Breaking Into Commercial Pool Service

 Commercial pool service looks glamorous from a distance: bigger checks, steady contracts, and name recognition with HOAs and property managers. Up close, the margins collapse if you bid like a residential route and ignore compliance, access, and payment risk. The fastest way to protect profit is to price for the real workload and add a defined headache factor. That premium covers health department inspections, chemistry logs, weekend surges, and gate or access problems that spike usage. It also buffers late payments from management companies. Treat commercial work as a different product with stricter standards, not a scaled-up backyard job.

Start with demand: HOAs, apartments, hotels, and community centers often must collect multiple bids. This is your opening if your online presence makes you discoverable for “commercial pool service” and local city names. Use SEO and targeted ads that call out HOAs, property managers, and compliance. Then, build direct pipelines. Call management firms and offer no-fee bids to satisfy their three-bid requirement. Create a one-page, beautifully designed proposal that lists scope, frequency, logs, response times, and insurance, not fluff. Boards are volunteers with limited time; concise clarity beats a 20-page pitch. When you present, explain why your rate is higher: safety, uptime, chemistry stability, and liability.

The headache factor deserves its own line item even if you don’t show it as a separate fee. Commercial pools bring heavy bather loads, vandalized gates, diaper incidents, and unauthorized guests that hammer chlorine demand and filtration. Health inspectors can require perfect records and county-level certifications; some counties will accept CPO, others demand their own test. Add travel, parking, and after-hours calls, and the workload climbs fast. Underbid and you’ll donate time, chase collections, and risk shutdowns when chemistry slips. Over time, a healthy premium ensures you can add visits during heat waves, stock backup parts, and keep logs airtight without cutting corners.

Choose your targets with care. HOAs tend to approve repairs faster and pay on schedule because owners protect shared assets. They’re also loyal when you perform, which makes accounts sticky for years. Apartment and motel pools churn more often, re-bid frequently, and sometimes prioritize the lowest price. That can work if your operations are tight and your rate anticipates extra visits, but many pros prefer the stability of HOAs. Either way, establish a take-it-or-leave-it floor price that you will not cross. Remember, five well-priced residential pools can outperform one underpriced commercial contract once you add compliance time.

Compliance is non-negotiable. Expect higher general liability limits—often a total of two million—and confirm additional insured language for management companies. Keep immaculate chemical logs and post required signage. Know your county’s certification rules and plan for cross-county work; CPO is broadly recognized, but some jurisdictions want their own certificate. If a health inspector suddenly requires a county cert, use interim coverage by a certified partner while you test. Your credibility rests on preparedness: proof of insurance, certifications, SOPs for closures, and a maintenance calendar that addresses seasonal challenges.

Winning the work is part performance, part presence. Use precise language when cold calling: offer a timely, no-cost bid to satisfy their multi-bid policy, note your insurance and certifications, and ask for inclusion on future RFPs. Walk properties with a one-page brief and a camera; if the pool looks rough, politely flag risks and outline a stabilization plan. If asked about current pricing, tread carefully; some staff will share ranges, but blind bidding is common. Regardless, sell outcomes: uptime, clear water, compliance proof, and responsive communication. Present as the reliable partner who prevents closures, not just a cleaner with a net.

Finally, map capacity before you commit. Commercial accounts often require two to four visits per week in peak season. If your residential route is full, you may need to sell a slice to free time and avoid burnout. Many companies specialize—commercial only or residential only—for a reason. If you straddle both, schedule blocks for testing, logging, and restocking, and build pricing that funds extra labor during heat spikes. Commercial pools can be your most profitable line if you respect the workload, price with discipline, and invest in visibility. Lead with clarity, protect your margins, and let consistent results turn one HOA into many.