Checklist
Weekly pool water test checklist
A simple cadence that matches Pooldex’s 15-second loop: enter → verdict → save.
Most residential pools need a quick chemistry check a few times a week in season — more when it’s hot, after heavy use, or after storms. This checklist is the habit; the app is the calculator and the log.
1. Grab the kit
Drop kit or strips. Same parameters every time you can: FC, pH, TA. Add CH, CYA, salt on a slower cadence.
2. Enter only what you tested
Skip blank params. Ghosted last values are reference — don’t invent numbers.
3. Read the verdict
What’s in range, what’s off, and exact doses for the chemicals you actually own.
4. Dose in thirds when safety says so
Acid especially. Retest between additions. Labels beat any app.
5. Save the reading
History is how you catch slow drifts — rising CYA, falling TA, FC that never holds overnight.
What to test when
- Most visits: free chlorine (FC) and pH.
- Weekly: total alkalinity (TA).
- Monthly (or after big fills): calcium hardness (CH), cyanuric acid (CYA), salt (if SWG).
Want the “why”? Start with how often to test and how to balance pool water.