If you own a pool, you need to read this article.
If you are unhappy with your pool or dissatisfied with the service maintaining it, you absolutely must read the entire article.
This info will change how you view your pool, and the relationship between your pool, your equipment, and your service provider.

This will be oversimplified to cover a ton of info quickly, so here it goes.
First off,
if you have a pool maintenance company, their primary goal is to be at your pool as little as possible.
This is not me bashing or ranting, this is just reality.
Their secondary goal is to use the least amount of chemicals required to maintain your pool.
Sorry, but it's true.
This doesn't mean they're all ripping you off, it's just how the pool service industry works.
It comes down to simple arithmetic.
Time+money+chemicals+fuel = cost.
If they can cut any of these costs, they save money and make more per pool.

Now throw into the mix that humans are flawed.
How many service providers are truly educated about pool chemistry?
How many of them are driven to grow their company, focusing on customer satisfaction?
How many are willing to take on the expense that being ethical and honest brings with it?
Again, this is not an attempt to bash pool service providers.
Education, owning errors and mistakes, as well as providing great customer service, all come at a cost, which is largely financial. Unfortunately, a large portion of today's service providers can not afford these expenses.
So to sum it up, if someone is maintaining your pool, there's a high probability that you've hired someone for a service who succeeds by providing as little service and materials as permissible, and they are very likely under-educated, and are carrying the burden of living month to month hoping nothing goes wrong.

Now you know why so many pool owners can't find a pool service provider that their happy with.

Now the good news, along with some really cool info.

Did you know that a GOOD pool service provider can be amazing and a God send?
They can offer smart solutions that will help them meet their goals while keeping you happy and actually saving you money!

Check out how these options for better pool water can completely change the game.

Our recommended technologies like UV systems, AFM (activated Filter Media), mineral induction combination systems, and centrifugal pre-filtration will all drastically improve your pool water and the work required to maintain it.
When combined to work synergistically, they produce outstanding results. 
We believe in this tech so much that we install it on all of our signature pools.

We could spend a very long time explaining each one of these technological advancements in detail. However, as we said, we want to inform you first, then you can dig as much as you like.

below we'll list the technologies we believe are game changers.
we'll start by listing them 
​1-4
Along with what they do.
There will be an informational video for each.
watch em!!!
​
1- UV systems - Ultraviolet can sterilize pool water without chemicals.
If you remember the Ebola outbreak of 2014, a UV robot named "Saul" made his debut and did not disappoint.
"Saul" the UV robot, made by a San Antonio based company called Xenex, proved to in fact be a literal killing machine.
It's been well documented that UV is an incredibly heavy hitter pertaining to disinfection. 
 Multiple medical studies have shown that UV can disinfect at an extremely effective level that is changing the way hospitals are viewing disinfection and even the use of bleach (chlorine).
It's the real deal!

2 - AFM (Activated Filter Media) - glass filtration media that can be put into a standard sand filter in place of the sand. This stuff filters down to 4 microns, prevents algae, prevents biofilm, recharges with backwash, and it actually never needs to be replaced. Yes, it will outlast your filter.

3 - Mineral Induction Combination Systems - combine anti-microbial minerals into the pool water that automatically deliver bacteria and algae-fighting elements in combination with optimized chlorine for a cleaner, more comfortable pool water that doesn't require daily maintenance.

4 - Centrifugal Water Pre-Filtration - a revolutionary new stage process which captures 80% of the dirt load before it ever reaches your filter. The separated solids are collected in a collection chamber while the clean water is directed out of the pre-filter. Pre-filters can reduce maintenance by over 75%, minimize filter wear, reduce backwashing by over 50%, which keeps water and chemicals in the pool. This saves water which is always a good thing for the environment and your water bill.

So, there you go.
These are some of the technologies that get missed that will give you a  more efficient, cleaner and healthier pool.

For years, we have left the financing entirely in the hands of our clients and their ability to find a product that is best for them. 

Though we still hold to that outlook on where our clients get funding, we have recently been made aware of an option that some of our home owners are using with great success.

So, to offer an option to our customers that have less than perfect credit, we suggest you take a look at www.hfsfinancial.net

From what we've seen and heard, they can genuinely help those who need some leniency when their scores require a more accommodating lender.

​So, If you're wanting to install a pool or outdoor living area, this could be an option that may provide the financial assistance you need to get the thing done.

