The 7 Most Interesting Pool Accessories

Seventh place: Exit Toys dome for warmer, cleaner water

Dome pool covers are the perfect way to get an indoor-pool experience in your own garden. They have several advantages:

Raising water temperature by up to 4-6°C for a longer period of time
Significantly reducing the amount of dirt in your pool, meaning less maintenance and less chlorine use
Noticeable reduction of UV-B rays
You can enjoy using your pool even when it rains

You can install these pool domes on frame pools, provided that their pipes are not larger than 5 cm in diameter. They fit Exit pools, but also Intex pools such as the Intex Frame Pool Set Rondo Ø 366 x 122 cm. The transparent film of the dome allows sunlight to pass through, but it is difficult for infrared radiation (which can be thought of as heat radiation) emitted by the pool water to exit. The energy captured therefore remains in the pool for longer, meaning that the average temperature rises very sharply over time.

Sixth place: Steinbach Pool Equipment Box

This is an attractive option for housing sand filter systems while significantly lowering noise levels. The Steinbach pool equipment box features excellent soundproofing, which is why it costs significantly more than normal boxes. Soundproofing products are usually complex and require special combinations of materials to function properly. After all, the aim is to achieve a reduction not only of the high frequencies, but also of the very challenging low frequencies. In terms of physics, this isn't easy - but the Steinbach Pool Equipment Box successfully lowers the entire frequency spectrum of your sand filter system. This reduces the noise by 6-8 dB. Although it isn't eliminated completely, this is a significant improvement, making it the perfect product for pool users with sensitive ears.

Fifth place: The Steinbach heat pumps from the Waterpower series

A heat pump is a good way to economically heat your pool. Unlike when using a standard electric heater, you can get several watts of heat energy from one watt of electricity fed into the system. For example, the Steinbach Waterpower Heat Pump 5000 uses up to 840 watts of electricity but can achieve a heating effect of up to 5,100 watts. The warmer the air, the higher the efficiency of the heat pump. Remember to ensure that the heat pump is sufficiently powerful. This makes it quicker to heat the pool and avoids the need to run the heat pump overnight, when it is far less efficient. The Waterpower 5000 achieves optimal results when a pool can hold between 6,000 and 20,000 litres of water. Thermal insulation makes using a heat pump even more efficient - a solar cover is a top tip here. Pool mats or XPS panels are also often recommended, as they can add 10-25% additional efficiency. For larger pools, we recommend the stronger Steinbach Waterpower 8500, which is perfect for pools with a volume of up to 34,000 litres.

Fourth place: Flocculation products

Flocculants are an excellent way to achieve clear water when you use a sand filter system with filter sand or filter glass. We recommend Steinbach Flocculation Cartridges, which you put into the skimmer. You might be wondering why you need this product. Well, many particles are simply too small to be caught by the filter system, meaning they end up back in your pool. Examples are:

Limescale residue
Oils and greases
Dust
Soot
Pollen
Cosmetics
Organic particles
Metal ions

Flocculants are positively charged particles that attract the above-mentioned negatively charged particles. This creates flocs, some visible to the naked eye, that are easily filterable by your sand filter. Remember that flocculation requires the correct pH value and it works best at relatively low flow rates in the boiler. The following sand filters from our range are particularly suitable for flocculation:

Steinbach Classic 310
Intex Crystal Clear 6 m³
Intex Crystal Clear 8 m³
Intex Crystal Clear 9.2 m³
Intex Crystal Clear sand filter systems with salt water systems (6 and 8 m³]
Steinbach Compact 8, SM and Eco-Top series
All Bestway sand filters

PLEASE NOTE: Flocculants are not suitable for cartridge filters or filter balls!

Third place: Bestway sand filter system Flowclear 5,678 l/h

We now also sell Bestway sand filter systems - the model 58497 with 5,678 l/h is a great option for many pool owners. This powerful filter system reaches 5,678 l gross or about 5,000 l net per hour without consuming too much electricity, requiring only 230 watts, which keeps costs to a minimum. An added bonus is that this sand filter system is quieter than other filter systems.

Top feature: The oversized boiler!

The best feature is the very large boiler: with a diameter of 385 mm and a filling volume of up to 35 kg of sand, the Flowclear Sand Filter System 5,678 l/h is generously sized compared to the pump power. The large boiler ensures that the water inside passes through more slowly, helping to prevent small and flocculated particles from being pushed through the sand. This system therefore filters more effectively than other systems with smaller boilers. Even very expensive sand filters for professional pools often do not have a better ratio of pump power to boiler size. Thumbs up to Bestway!

Second place: Intex underwater hand vacuum

Of course, good pool water care includes vacuuming the bottom of the pool. Filter systems can't reach sunk dirt particles, meaning that it is important to remove these particles yourself. There are various pool vacuum cleaners that can be used to clean the bottom of your pool. Robots are very convenient but many are expensive and not as accurate as they should be. However, you can achieve near-perfect results if you prevent the particles from being whirled around - there are a few vacuums that make this possible. A particularly good device is the Intex handheld vacuum cleaner - if you work carefully you can entirely avoid particles being swirled around. Thanks to the microfilter bag, it filters even very small particles. In combination with Steinbach filter balls, it filters virtually everything down to a size of 2.5 micrometres. The best thing is that you can also use the Intex underwater hand vacuum cleaner whenever you notice dirt or particles. It is easy and quick to use - you don't even need to lay a cable. Simply immerse in water, turn on, vacuum, take out, and recharge - that's it!

Our number one: The Steinbach Speedsolar Solar Mat

The solar mats by Steinbach are an up-to-date and eco-friendly way to heat your pool that doesn't result in additional costs. They are very good value, giving you a lot of collector area for a very reasonable price. The amount of water in most pools means that larger collector areas work far better. We have the Steinbach Speedsolar Solar Mat available in various sizes, such as 0.7 x 3.0 m and 0.7 x 6.0 m. Combine these solar heaters with a solar foil and even further thermal insulation measures like pool mats or a dome for maximum results. You should allocate a minimum of about 25% of the pool area as a collector area, so that your solar heating set-up can cope with the amount of water in your pool. More is even better!