New Pool Owner School — Your First Year, Month by Month
Just got a pool? Here's the month-by-month playbook for your first year — chemistry, equipment, seasonal adjustments, and what to never DIY.
Month 1 — Learn your equipment
Spend 30 min with your pool tech at handoff. Learn: how to backwash the filter, how to read the pressure gauge, how to add salt, how to switch to spa mode. Take phone video. You'll forget half of it within a week.
Month 2 — Establish your routine
Test chemistry weekly (free chlorine, pH, alkalinity, CYA). Skim daily for 60 seconds. Brush walls weekly. Run automation schedule (don't change it — your installer set it correctly).
Months 3–5 (Summer)
Chlorine demand peaks. Test 2x/week. Pump runtime should be 8+ hrs. Watch CYA (cyanuric acid) — if above 80 ppm, partial drain and refill. This is the #1 thing homeowners get wrong in AZ.
Month 6 (Fall) — Filter clean
Cartridge filter: pull and deep-clean (or replace) at 6 months. DE filter: full breakdown clean. Pressure should drop 2–4 psi after cleaning.
Months 7–9 (Winter) — Reduce runtime
Drop pump to 4 hrs. Enable freeze protection. Chemistry stays balanced longer in cold water.
Month 10 (Spring) — Pre-summer prep
Service equipment (we do this annually for clients). Test heater. Confirm salt cell output. Replace any aging gaskets. Ready for May–September heavy use.
Never DIY
Pool draining (structure can heave out of the ground when empty in AZ). Electrical work on equipment. Plaster/pebble repair. Anything involving gas. Call us — these are the things that turn a $200 problem into a $20,000 one.
