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Why Dog Pools Are Never “Balanced”

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Dog owners love seeing their pets splash, but for a pool service pro, canine swimmers change the entire maintenance playbook. The first shift is mindset: you won’t talk anyone out of letting their dog use the pool, so stop trying and manage what you can control. That means setting a clear baseline for appearance and water quality, then building a service plan that anticipates higher bather loads, oils, hair, and dirt. Dogs tolerate chlorine well, but pools don’t tolerate dogs nearly as well. Expect more debris on the floor, a stubborn scum line on the tile, and filters that load up quickly. Start the relationship by explaining, in simple terms, that a dog-heavy pool won’t match the crystal look of their neighbor’s human-only pool, and that your job is to keep it sanitary and usable within realistic limits. Dog activity falls into three patterns: occasional treads on the steps, moderate swim time from one or two dogs, and high load from several dogs using the pool daily. Levels one and ...
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When “One More Pool” Isn’t Worth

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Letting a client go can feel like stepping on a rake: one wrong move and you get smacked with a bad review. Service pros, especially in pool care, face this more than most because environmental conditions, equipment age, and customer habits can turn a simple route into a daily grind. The core challenge is striking a balance between honesty and diplomacy. You want to exit cleanly without burning trust or triggering a one-star grenade. The strategy begins with clarity: recognize the main reasons for leaving—heavy debris pools, seasonal leaf drops, chronic chemical demand, or customer neglect—and match each reason with a graceful, professional script. When the pool itself is the issue, not the person, lead with workload and consolidation, not blame. Heavy debris pools often masquerade as easy wins during calm seasons, then explode with leaves when trees shed. Pros who understand species cycles—oaks, pines, jacarandas—can anticipate the mess, but surprises still happen. If you picked up an...
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Stop Driving, Start Earning: Building a Tight Pool Route

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Building a profitable pool service often starts with a simple, unglamorous idea: stop driving so much. A tight service route compresses distance between stops so you spend more time working and less time commuting. That change alone can turn a long, draining day into a steady, predictable rhythm. The trick is that “tight” looks different across regions. In dense suburbs, two to four minutes between stops is realistic. In rural areas, five miles might be normal. The point is not perfection; it’s progress toward clusters where each extra minute saved compounds across your week and raises your effective hourly rate. Start by mapping your current accounts and identifying natural clusters. Look for places where three or four pools sit within a short drive, then assign those to the same day so your windshield time drops. Crossover matters too: design your week so you pass through the same corridors on multiple days. This lets you check a problem pool, handle quick add-ons, or swap stops when...
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You’re Driving Past Profit: Hidden Revenue on Your Pool Route

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Many pool pros think growth means adding more full-service accounts, longer days, and heavier labor. The smarter path sits right in your current neighborhood: hot tubs, water features, chemical-only visits, and filter cleanings that fit between your anchor stops. These add-ons require targeted know-how, simple systems, and clear pricing, not extra crews. The key is to turn small bodies of water and light-touch services into reliable revenue. When you weave five-minute and seven-minute visits through your route, your day speeds up while your income rises, and you avoid the burnout that comes from stacking only full-service pools. Hot tubs are the most overlooked opportunity. With 6 to 7 million units across the U.S., plenty of homeowners struggle after the first couple of weeks when water turns cloudy and the novelty fades. Spa care isn’t hard when you standardize: ensure consistent circulation with a programmed runtime, learn the controls for the common brands in your area, and pick a ...
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Small Truck: When Going Compact Makes Sense

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Choosing the right vehicle for a pool service route is less about brand loyalty and more about fitting the actual demands of daily work. The vehicle carries harsh chemicals, heavy liquids, tools, and parts while navigating tight residential streets and frequent stops. That means cargo access, reliability, fuel cost, and parking ease should dominate your decision. Many pros assume a full-size truck is required, but a careful look at real cargo needs shows a mid-size pickup often does the job with less cost and hassle. Even a compact truck or a thoughtfully outfitted personal vehicle can work if you plan your loads and handle chemicals safely. The key is aligning bed height, payload, and MPG with your route density and how often you restock chemicals. For newcomers or those between trucks, operating from a personal vehicle can be viable with firm limits. Stick to dry chemicals whenever possible and add a hitch-mounted cargo carrier to create an “outdoor trunk” that keeps fumes outside th...
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Dive In: Season 10 Starts Now

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The pool service trade enters 2026 with a rare mix of stability and urgency. On one hand, fundamentals barely budge: safe chemistry targets still rule, routine care remains essential, and homeowners continue to rely on pros when time and know‑how are scarce. On the other, demand patterns and expectations are shifting fast. Clients want instant replies, proof of work, and seamless maintenance that doesn’t add friction to their week. Those who understand both truths—steady craft and rapid response—will capture more recurring revenue, reduce churn, and grow routes while competitors wait on hold. The result is a market where consistent execution meets modern communication, and the winners do both well. Resilience is the first advantage worth naming. Pools don’t pause during recessions; water still turns, chemistry still drifts, and algae still blooms. When households cut back, they drop tasks they can delay without damage. A pool isn’t one of them. Left alone, it goes green, invites vector...
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Balance or Bust: Finding the Ideal pH with Eric Knight

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We opened with a challenge to pool care dogma: stop chasing a tight 7.4 to 7.6 pH in outdoor pools when cyanuric acid is the stronger variable controlling chlorine’s active strength. The eye-pH claim doesn’t hold water, and we cite sources beyond casual references to show that eyes vary widely and cannot reliably “feel” pH. What matters more is how stabilizer binds chlorine, how that binding lowers the fraction of hypochlorous acid, and how ratio thinking outperforms rigid set points. When CYA is elevated, chlorine’s bite is dulled, regardless of whether the pH is 7.4 or 7.8, and that realization frees operators from the weekly acid yo-yo that harms LSI and surfaces while delivering little sanitation benefit. From there we quantify what “ratio thinking” looks like. Drawing on committee work and Richard Falk’s modeling, we explain why the CYA-to-free chlorine ratio should not exceed 20:1, and why many pools do better keeping stabilizer near 30 to 50 ppm to balance UV shielding with usab...
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