The Pool Guy Podcast Show

If you’ve been staring at the Bottom Feeder and the Shrimp Cleaner wondering which cordless pool vacuum actually belongs on your pool service route, I break it down in practical, technician-first terms. These are both pro-focused, battery-powered pool vacuums that skip cords and external pumps, so the real question isn’t “which is cooler” it’s which one makes you faster and more consistent across...

If you’ve ever converted a chlorine pool to salt and immediately regretted it, the problem usually isn’t the salt system. It’s the startup. We break down a practical, step-by-step salt pool startup process that helps you avoid the two headaches that wreck new installs: runaway pH and scale on the surface or inside the salt cell. We start with timing, especially for new plaster, quartz, and pebble...

A 3.8 rating can quietly kill your phone before you ever know why. When people search for a pool service, they do what we all do with restaurants and hotels: they sort by stars, skim a few reviews, and move on fast. That’s why your online reputation is not a vanity metric, it’s a lead generator or a lead blocker.  We walk through the real-world choices customers make on Google and Yelp, and how a...

Manual vacuuming is one of those “just part of the job” tasks that quietly eats your day, especially when you’re chasing fine dust that keeps slipping through a vac bag. I’m revisiting a tool that’s been getting a lot of attention from pool service pros: the Bottom Feeder and Shrimp Cleaner cartridge filter adapter. After about three months of real use, I walk through what’s actually different thi...

Your pool can look perfect and still be one bad day away from turning. We dig into the “normal vs not normal” moments that confuse pool owners and even trip up seasoned techs, starting with the big one: chlorine that disappears overnight. When free chlorine drops to zero in 24 hours, it’s rarely magic and usually chemistry. We talk through cyanuric acid (CYA) targets, intense UV exposure, early mi...

Leaves don’t just clutter the surface; they choke flow, stall cleaners, and push water chemistry off a cliff. We tackle the leaf problem at the source, sharing the exact tools and tweaks that keep debris moving into capture zones before it ever sinks. From a return-mounted secondary skimmer that threads into a 1.5-inch return to modern solar-powered surface bots that roam all day, we break down wh...

Stuck with a pool that reads sky-high stabilizer and can’t be drained? We break down a step-by-step plan to bring control back fast: how to verify overrange CYA with simple dilution tests, when to abandon trichlor, and the exact chlorine targets that keep algae at bay while CYA slowly falls. You’ll hear the practical math behind Bob Lowry’s 7.5 percent rule and a weekly dosing rhythm that works fo...

Bad days on the route don’t send a calendar invite; they just show up. We’re pulling back the curtain on the moments that derail a service day and the practical systems that stop them from turning into disasters. From a pool left in spa mode for a week to a heater cranked to 95 after a party, we break down why these problems hit so hard and how to build an insurance plan that keeps water clear and...

Ever been told, “You’re only here 15 minutes—why so much?” We pull back the curtain on what it truly costs to run a professional pool service and why a short visit doesn’t equal a small bill. From insurance layers to payroll math, this conversation gives you the numbers, the logic, and the language to price with confidence. We start with the backbone of a mobile service business: commercial auto i...

The hardest pool problems aren’t always in the manual—they show up on the pad when the water won’t move, the lid won’t budge, and the cleaner sits still like a lawn ornament. We dig into the field fixes that save your day and your lungs, starting with the offline chlorinator that refuses to dissolve tablets. Learn how to open it safely, diagnose the clogged check valve elbow with the “little BB,”...

Prices are rising, but your margins don’t have to suffer. We share a straightforward playbook for pool service pros to raise rates with confidence, keep client trust, and improve the health of your route. It starts with two paths: a respectful, optional price increase letter that invites customers to accept a set monthly bump, and a universal increase that risks a little churn but often delivers a...

White crust tracing your waterline or caking your spa spillway isn’t a mystery—it’s chemistry meeting heat and evaporation. We unpack what’s actually sticking to your tile, how to tell calcium carbonate from calcium silicate with a quick acid test, and why that difference changes everything for removal time, cost, and results. If you’ve ever cleaned for hours only to see the ring return, this is y...

