How to make the slats on your automatic cover last longer

The slats are the most visible part of your automatic cover and, along with the motor, the element most worth looking after if you want the investment to last as long as possible. Both PVC and polycarbonate are very hard-wearing materials, but basic, regular maintenance is what separates slats that reach 10 or 15 years in good condition from slats that lose colour, stiffness or clarity long before that. Here is how to care for them, step by step.

Regular slat cleaning: the most important thing of all

Regular cleaning is, without doubt, the factor that most affects how long the slats last. We recommend:

• A surface clean every 2-3 weeks during the swimming season, going over them with a mop or a soft-bristled brush with water and, if necessary, a mild soap.
• Avoid abrasive products, solvents, alcohol and wire brushes: they can scratch the surface and make it lose gloss, colour or clarity over time.
• Always rinse with clean water after using any product, so no residue is left behind to react with the chlorine in the pool.
• Pay particular attention to the joints between slats and to the shaft supports, where leaves, sand or chemical residue build up and can make the movement harder.

Looking after the pool water

What happens in the water affects the slats directly. An unbalanced pH or too much chlorine or other disinfectant can degrade the surface finish over time, especially on transparent polycarbonate slats, which show changes in appearance more readily. Keeping the water parameters within the recommended ranges is not only good for swimmers, it also extends the life of the cover.

Seasonal slat checks before and after the season

As well as the regular cleaning, we recommend two more thorough checks a year:

• At the start of the season: check that all the slats float on the water and roll up correctly onto the shaft, that no parts have come loose or been damaged over the winter, and clean the whole surface thoroughly before the first use.
• At the end of the season: give the cover a complete clean before leaving it closed through the months of little use, removing leaves, insects or built-up limescale that could otherwise leave marks over several weeks.

This seasonal routine goes hand in hand with checking the motor and the rest of the system, which we set out in our general guide to automatic cover maintenance.

Avoid loads and knocks the cover was not designed for

Ingerclima slats are designed to take the weight of a person walking across them in the event of an accidental fall, which is what the safety standard requires. That does not mean, however, that they should be used as a regular walkway, or that it is a good idea to leave heavy objects, sun loungers or pool toys sitting on them for long periods: over time, a concentrated, sustained load can deform or wear the area taking the weight.

Maintenance differences by material

The general guidance is the same for all of them, but each material has its own nuances:

• PVC: very resistant to chemicals and to UV rays, it mainly needs cleaning to stop limescale and dirt building up in the joints.
• Solar polycarbonate: as well as the usual cleaning, it is worth avoiding products that leave an opaque residue on the surface, as this can slightly reduce how much solar radiation the slat captures.
• Transparent polycarbonate: this is the material where dirt and scratches show most, so slightly more frequent cleaning keeps it clear, as we explain in our article on slat materials.

What dirties the slats, depending on where you live

Not all dirt cleans off the same way. On mountain plots such as those in Galapagar the problem never lets up: pine needles, resin and holm oak leaves for much of the year. In Marbella and on the Costa del Sol, by contrast, what builds up is salt and the fine sand brought in by the westerly wind.

And inland, in Madrid and Toledo, it is dust, spring pollen and limescale from the water that take over. In all three cases the cleaning is the same — water and mild soap, never abrasive products — but the frequency you need is not.

Conclusion

Looking after the slats on your automatic cover takes little effort: cleaning them regularly with suitable products, keeping the pool water balanced and giving them a thorough check at the start and end of the season are enough to keep your cover looking like new for many years. If you find a slat that is damaged, deformed or has parts coming loose, get in touch: at repuestosingerclima.com we stock original parts for one-off repairs.