FeaturedGuides
New Pool Owner Guide: Your First 30 Days
A pool came with the house and nobody explained it. Here's what to identify, what to test, what to buy and what to ignore in your first month.
6 min readUpdated Sep 24, 2026
Pool Guides & How-Tos
This is where we teach the job, start to finish. Every guide here was written by someone who has done the work enough times to know where it goes wrong, what it actually costs, and when the honest answer is "call somebody".
Start with the new owner guide if a pool came with your house. If you already know your way around a skimmer basket, jump straight to the task you need.
4 guides in this section
What you will find here
- Complete walkthroughs with tools, time and cost listed up front
- The failure modes we see most often, and how to avoid them
- Clear "do this yourself" vs "pay a pro" calls
- Printable checklists you can take out to the equipment pad
Start here
The guide that covers the whole subject
If you only read one page in this section, make it this one. Everything else here builds on it.
All guides guides
Everything published on guides, newest first.
Guide
Pool Chemicals Worth Keeping on Hand
Eight products cover a season. Two of them are sold at four times the price under a pool label, and most of the rest of the shelf treats symptoms.
5 minUpdated Sep 13, 2026
How-to
How to Test Pool Water (And Why Strips Mislead You)
Sampling technique, which test kit to buy, what to test how often, and the reading errors that send people chasing problems they don't have.
5 minUpdated Sep 13, 2026
Guide
Pool Maintenance for Beginners: The Whole Job in One Page
Everything a new pool owner needs to know about keeping water clear, in the order you'll actually need it.
5 minUpdated Aug 30, 2026
Common guides questions
I just bought a house with a pool. Where do I start?
Start by finding out what you own: pump type, filter type, sanitizer type and whether there is a heater. Then test the water and get chlorine and pH into range before anything else. Our new pool owner guide walks through that first week in order, including the three things that cause the most expensive first-year mistakes.
How much pool work can a homeowner realistically do?
More than most people think. Water testing and balancing, brushing, vacuuming, filter cleaning, basket emptying, cartridge swaps, skimmer weir replacement, and seasonal opening and closing are all well within reach. Gas heater internals, bonding and electrical, and anything involving structural shell repair are worth paying a pro for.
How long does routine pool care take each week?
For a typical residential pool in season, budget 20 to 30 minutes a week split across two visits — one longer session for testing, brushing and dosing, and one quick pass for baskets and skimming. Filter cleanings add an hour a few times a season.
The Skimmer
One short email with the seasonal jobs that matter, the fixes worth doing yourself, and the gear that earned its price.
Keep going
Sections that pair with this one
Pool problems rarely stay in one category. These are the ones that come up next.
Pool Maintenance & Cleaning
Weekly, monthly and seasonal pool maintenance done properly — brushing, vacuuming, filter cleaning and the routines that keep water clear with less work.
14 articlesExplorePool Chemistry & Water Balance
Chlorine, pH, alkalinity, cyanuric acid and calcium explained in plain English — with the dosing math, target ranges and fixes that actually hold.
20 articlesExplorePool Repairs & Troubleshooting
Diagnose it before you replace it. Pump problems, leaks, low flow, noisy motors and heater faults — traced back to the actual cause, step by step.
18 articlesExplore