HOA community pools look like “just another commercial account” until you’ve serviced one and tried to win one. We’re pulling back the curtain on why HOA pools can be some of the most profitable, reliable, and scalable stops for a pool service business, and where they can quietly become a headache if you don’t understand how the community works. We walk through what makes HOA pools different from apartment complex and hotel pools, starting with the biggest advantage: homeowners fund the amen...

Leslie’s Pool Supplies filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and the first reaction is panic, but the more important question is what it reveals about where the pool industry is headed. We walk through what Chapter 11 actually means, why it doesn’t automatically mean “going out of business,” and how a restructuring can keep a brand alive while creditors end up controlling the company. We also talk about the likely impact of closing roughly 150 underperforming locations and what that could mean for ...

“Trichlor is 99% chlorine” sounds like a slam-dunk reason to buy tablets, right until you read what the label is actually saying. We sit down with Bob Lowry to untangle one of the most persistent swimming pool industry myths: confusing product purity with chlorine strength. Along the way, we translate the language on chlorine buckets into real pool math you can use on a service route, in a retail store, or when a homeowner asks why their water chemistry keeps drifting. We walk through why th...

Evaporation is not “free water replacement” and it definitely is not a magic drain for cyanuric acid. I sit down with Bob Lowry to tackle the pool chemistry myths we keep hearing from techs, customers, and sometimes even product literature. If you service pools or manage your own, this conversation helps you separate what sounds true from what is actually happening in the water. We start with a stabilizer myth that refuses to die: the idea that trichlor tablets do not raise CYA much in hot, ...

Your pool can test “fine” on chlorine and still struggle to stay clear, safe, and algae-free. The missing piece is often cyanuric acid (CYA), the stabilizer that protects chlorine from UV sunlight but also controls how much chlorine is actually active at any moment. When CYA climbs too high, the kill speed drops, problems linger longer, and the fix is rarely just “add more chlorine.” We walk through what cyanuric acid is, why the pool industry embraced it, and the chemistry most people...

Low pH is one of the most expensive “quiet problems” in pool care, because it doesn’t just make water feel off, it can actively eat your pool. We sit down with legendary pool chemistry expert Bob Lowry and walk through what aggressive, corrosive water really means in the real world: plaster that starts to etch and turn rough, metal components that dissolve into the water, and the frustrating moment when invisible copper or iron finally hits a saturation point and shows up as stains. If you’ve...

“Trichlor is 90% available chlorine, so it must be the strongest” sounds logical until you follow the math all the way through. We sit down with Bob Lowry to untangle the biggest chlorine strength myth in pool care, breaking down what “available chlorine” actually means, why the industry compares everything to chlorine gas, and how a percentage on a bucket can mislead even experienced pool owners and pool service pros. We talk through the practical way to think about dosing: pounds of chlori...

Your route does not get easier because you “work harder” it gets easier when the small friction points disappear. We walk through a hand-picked list of underrated pool service products for 2026 that do exactly that, from quick mechanical fixes to cleanup tools that keep your day moving. I’m bringing a field-tested perspective from decades in the pool industry, with a focus on what actually saves time at the equipment pad and in the deep end, not what looks good on a shelf. First up is ...

Some pool accounts pay you twice: once with money, and again by giving you your time back. Others look fine on a bid, then slowly chew up your schedule with extra debris cleanup, finicky equipment, and constant “can you adjust the valves?” texts. We break down how we think about fine-tuning a pool route so your pool service business gets simpler, faster, and more profitable as you grow. We start with what an “ideal” service pool looks like for route efficiency and consistent pool maint...

Your pool can look perfect while the spa tells a different story: cloudy water, gritty steps, and that fine “dust” that shows up again an hour after you leave. We walk through how we vacuum a spa the smart way, whether it’s an attached spa that gets neglected by automatic cleaners or a standalone fiberglass spa where every speck of sand is instantly noticeable. We start with the basics of spa cleaning for pool service pros: why spas collect more debris than pools (shade, weak circulation, ti...