Pool Care Guides
Companion guides to the calculators: the how and why behind the numbers, written for pool owners who want to understand their water, not just dose it.
How Long Should You Run Your Pool Pump?
How many hours a day to run your pool pump, why the one-turnover rule works, single vs variable speed schedules, and what each extra hour costs you.
Salt Water Pool Startup: The Complete First-Week Guide
Step-by-step salt water pool startup: how much salt to add, target CYA for salt pools, when to turn the cell on, and the first-week testing schedule.
Why Is My Pool Losing Water? Evaporation vs a Leak
How much water loss is normal, how to run the bucket test correctly, and the signs that separate ordinary evaporation from a leak that needs fixing.
Heat Pump vs Gas Pool Heater: Which Costs Less?
Heat pumps cost 3 to 4x less per month but more upfront, and gas heats 5x faster. Which pool heater actually fits how you swim, with real cost math.
Pool Chemistry 101: Balance Your Water in the Right Order
The order you balance pool chemicals decides whether you fight your water or fix it once: alkalinity, then pH, then stabilizer, then chlorine. Here is why.
How to Fix Cloudy Pool Water (Find the Cause First)
Cloudy pool water has four common causes: chlorine, filtration, chemistry, or particles. How to diagnose which one you have and clear it in 24 to 48 hours.
Cyanuric Acid (Pool Stabilizer) Explained: The Chemical Everyone Overdoses
What cyanuric acid does, the ideal CYA level for chlorine and salt pools, how dichlor quietly overdoses it, and the only real way to bring it back down.
Is a Solar Pool Cover Worth It? The Payback Math
A solar cover cuts evaporation about 95 percent and heating costs 50 to 70 percent. The real payback math on heat, water, and chemicals, usually weeks, not years.
Pool Opening Checklist: From Cover-Off to First Swim
A step-by-step spring pool opening: equipment checks, the fill-and-circulate sequence, which chemicals to balance first, and when the water is safe to swim.
Pool Closing Checklist: Winterize Without Spring Regrets
How to close a pool so it opens clean: final water balance, line blowing, freeze protection, and the mistakes that turn spring opening into a swamp cleanup.
How Much Does a Hot Tub Cost to Run Per Month?
Real hot tub electricity costs: $20 to $60 per month in summer, double or more in winter. The math by tub size, climate, and rate, plus the cheapest fixes.