WaskyDiver,

I'm not sure I can agree with your advice. I certainly would NOT want to put tap water in my pool that's pH 6.5--and I wouldn't want to drink it! I believe acid rain has a higher pH than that. A pH of 6.8 or less can damage your liner.

Generally, I would agree with advice against too much chemicals, but when it comes to Borax and Muriatic Acid, again, I must disagree. Borax raises pH, that's true, but it also adds borates to the water, and Chem_Geek has found that higher borate levels may inhibit algae growth and are fundamentally harmless. And since Muriatic Acid is Hydrochloric Acid, it adds nothing negative to your pool water as long as it doesn't lower pH too much.

There is generally no reason to worry about a T/A of 120 unless you are having real problems maintaining a constant pH.

However, your advice about striving for progress, not perfection is well in line with what we generally advise: use LESS of any chemical than you think you need because adding more is easier than getting rid of something.