The questions pool owners actually ask.

No. Pools here stay open year-round. Our winters are short and broken up by mild afternoons, so closing and covering a pool creates a bigger, more expensive problem in the spring than it ever saves. What changes instead is pump run time, chemistry targets, and freeze readiness.

Weekly service includes chemicals. Your rate depends on pool size, surroundings, equipment, and how much the trees around you contribute. That gets confirmed after I test the water and look at the property.

Because a quote given without seeing the water is a guess, and a guess either overcharges you or gets corrected later. Testing the water and looking at the equipment takes one visit and means the number I give you is the number you pay.

Digital chemistry readings, LSI-based balancing, brushing, skimming, emptying skimmer, pump, and cleaner baskets, a filter pressure reading, an equipment check, and a written report showing your numbers, what was added, and any notes.

No. Levels are read on a digital meter and the numbers go into your report exactly as they were read.

Water temperature, free chlorine, combined chlorine, total chlorine, pH, total alkalinity, calcium hardness, cyanuric acid, phosphates, iron, and copper — plus salt if your pool has a cell. Every one of those has a range, and all of them show up on your report.

The monthly rate covers routine chemistry — chlorine, acid, and sodium bicarbonate — for a normal bather load. Phosphate removers and metal sequestrants are specialty treatments, so they're quoted separately with the reading that justifies them. If your pool needs them regularly, they can be built into a higher flat monthly rate instead.

Phosphates feed algae, so a high number means you burn chlorine all summer holding a pool that keeps wanting to turn. Iron and copper don't filter out — left alone they fall onto plaster as rust-brown or blue-green staining. Catching them as a reading is far cheaper than removing a stain.

Maybe. Summer evaporation here runs about a quarter to half an inch a day, more with wind, heat, or a running waterfall. A bucket test over 24 hours tells you the difference. Water features are the most common source in this area — their plumbing sits above the waterline and freezes first in a cold snap.

I watch water level, auto-fill behavior, and wet spots on every visit and repair the visible wet-side leaks myself — cracked PVC, failed unions, leaking valves, weeping pad fittings. Pressure testing lines and locating a leak under the shell or deck is specialty work, so that goes to a leak detection company I trust, with my notes so they aren't starting from scratch.

The Langelier Saturation Index combines pH, temperature, calcium hardness, alkalinity, and cyanuric acid into one number that tells you whether your water is protecting your plaster or slowly dissolving it. A pool can look perfectly clear and still be aggressive enough to etch surfaces.

Cartridge filters get cleaned quarterly. DE filters generally need it two to three times a year depending on bather load, tree and pollen drop, and where pressure sits. Pressure is read every week, so the clean gets scheduled before it becomes a problem.

Yes — quarterly, alongside the filter clean. That includes removal, an acid bath, inspection, reinstallation, and a flow check. Installing or replacing a salt cell involves the electrical side, so that gets referred out.

I handle wet-side work: plumbing, filters and elements, cleaners, skimmers and returns, freeze protection, inline feeders, and salt cell cleaning. Anything involving electrical, high voltage, panels, bonding, or gas gets referred to a licensed pro, as does calcium removal, mastic, plaster, tile, coping, and structural leak detection.

Not in-house, but you won't be left hunting. Remodels, replaster and resurfacing, tile replacement, calcium blasting and sealant, leak detection, decks and mastic, electrical, and gas heater work all go to specialists in the Austin area we've worked alongside for years. You get the name, you deal with them directly, and we handle the water afterward so a new surface or fresh tile stays that way.

No. No markup, no finder's fee, no kickback. The referral is just the right person for the job, and the price is between you and them.

Vacuuming is done as needed, and every plan includes vacuum and debris time on every visit — 10 minutes on Essential, 30 on Enhanced, and an hour on Premium. That covers the normal week on most pools, especially with a working automatic cleaner. After a heavy rain, a windstorm, or a big leaf drop, the work can run past that, and anything beyond your included time is billed in half-hour blocks. You'll always hear the reason and the cost before it happens.

Yes, and a lot of pools should. Trees, heat, and how much the pool gets used all swing through the year, so you can move between Essential, Enhanced, and Premium month to month. Let me know before the month starts and we run that level for the whole month — changes are made a month at a time rather than a day or a week at a time, which keeps scheduling and billing simple. No contract, no change fee.

Yes, with a little notice. Normal family use is covered in your monthly rate; a large gathering puts a real load on the water, so advance notice lets me get ahead of it. Last-minute one-time balancing before a holiday weekend is also something I'm happy to do.

Long enough to turn your pool's volume over, plus a margin — which depends on gallons, pump type, plumbing, and season. Run time comes down as water cools in fall and winter, and goes back up during a freeze. If you have a variable speed pump, running longer at a lower speed usually filters better and costs less.

Usually not. A federal efficiency standard that took effect in July 2021 means manufacturers no longer build most single-speed replacement filtration pumps, so a main pump that fails today is generally replaced with a variable speed unit. You are not required to remove a single-speed pump that's still working — the change only applies when it's time for a new one. Booster pumps for pressure-side cleaners and small dedicated water feature pumps can still be single speed.

Run the pump continuously, including any water features, spillovers, and spa lines. Moving water is far harder to freeze than still water. If the power goes out during a hard freeze, draining the pump, filter, and heater at their plugs is the safest move.

No — nothing removes cyanuric acid from water except replacing water. When CYA gets high enough that chlorine stops working, a partial or full drain-to-clean is the only honest fix. Anyone selling you a product instead is selling you time, not a solution.

Leander, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Georgetown, Liberty Hill, Hutto, and Northwest Austin. If you're just outside those areas, ask — we can often cover it.

Yes. You can be notified before arrival, which helps if you have workers in the yard, a gate to unlock, or a dog outside.

Yes, two ways. Pool school is a one-time hands-on session at your own pool. Support plans give you a professional to call through the year — phone and video guidance, priority scheduling, and a discount on diagnostic visits.

Yes. That's a water and equipment consultation — a plain-language read on chemistry, equipment condition, and the surprises that tend to show up after closing. It isn't a Texas real-estate inspection and doesn't cover structure, electrical, gas, safety barriers, or leak detection.