Ahhhh, this site is so informative! What you're saying makes sense -- very good sense. I'm liking more and more the idea of keeping the pool at 4 PPM FC / 80 PPM CYA and do periodic testing for CC, shocking whenever it's necessary. If that happens just once a month, I'll likely opt to buy liquid chlorine and shock that way rather than use the Boost button on the salt cell. Not too much trouble, and the quickness of the liquid chlorine may be more effective than the 24-hour boost cycle. Avoiding weekly shocks saves $$$ and, with the right water chemistry, doesn't create a greater risk of algae, either. Very nice.

Our pool is getting a LOT of use this summer because 1) it's new, 2) there's 6 of us living in my home, 3) all 6 like to invite their friends over to swim. So I won't be surprised if I have to shock the pool somewhat frequently, but perhaps I don't need to do it weekly afterall, Pinch-a-Penny's advice be danged.

For the next few days, I'll leave the SWCG set at 50% for the pump's regular 8-hour cycle (I run the pump after the 8 hours if people are in the pool, but I don't switch on the SWCG). I want to see how quickly the FC is depleted with this setting. Once it reaches 4 PPM, I'll bump up the SWCG to 60% or 70% to try and get a net-zero change to the FC. I do have a variable-speed pump, so I certainly could run the pump longer and a lower speed if I need to.

It's been fun trying to figure out all this stuff. This forum has been a terrific source of knowledge, real-world experience and expert advice. I already know more about pool chemistry that several pool-owning friends who have owned pools for years and years!