How do any pool services stay in business?? I've fired 3 so far...none of them "get" it

[fwb]

I used to frequent TFP and maintain my own pool...maintained a full year of perfect water with zero issues. But then I had to start traveling for work (often 4+ weeks at a time), so I figured I'd hire a pool service. Each summer, my pool turned green. The services all follow the same pattern, they are very meticulous about netting every single leaf out of the pool (leaves that end up in the skimmer basket anyways), but put very little attention into proper chemical maintenance. All they do is dump in a few pounds of shock once per week, then act like it's my pool's fault for algae outbreaks ("pool needs to be drained because of old water", "too much landscaping", "equipment needs to be replaced", etc). But the root issue is my FC drops to 0 in between visits, for days at a time, and then after only a month my filter PSI is 5-10 above the clean mark and needs to be cleaned thanks to algae, but they seem to ignore that as well and just stick to their seasonal cleaning schedule. So then my circulation is awful for months at a time.

How do pool services possibly have success with other people? I don't see how all their customers aren't ending up with green pools during the summer. Is it actually possible to find a pool service out there who subscribes to the TFP methodology? I would pay good money for someone just to stay on top of the chemicals as meticulously as I did. Even stopping by twice per week to top off the liquid chlorine, with tablets in between, would make a world of a difference, and reduce their labor workload in the end. And of course any attempt at discussion over their methods just leads to them brushing it off and thinking they know better due to experience.

Any other solutions for pool owners that can't add chlorine daily? I thought the SWG would be my saving grace but it's never been able to survive jun-july without supplemental chlorine...even though it's oversized.

 

[skimmerswimmer]

Get a stenner pump. I fill it once every few weeks.

 

[kimkats]

Your SWG will not keep the FC up? You might want to think about going up a size on it.

 

[linuxninja00]

Unfortunately, I think you just described exactly how they stay in business. I feel like there are many pool owners that just believe these answers from proclaimed pool experts. They convince them that regular algae outbreaks are "normal" when we know that's nothing but BS. Friends ask me all the time why I haven't just filled in my pool because they think it's just so much work and not worth the effort. You should see their faces when I tell them I literally spend only minutes a week on it, usually when I'm letting the doggos out for their potty breaks. These pool companies and stores really give pool ownership a bad rap.

I'm sure there are many others here that are in similar climates with blazing sun as you are that can weight in. I know my SWG keeps up on my end following the recommended CYA amounts and my SWG is probably on the small end and def not oversized for my pool. Though I have lots of tree cover which comes with it's own challenges like debris and naturally cooler water from less hours of sunlight on the water.

 

[Jimrahbe]

I thought the SWG would be my saving grace but it's never been able to survive jun-july without supplemental chlorine...even though it's oversized.

fwb,

Your SWCG is not the problem, your expectations are the problem. Your SWCG is way too small. A SWCG should be at least 2 x the size it is rated for...

Your SWCG should generate enough chlorine to increase the FC in your pool by 6 ppm .. But to do that it has to run at 100% and 24/7... Most pools in your area use about 4 ppm of FC/day in the summer..

In the summer, when you were struggling to keep the FC up, what was your cell output and how long were you normally running your pump? The other thing that really makes a difference is the amount of CYA in the pool.. What CYA level were you running?

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[mknauss]

Most pools in your area use about 4 ppm of FC/day in the summer..

Ours pushes 5 ppm loss in June, July, and August.

 

[fwb]

fwb,

Your SWCG is not the problem, your expectations are the problem. Your SWCG is way too small. A SWCG should be at least 2 x the size it is rated for...

Your SWCG should generate enough chlorine to increase the FC in your pool by 6 ppm .. But to do that it has to run at 100% and 24/7... Most pools in your area use about 4 ppm of FC/day in the summer..

In the summer, when you were struggling to keep the FC up, what was your cell output and how long were you normally running your pump? The other thing that really makes a difference is the amount of CYA in the pool.. What CYA level were you running?

Thanks,

Jim R.

My pump runs 12 hours per day and SWG is set to 100%. CYA is 80. With a floater that should be enough by my math. But sure, I'll buy a bigger system...though I'm not convinced my pool will stay clear while I'm gone with any of the brainwashed pool services out there.

So if most pools are losing 4ppm FC/day my question still stands....how do weekly pool services keep any business??? Surely all their customer's pools are green by now.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

My pump runs 12 hours per day and SWG is set to 100%. CYA is 80. With a floater that should be enough by my math. But sure, I'll buy a bigger system...though I'm not convinced my pool will stay clear while I'm gone with any of the brainwashed pool services out there.

So if most pools are losing 4ppm FC/day my question still stands....how do weekly pool services keep any business??? Surely all their customer's pools are green by now.

Most pool services operate on the high FC/ high stabilizer approach - CYA at 100-120ppm and shock treatments up to 15ppm per visit. There’s an outfit here in Pima County that does chlorine gas injection and they have the CYA raised above 100ppm. When you do that, the daily loss rate from UV photolysis is quite low and the FC will typically hang around long enough until their next visit (especially when they throw a few tablets in the skimmer basket). Doing this means simply managing water exchange and adding soda ash to keep the pH and TA up.

It’s a regimen that works fine....until you get algae and then they have to resort to magic potions, high doses of chlorine and floc to try to fix it.