Does water chemistry matter more than pool covers for preventing liner fading?

Yes, because imbalanced water chemistry — especially high chlorine and low pH — attacks the liner from the inside out, making it brittle and faded faster than UV alone. The real fix is maintaining balanced pH (7.2–7.6), alkalinity (80–120 ppm), and chlorine within recommended levels. A solar cover helps block UV, but if your chemistry is off, no cover will save you.