New Tennessee member with vinyl pool & SWCG

Hello all new to the forum, I'm in Middle Tennessee. I've had my SW pool for 4 years. But I've never really gotten the hang of it. I rely on the local pool store to keep me up and running. Seems I visit them more than most people. I'd really like to learn more about taking care of the pool myself and leaving some cash in my pocket. I will have to say, my local pool store is really helpful, and they don't push products down my throat. They only sell me what I need when I need it. I have a 16*32 15000 gal pool with a Compu pool SWG. Personally I think the system sucks, it has never really worked as far as I am concerned. The system is 4 years old, and from what I have read, 4 years is the life cycle of them. So I am looking to learn how to take care of the pool without hitting the pool store all the time, and also learn about whats the best SWG for the buck. Thanks for reading and helping me out.

Probably the key to successful SWCG use is to learn to run the pool WITHOUT the SWCG. Then you can use the SWCG as a reliable continuous feeder . . . which is what they are really good at . . . and not as a replacement for an involved and knowledgeable pool owners . . . which is what a lot of salespeople imply.

Probably the 2 most important steps toward be becoming successful at easy pool management are learning to test accurately, and to manage the chlorine / stabilizer relationship correctly. Reading the testkit & Best Guess pages linked in my signature will get you started.

Welcome to the forum!

Welcome.
Ben put it succinctly.

BTW, No matter HOW nice the pool store is, I will bet dollars to donuts they are selling you a bill of goods. And, the worst part is, they probably don't know it.

We have proven, effective, easy, and inexpensive methods of pool care. My SWCG has been super-successful for me for last season and this, because I had long mastered what we call the B-B-B method of pool care that Ben developed. B-B-B stands for Bleach, Borax and Baking Soda as three key ingredients to pool care. Add CYA (Stabilizer) and dry acid or Muriatic Acid and you have EVERYTHING you need.