Most of the new posters have problems til they figure out the BBB system and trust it. Once they get it going the problems resolve and they don't post very often any more. You'll benefit from using the BBB system. You are correct in thinking the CYA will continue to rise if using pucks. Problems w/ algae usually follow at some point if it goes to high w/o adjusting chlorine levels as indicated in the Best Guess Chart.
I had a similar experience until the 5th year, then everything went wrong w/ my water and algae.

BBB saved it.

Good luck.