How to use a pool pillow
Updated: 16.10.2026
The pillow and the winter cover are chosen, and you want the cushion in the water before the weather turns. How to use a pool pillow is a soft fill, slack ropes and the cover over the top, after your own manual on the water level. Prices stay on the [pool winter floats comparison](/hub/pool-care/pool-winter-floats). The Products Compared editorial team used cover sheets and SPATA’s factsheet on 16 October 2026. This is not a supervised close-down. A purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
The pillow and the winter cover are chosen, and you want the cushion in the water before the weather turns.
The pillow and the winter cover are chosen, and you want the cushion in the water before the weather turns. How to use a pool pillow is a soft fill, slack ropes and the cover over the top, after your own manual on the water level. Prices stay on the pool winter floats comparison. The Products Compared editorial team used cover sheets and SPATA’s factsheet on 16 October 2026. This is not a supervised close-down. A purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Inflation on the listing | Rope | Pool type on the listing | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  NamcheBarwa NamcheBarwa 4 ft by 15 ft pillow | 70 per cent | 20 m | Above-ground | 5.2 | about £38.51 | View offer |
 Tefola Tefola 4 ft ice equalizer | About 70 per cent | Stated as 49 feet, plus two patches | Above-ground | 5.8 | about £21.88 | View offer | |
| Best value |  Robelle Robelle 4 ft by 4 ft ice equalizer | Do not overfill. No percentage | Not listed. UK reviews say none | Above-ground | 3.6 | about £12.88 | View offer |
On this page
Before the pillow goes in
The pillow, the cover and the plant are three jobs. Chemistry and the pump come first, because a cushion under the sheet does not winterise the heater. SPATA, Water Technics and an Aquamatic UK addendum do not agree on how far below the skimmer to sit the water. Use the manual for the pool and the cover you own. That disagreement is not UK law.
Balance and brush before you inflate anything. If the pump or heater still holds water, drain that equipment on the maker’s steps. None of the kept pillows includes a pump. Cables on a kit pool are on the above ground pool winter pillow page.
Inflate, place, tie
Leave the pillow soft. Cover sheets here use about one-half to three-quarters full. Pool Cover Choice says three-quarters and slack ties. A cushion you cannot press with a hand has no room to compress when ice loads the cover.
Place it in the centre, under where the cover will peak, and tie the ropes to opposite sides with slack still in the line after the cover is on. If the box arrived with no string, which is what UK reviews say about the Robelle pillow, add your own rope before you try to centre it.
Cover, wind, and ice
Lay the cover over the pillow so the centre rises and melt water runs to the edges. On an above-ground pool the cable supplies the tension, with the sheet overlapping the top rail. Do not hang water bags from those grommets. A pillow does not hold the cover down in a gale. If the sheet lifts, tighten the cable, or use tubes only when the cover manual asks. Edge tubes are on pool pillow vs water tubes.
PWTAG’s notes say a debris cover is not a safety cover unless it was sold as one.
When you stop and call a dealer
Call a dealer for a large liner drop, a frozen automatic cover, a bowed wall, or a heater that will not drain.
Common questions
How full do I inflate it?
Aim for about half to three-quarters, which is where the cover sheets in this research sit. A listing may say about 70 per cent, 60–70 per cent, or 70–80 per cent. Robelle’s pillow page only says do not overfill. Stop when you can still press the cushion. A pillow at the stopper has no give when ice forms. Use a cool pump. No box in this comparison includes one.
Where does the pillow sit?
It sits in the middle of the pool, in the water, with the winter cover over it so the sheet forms a low pyramid. Ropes hold it there with slack. It does not sit on the deck, and it does not replace weights at the edge. On an oval, a UK shop suggests more than one pillow, still under the cover rather than in a ring at the wall. Your cover manual is the layout if it draws the positions.
How tight should the ropes be?
Leave slack after the cover is on. Pool Cover Choice tells you to tie the grommets with slack lines. A line pulled bar-tight will rip a fitting when the cover shifts or when ice expands. If the pillow has no rope in the box, fit one before you inflate it in the water. A centre prop that drifts to the wall leaves the cover flat where ice will load it.
Do I lower the water, and by how much?
Follow the manual for your pool and your cover. SPATA describes about 30 cm below the skimmers, or a frost thermostat around 2 °C. Water Technics uses 150–200 mm below the skimmer. An Aquamatic UK note says do not drain below the skimmer. Those are different products’ instructions. None of them is a single UK legal depth. The pillow goes in after you have chosen the level your manual allows.
What do I do if ice is already on the cover?
Leave the ice in place. Do not chip it, and do not stand on the cover to break it. Pool Cover Choice says to siphon standing water before you remove the cover, which is a spring job. An automatic cover that is frozen stays put until it can move freely. A debris cover is not a safety cover. Forcing a frozen mechanism is the point where you stop and call a dealer.
Can I use a hair dryer?
Generic and Tktouci name a hair dryer next to a pump for a 60–70 per cent fill. Heat can soften PVC. Use an electric pump or a hand pump and stop in the same band. If the only blower you have runs hot, keep it back from the valve, or wait until you have a cool one. No kept listing supplies the pump.
When should I stop and call a pool dealer?
Stop if the liner needs a large drop in level, if an automatic cover is frozen and you are tempted to force it, if a wall has bowed, or if the heater will not drain on the maker’s steps. SPATA already points liner work at a contractor. A split pillow weld is a returns problem. A bowed wall or a flooded heater is not something a softer inflation fixes.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources used for this comparison. Listing prices, stars, and review counts are from the amazon.co.uk files for these ASINs.
- SPATA — Winterise and recommission (retrieved 16.10.2026)
- Water Technics — Swimming pool winterising guide (retrieved 16.10.2026)
- Tanby Pools — Aquamatic UK winter close-down addendum (retrieved 16.10.2026)
- GOV.UK — General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (retrieved 16.10.2026)
- PWTAG — Technical notes (retrieved 16.10.2026)
- World of Pools — Plastica air pillow for a debris cover (retrieved 16.10.2026)
- Discount Leisure Products — Intex winterizing pool pillow 28099 (retrieved 16.10.2026)
- Pool Cover Choice — Installation notes (retrieved 16.10.2026)