Customer Reviews
NOT the best book to buy. 
2005-05-15
This is my first Amazon review, but I feel compelled to share this experience with others.
This book as said to be for the professional and the novice. It was said to contain all the information one could possibly need. It was suggested that you could take what you want from the weighty tome, and leave the rest. In reality the book is clearly NOT written for a new pool owner. In fact, its not written for an experience pool owner. The book was written for a pool repairman. Moreover, it does not contain the practicle information a pool professoinal would require to steer clients toward pool products.
Which cleaner should you get- Vacume or pressure driven? No answer here. What about a heating- Solar, oil, gas? No advice, no direction....
In fact, the book reads more like the diary of a pool man. About how one manufacurer was driven out of business by refusing to compromise quality, or how he cared for the pool of come Malibu celebrity.
Having recently purchased a home with an in-ground pool, I have read three books so far, and gotten quite and education. This book however failed in almost every regard. Finnally, the book deliniates ways of making money of customers as a pool professional. Information I simply have no use for.
Lastly, it bears mentioning that there is a quote on the book jacket from another Amazon reviewer "If you want to buy one book on swimming pools this is it!" Why not a quote from a noted pool authority or publication? Why quote some anonymous amzazon.com user like you or me? Most likely because there were no favorable reviews from newspapers or magazines.
This book was more then a waste of 30 dollars. It was also a waste of time. Unless you need to know how to change things like light fixtures in to pool. The book is not awful, so I gave it 2 stars, but I urge you to look elsewhere.
Good for service people, not as good for owners 
2005-05-02
There are too few pool books out there that go into enough detail on maintenance and water chemistry. So, for that reason, the book is great for an owner who wants to understand how to do simple maintenance or work better with a service company. However, there were a few things that bugged me about the book. As mentioned in a previous review, I agree that there was not enough information given to help choose between one product or another, which I would have liked to see. It is more about "when the owner has made a decision, here is how to make your money..." He even goes as far as cautioning the service person to think twice about recommending something like an automatic pool cleaner (like a Polaris) because the owner may then cancel service. On one hand, it is annoying that the author seems to tell the reader to do certain things to maximize profits instead of what is the right thing for the pool and owner. On the other hand, I guess I am glad (as an owner) to read the book so that I on a more even playing field and can more easily detect if someone is fleecing me.
good for a pro, not so good for a homeowner 2004-08-22
this is certainly an informative book, but it is written for pool care pros. It speaks in the perspective of 'servicing your client' or...'based on your client's decision'...the problem that I had with that is that I sometimes turned to this book to help me make a decision on something. eg. I looked to the book to offer an opinion on solar heating systems and the section on solar heaters said something along the lines of, 'there are many kinds of solar pool heating options. once your client has chosen one, you can make extra money by contacting the manufacturer and learning how to service it for your client, although we recommend that you let the manufacturer handle the warranty repairs'...or something to that effect.
too much info that i didn't need and not enough that i did, and I'll probably have to buy another book.
not bad, just maybe not ideal for a non handyman homeowner who wants to learn the basics to keep from hiring a service.
hope that helps
The Ultimate Pool Maintenance Manual 
2004-05-09
I really liked this book. Alot of information, but written in a way everyone could read. You don't have to be in the business to own this book, although if you are a recommend this book two fold. If u are in the pool maintenance business you must have this book as your bible and quick refrence. I am a pool technician and do use this book often.
Almost perfect... alomost 2003-09-13
This is a great book that explains the "whys" as well as the hows". Lets face it... what's the point playing around with water chemitry if you have no idea what is behind all the effects.
Why almost perfect??? It has no information on the benefits of a salt water pool/chlorinator. The more I've read elswhere, this seems to be a great way to go and I would have like to additional info on it in this book.
Invaluable Guide for Pool Owners 2008-02-11
The Ultimate Pool Maintenance Manual: Spas, Pools, Hot Tubs, Rockscapes and Other Water Features, 2nd Edition is an in depth, easy to read guide for maintaining your pool. I have purchased a few different books on the subject and this is by far the best.
Geek Pool Book 2007-09-09
We bought a house with an inground pool 5 years ago. A bit of a surprise really. We had ZERO experience with pools, and knew only by rumor that we were buying something that required a LOT of care and maintenance. I hunted through bookstores for a guide I could learn from. I am a technical writer by profession, so I know a thing or two about how to present complex ideas to the innocent. Browsing through this volume I was impressed with the author's skill at getting ideas across (well structure informattion - here's the idea, heres' the basics, here's the gory details). I bought it on the strength of his organization and writing, not on the content (about which I knew zilch).
It is still in regular use 5 years later. YES, it is technical. YES, it sometimes provides way too much information for the novice. But if you have a brain and you can handle some complexity, this book is BRILLIANT. I knew nothing, and in very short order I learned what I needed for basic care. This book is a bible for pool maintenance. Over the years I've learned (from experience guided by this book) how to strip a DE filter, how to repair my Polaris pool robot, and more about water chemistry than I ever thought possible. This past summer ('07) it guided us through a plaster refinishing (pool is ~30 years old) and taught me how to restart the pool.
It IS written by a pool professional, FOR pool professionals, and even has advice on how to run a pool maintenance business (which is of zero interest to me). But if you can learn from a pro talking to other pros, this book is it.
The "Haynes" manual for pools 2006-11-10
This book is to swimming pools what the "Haynes" car maintenance manuals are to your car. It contains all the information required to maintain your pool, even though probably someone else is going to do it for you. If you own a pool, it is worth reading the book to understand what the service technician should and shouldn't be doing, and when the pool is in need of help. It can also help you save some money by doing the work yourself. The book is entirely about maintaining a pool, not owning one. It is written in a friendly, readable style, and you can simply keep it as a reference manual to know what to do when things go wrong. If you are considering installing a pool or spa, this book will show you what you are letting yourself in for. If there is one omission in the text it is that the author ignores electric pool cleaning robots, though they are probably the most effective way of keeping the pool clean.
Save your Money 
2006-04-24
This book was a wasste of time and money. The book focuses more on being a pool professional then the actual "how-to" a pool owner needs to work on their pool. It has more information on changing a light fixtures and on bilking wealthy Malibu folks out of cash then actual useful information.
After reading this (useless!) book I went to my local library and reearched several books on the subject, there is a title called "What color is your pool?" That has lots of information for the first time pool owner. There may be other more technical guides our there, but this book has few drawings and illustrations, poor writing, and ultimately is lacking in adequate information.
Trust me...SAVE YOUR MONEY!
Helpful Tool 2005-08-26
This book is a helpful tool for any pool owner or someone interested in having a pool.