A clean pool should never cost a pair of lungs or a blown-up skimmer. We take you straight into the chemistry that turns everyday products into hazards—how waterlogged trichlor creates choking fumes, why a puck in the skimmer sends an acid slug through your heater, and the exact mixes that can explode with shocking force. With clear examples from the field and a sobering real-world fatality, we un...

When fuel prices climb and headlines turn gloomy, every pallet of chemicals, o-rings, and test kits you buy gets more expensive—and that cost lands squarely on your route. We peel back the layers of how inflation really moves through suppliers, distributors, and delivery trucks to your invoice, then lay out a calm, practical plan to protect your margins without torching hard-won client trust. We s...

Ever wonder why your pool still looks hazy even after a long vacuum session? We unpack the tiny measurements that control big results: microns, which decide what your filter or cleaner can actually catch, and parts per million, which reveals how little chemical is truly in the water. With clear examples and real‑world comparisons, we connect the dots between filtration performance and precise dosi...

Want your spa hot in 25 minutes or your pool warm all season without crushing bills? We break down the real differences between gas heaters and heat pumps so you can pick with confidence. From wiring needs and gas line runs to BTU sizing and actual heat-up times, we translate specs into clear choices you can act on. We start with the basics: why a gas heater delivers instant, on-demand heat while...

Growth sounds glamorous until the math, the hiring headache, and your calendar disagree. We dig into the real choices pool pros face: stay a sharp, profitable single poler or build a team and chase scale. Along the way, we unpack why the labor market has shifted toward gig work, how rising wages squeeze entry-level hiring, and what that means for route capacity, pricing, and your stress level. I s...

Black algae has a way of making even well‑kept pools look defeated. We dig into what it really is—cyanobacteria protected by a stubborn biofilm—why it laughs at normal chlorine levels, and how it burrows into plaster and Pebble Tec where a quick brush won’t touch the root. If you’ve spotted dime‑size black dots that keep coming back, this is your field guide to taking control without trashing your...

Tired of DE cleanings that turn into all-day projects and callbacks? We dive straight into the realities of servicing DE filters on a busy pool route and share a field-tested system that saves time, protects your back, and stops fresh powder from blowing straight back into the pool. If you’ve ever rebuilt a vertical grid assembly on a hot driveway and questioned your life choices, this one’s for y...

Dust doesn’t just cloud water; it wrecks schedules, clogs filters, and turns simple visits into expensive marathons. We break down three battle-tested ways to remove heavy dirt loads without touching the customer’s equipment, so you protect pumps, save water, and finish faster.  First, we put the Advantage Portivac 2.0 under the microscope. With a 1.5 HP pump and a 150 sq ft cartridge, this cart l...

Ever run your hand across pool coping and feel sandpaper? That texture tells a story about water that’s either starving for calcium or dumping it everywhere. We take you inside the Langelier Saturation Index—the tool that predicts whether your water will corrode metal and etch plaster or lay down crunchy scale on tile, heaters, and salt cells—and show you how to control it with confidence. We star...

Fighting red eyes, cloudy water, or scale that keeps coming back? We unpack the exact chemistry that drives pool comfort and clarity, then give you a simple plan to control pH without wrecking alkalinity. You’ll learn why total alkalinity is the true pH buffer, how cyanuric acid and borates play supporting roles, and when to pick borax, baking soda, or muriatic acid to get fast, stable results. We...

Your pool isn’t misbehaving—your targets are. We take you past vague “ideal ranges” and into precise numbers that keep water clear, equipment protected, and algae out for good. Starting with the seven essentials—pH, total alkalinity, calcium hardness, temperature, TDS, cyanuric acid, and measured chlorine—we explain how each parameter supports the others and how to prevent scale or corrosion using...

Sunlight, strength, and shelf life decide whether your chlorine dollars deliver crystal water or fade by Friday. We unpack the real-world playbook for using liquid chlorine (sodium hypochlorite) as a primary sanitizer—what it is, how strong it should be, and why pairing it with the right stabilizer keeps free chlorine steady all week. We start by clarifying the difference between commercial-grade...

Tired of pool rules that don’t add up? We peel back the layers on the industry’s most persistent myths and replace them with chemistry you can trust. From the “acid column” idea to the belief that liquid chlorine always drives pH sky high, we show where the logic sounds right and why the science says otherwise. You’ll learn how acid truly mixes on contact, why slugging can scar plaster and vinyl,...