These swim spa covers are, at very best, heavy and cumbersome, and based on what I’ve read and who I’ve talked to, I don’t believe that these covers are very efficient in maintaining the spa’s temperature or chemical integrity.  Additionally, I have to mention how incredibly difficult these tops are to get off of the tub (not to mention how difficult they are to put back on as well). So in the long run, we ended up using our swim spa a lot less then we wanted just because we weren’t up to moving the cover off and back on.

Additionally, because of their sheer size, once removed there really isn’t anywhere to store the swim spa cover without being kind of an eyesore laying near the spa somewhere or actually laying against the side of the spa until your done using it.

After complaint to the spa dealer he talked us into an “upgrade”, the mechanical metal “cover lifters” for our swim spa covers but this product wasn’t very effective in lifting the covers and was also undesirable due to how the covers are positioned at each end of the spa (it blocked our views to both the grilling and garden areas).  (quick side note:  the metal started to rust and looked extremely unsightly just weeks after installed as well).

In any case, looking for a solution to our problems we purchased a relatively new to the market swim spa “roll” cover.  This type of cover not only looked great, but appeared very easy to remove and replace back on the spa.  The one we chose was disturbingly expensive but after our experience with the clumsy foam-filled vinyl tops, we took the chance that this new roll top would solve all of our problems.

Unfortunately, it did not.

The first thing we noticed (living in the sunny state of Florida) with this new roll top was that the beautiful grey color of the top quickly began to fade.  Again, although we live in Florida and get lots of sunshine, we weren’t expecting the color of the top to fade anywhere near this fast.  We hadn’t had the top much longer when we began to notice that when it rained, this cover retained water.

The water would just pool on top of the cover (it appeared to collect between the outer fading fabric and the heavy synthetic underside) and would sit there for days or until we lifted the swim spa cover at an angle to let it run off.  As time went on the water somehow actually made its way into that synthetic underside making it so heavy it was for the most part unmovable.

Another issue with this swim spa cover was its susceptibility to mold and in just six months or so we observed several noticeable spots, and not long after that also noticed a small tear at one end.  It’s just my wife and I (no kids) so it’s not like we manhandled or abused the cover in any way.

For us, this roll top swim spa cover has simply been a disaster.  Immorally expensive, worse than unsightly, extremely difficult to use and care for, but worst of all, just simply ineffective.  Based on our experience with this one, we certainly could not justify recommending this item to anyone.

At SpaCap.com they have been in the spa cover business for nearly forty years. They have seen every spa cover design and heard how great this new fad was and the spa dealers always claim that this latest gadget, development or design change would make this “The Last Cover You’ll Need To Buy” but it’s just not true.

Unfortunately, as we talk to customers the experience shared above is just all to common. These roll up swim spa covers tend to only last a couple years at best. These swim spa coversstarted out being insanely expensive and the cost has almost doubled over the last year most likely due to being built in China.

Meanwhile, at SpaCap.com, every swim spa cover is custom built here in the USA. Every SpaCap is covered in “top of the line” Marine Grade Sunbrella (rated by YEARS outdoors), not canvas or vinyl which is rated by HOURS outdoors. Do our swim spa covers last forever? No. But they do tend to last ten to twelve years if properly used.

Don’t let the swim spa cover be the reason you’re not using your swim spa. If you’re tired of the run around and want to get back to using your swim spa without hurting yourself or dreading the effort of removing and replacing the cover, visit SpaCap.com and check it out for yourself.