READ MORE IN THIS ARTICLEIf you have ever taken a dip in a spring-fed pool, almost all will agree that the water felt great.
Besides being a bit on the chilly side, I personally loved my glide through the natural water in our local spring-fed swimming hole. 
Today's race for a better pool water solution is nothing new; it's been going on for decades. 
When you do a quick Internet search for chlorine pool alternatives, you'll run into all sorts of "better" options. 
We did a search and stuck to first page results to check out what a novice may encounter. We found salt water, ozone, UV, hydrogen peroxide, and even swim ponds.
When you look at each technology or concept, they all claim to be the answer to the quest for "better" pool water.
So, what's the deal? What's the solution? Why is it so complicated?
Well, it's not! 
​The truth is people are confused by being fed wrong info. 
Here's the truth, or at least our attempt to shed light on what's really going on!
The short answer!
Chlorine is a set standard, and it's the most widely accepted method established to sanitize. The problem is, people can get really sick from swimming in even seemingly clean pools. 
So, If you want to avoid big trouble should someone get ill from swimming in your pool, you'd better be using proven sanitation methods recommended by the authorities on health. 
The other issue is that the public got sidetracked into believing that the "feel" of the water equates to the "health" of the water. 
These are two totally separate things.


The longer answer!
While companies are indeed making some effort to accommodate pool owners with alternatives to chlorine, it all ends up being a re-packaging of the chlorine pool with a plus or a twist. 


Due to federal & global organizations like the CDC, WHO, and EPA doing health studies that produce data, which births a baseline, and then a standard, a rule, or a regulation, water sanitation turns into a significant legal issue from a liability standpoint. 
We live in a litigious world today. What company is going to want to risk going against the grain when proven technology is still selling?


As far as the water feel argument, this is entirely out of whack. Water feel is a perception, and the tech companies capitalize on it.
Saltwater pools are actually chlorinated.
The salt in the pool is converted into chlorine by electrolysis.
The feel of the water is due to the salinity levels, which are closer to the physiological salt levels naturally found in our bodies, so the water feels good on the skin.
Ever see eye rinsing solutions referred to as "saline" solution?
There's your salt! Salt is naturally in our bodies and tears.
Saltwater pools have other issues as well.
They're a pain, they're corrosive to equipment, and can thrash decking and masonry work.
I know of builders who offered to convert their client's existing saltwater pool systems into chlorine systems at no charge due to the saltwater problems.


There are also other alternative options like Ozone and UV, which have substantial benefits, but they have limitations too.
The biggest limitation is the induction lag.
When trying to go chemical-free, there's a big hurdle pertaining to the fact that once a contaminant is introduced into the water body, it doesn't immediately begin to be sanitized. The contaminant remains in the pool water body until it gets sanitized and filtered. 
Even if the contaminant got sucked directly into the plumbing system as soon as it entered the water, it might not get knocked out on the first pass through. This ends up leaving nasties in the same pool water with the swimmers for longer than desired, so risk of infection increases due to the increased exposure time.
The UV and ozone treat the water only while it's flowing through the system and passing through the equipment at the equipment pad.
Organic material load would be the other downside. 
A pool that receives a high organic matter load can get overwhelmed fairly quickly.
While these shortcomings are simply realities, these systems do have major benefits.


Now we come to the natural swimming ponds.
For starters, they are technically being deemed "ponds you can swim in." These aren't even referred to as pools. And it appears that the name itself is helping these swimming areas avoid the ANSI/ APSP standards on a technicality. Maybe we're missing something here, but who knows? While we'll admit that we aren't currently considered experts pertaining to these swim ponds, the name issue is a red flag. So with that being said, we'll have to opt-out of this pool type for now.


So what pool sanitation tech should people go with?
What we've found to be the answer for better pool water was a combination system.
Saltwater systems are not part of that equation, though. As a builder, I completely avoid saltwater pools!
If you need convincing, just look up galvanic corrosion and efflorescence.
Still, the use of the other tech that's out there in an adjunct approach with a standard chlorine system is by far your best bet for a better sanitation setup.
As a pool builder, we had the luxury of experimenting with this for many years, so for a buyer, you'll have to research and dig until you are confident with what you're choosing.
We build about a dozen elaborate and high-end pools every year. It took us over 5 years of researching, testing and tweaking these technologies before we could consistently replicate it to produce some seriously amazing results.
For the record, we don't sell these setups, and there's a big learning curve.
​Our synergistic approach to tackling sanitation has evolved over the years into a pretty complex system that goes beyond simply combining a few sanitation technologies.
Our installs start with the plumbing & hydraulics and finish out by strategically lining up every single aspect of the equipment that interacts with the pool water. 
We've not seen another setup to date that is as powerful and as effective as what we've now named our SYNER-KLEAR system. 
This system is also extremely user friendly, and it drastically reduces the time customers, and maintenance providers spend tending to their pools.
So there you go,
 if you want an excellent sanitation system, research combining technologies and decide what's best for you and your budget.