Ok - I just finished witht the pool guy from my builder. He said they only test chlorine (FC), Ph, alkalinity, and stabilizer (CYA). Why they don't test for combined chlorine and calcium hardness, the answer "my supervisor says we don't have to." Asked him if he could make an exception, he said no he didn't want to get in trouble. So, here are my figures from this morning

FC 3.0
Ph 7.2
Alk 70 ppm
Stabilizer (CYA) 40 ppm
Calc - tried to do the hardness test on my own but it came up 0 - could I have done something wrong?

I noticed he uses a Taylor kit which I've heard some of you mention as an alternative to Ben's kit since that takes a while to get. The price is between $60 -$70 online and at a pool store nearby that I called. Is it worth spending that for the Taylor kit now, since it seems the way to go is to buy Ben's kit in the future?
The Aqua Chem kit I bought at Walmart yesterday tests for Calcium Hardness too but it seems to max out at 5.0 for chlorine which I suppose may make it difficult to test for combined chlorine right? Can I keep using this kit for the near future anyway?
Finally, what do you think of my numbers? Pool guy added stabililzer today only. Had to pull the numbers out of him if you know what I mean. He was very surprised I was not going to try a service. Not really confidence inspiring - but hey - I have you guys right? Off to pinch a penny to double check results - this is actually getting a little exciting!