VINGLI 18 Feet Pool Cover Reel Set Solar Pool Cover Reel for Inground Swimming Pool, Aluminum Solar Swimming Inground Cover Blanket Reel (Upgrade)

I was skeptical due to reviews that said it was difficult to understand the instructions, but I found them clear and watched a YouTube video of someone installing this unit, which was helpful. I was able to adjust it to make it wider than my pool to ensure that is rolled up without snagging-just make sure to leave at least a few inches on with side so that it is wide enough. Drilling the holes in order to assemble using the included self tapping screws is easy provided you use a bit for metal and not wood, just capture the shavings for easy clean up. It does tend to want to fall over if you pull the entire cover at once, so I unwrap 1/2 and met it fall into a pile, then cover the pool, making sure I overlap the end of the cover so that pool water doesn’t run over the cover, then the rest comes unwrapped easily and the unit doesn’t fall over. I like the screw handle lock. For another pool I had another reel that was lower to the ground then this one and more stable, but prices for one of those was four times this one, so I took a chance and bought this model. I’m glad I did because it’s well made, all stainless steel and aluminum, with a plastic insert between the two to avoid galvanic corrosion. Good design, great price, easy to install, and looks good. Would definitely buy again.

Purchased a Vingli 21' solar reel the end of May 2024. Having goine through a season of use, we are very pleased with its performance. The reel is sturdy and easy to use, even at the 21' size. I would recomend this reel.

The VINGLI 18 Feet Pool Cover Reel is fantastic! It was very easy to assemble, is incredibly sturdy, and works flawlessly—even for one-person operation. The only drawback I noticed was the plastic endcaps on one of the stands; they shatter easily and would be better if made of rubber. Thankfully, it’s an easy fix, as 1.5" rubber endcaps are widely available and work perfectly as replacements. Overall, this reel is a great buy and has made covering and uncovering my pool so much easier. Highly recommend!

21' Foot Version: As a manufacturing expert I found this to be very high quality. Given the cost, it represents a great value. The aluminum extrusions are well made and anodized, the end stands are sturdy, and the wheels are more than adequate. This unit has 3 pieces of overlapping aluminum that require some math based on how wide you want the system to be. To save yourself time, mark the middle piece center line with a sharpie. This will ensure you have an even amount telescoping to the end sections. It does require self tapping screws which were well made and cut easily into the aluminum. If you have an extra large phillips tip for your screw gun it will help. The instructions left a little to be desired but if you plan through the whole build before starting you will be able to figure it out. It came in two boxes and was well packed. One end of an extrusion had a small scratch from the box being dropped but it didn't impact it's design or operation.

Lasted awhile, but doesn’t stay secure on the short side that slides in. Not very stable, so 2 people are better than 1 for rolling up. It does the job, just a little wobbly.

Updated 6/21/24: and now we have another 2 screw that have ended up in our pool. It is dangerous for the people swimming to have sharp screws and our pool liner bc it can get ripped. Design is VERY poor!! If I could give it 0 stars I would but I had to give it at least 1.Updated 5/30/2024: I normally don't update my reviews, but feel this is warranted. Since getting this pool reel, we have lost 4 screws out of the metal piece and one almost falling out. One came out within a week and luckily was on the cover. A few weeks later another fell into the pool. When we opened our pool this year we found a screw at the bottom of our deep end and there are 2 screws missing (so one is still MIA) and one that was about to fall out. Understand that this was cheap, but also not expensive. The design of the metal reel and the screws are VERY POOR quality. It's dangerous for the screws to fall out into the pool for both the people swimming, the liner, and the pool equipment!So my very handy husband (who built our in wall bookshelves) had a very difficult time putting this together. First the instructions are horrible, not proper English and not even visually easy to follow. The "self-tapping" screws didn't work so he still had to pre-drill the holes. Then the instructions stated "the buckle line had to be absolutely straight" which is not physically possible, so don't follow those instructions. We put it together and then took it apart and tried to make the buckle line "absolutely straight" as per the instructions, but it was physically impossible. It works, but we've only had it up for 2 days, so I cannot speak to durability. I do wish the clips were white instead of yellow.

Really good. Pay attention to the set up. Layout the pieces and fit them with the straps so the cover rolls up evenly. If you do so this is great and their customer service is awesome. Like responses next day and help when needed. Unusual these days. My set up is 20 ft wide by 40 feet long and the cover rolls up perfectly.

Four stars because I needed to reach out to them as indicated in the manual and they have not responded to date! They state to contact them via email for more of the plastic connection pieces (but they do NOT reply).On a good note, it is easy to assemble. You can do it alone. I recommend using some of the extra screws to make the tube more secure. It is a bit flexible (loose/sloppy without them). You will need to drill pilot holes in the extra holes provide and use either the large or stubby screw provided to secure the tube better.The only down side is the wheel section. Unless I am or have done something wrong, the wheels seems to drift (turn) a bit from side to side making it a challenge to move around by yourself, but seems great in most aspects otherwise. I have a free form pool which means the solar cover is not square, so I had adjusted the straps at various lengths to provide a smoother roll up.For the money it seems to be worth it.