those pool books," he said, settling into the chair across from her.
"I can't stop," Carol admitted. "I really want to do this, Bill. The grandkids would love it. But I keep seeing this option called an automatic pool cover and I don't know if it's worth the extra money."
Bill squinted at the brochure. "Is that like the big blue tarp thing our neighbor drags out every fall? The one that takes him an hour and a bad back to put on?"
Carol laughed. "No, nothing like that. An automatic cover is built right into the pool deck. You just turn a key — or press a button — and it rolls across the entire pool in about 30 seconds. No lifting, no folding, no frustration. It looks beautiful too. You'd never even know it was there when it's open."
"Huh." Bill leaned back. "Okay, but why do we need it? We'd be outside with the kids anyway."
Carol set her coffee down. "Would we though? Think about it. We'd be inside making lunch, or grabbing towels, or just sitting on the porch talking to our daughter while the little ones are running around the yard. Emma is four, Bill. Jake just turned two. They are fast. And the pool would just be sitting there — open."
Bill was quiet for a moment.
"I hadn't thought about it that way," he said.
"That's what got me," Carol said. "The cover is strong enough to hold the weight of a full grown adult. So if one of the grandkids wandered over to the edge and fell on it, it holds. And when we go inside, we close it. Thirty seconds. Done. No wondering, no worrying."
Bill nodded slowly. "Okay. That alone might be worth it. But what does something like this actually cost us? On top of the pool?"
"It's an investment upfront," Carol said honestly. "But here's what the pool company told me — and this is the part that surprised me. It actually saves us money over time. A good automatic cover reduces water evaporation by up to 70%. That means we're refilling the pool less, which means lower water bills. And because it keeps the heat trapped in, the heater doesn't have to work nearly as hard."
Bill raised his eyebrows. "So lower energy bills too?"
"Yes. And here's another one I didn't think about — the cover blocks the sun from getting to the water all day. Sunlight breaks down chlorine, so without a cover, you're constantly adding more chemicals to keep the water balanced. With the cover on when we're not swimming, the chlorine lasts longer. We'd spend a lot less on chemicals every season."
"So it's not just a safety thing," Bill said. "It's doing a lot of work behind the scenes."
"Exactly. And it keeps the leaves and debris out too. Anyone who's had a pool knows what it's like to skim that thing every single morning during October. The cover takes care of that. Less cleaning, less wear on the pump and filter, less maintenance overall."
Bill picked up one of the brochures and turned it over in his hands. "And it just rolls out with a key?"
"Key, button, or some of the newer ones you can control from your phone," Carol said. "I kind of love that idea. Close the pool from inside while I'm getting dinner ready."
Bill smiled. "The grandkids are going to think we have the coolest house on the street."
Carol grinned. "That's exactly what I thought."
"Alright," Bill said, standing up and grabbing his coffee. "Call them Monday. Let's get the cover. Let's build the whole thing."
Carol reached across the table and put her hand on his. "I already have the number pulled up."
An automatic pool cover is one of the best decisions a Virginia pool owner can make — for safety, for savings, and for peace of mind. If you're thinking about a fiberglass pool for your family, let's talk about building it right from the start.
