Ever walked up to a job and found the pool equipment living inside a freshly finished bedroom? We have—and that’s just the start. This story-driven episode shares the funniest, strangest, and most useful moments from decades on the route, each one paired with practical takeaways you can use today.
We start with access and liability: a garage converted to a mother-in-law unit, complete with D.E. filter and heater behind a tenant’s door. It sparked a frank look at boundaries, ventilation and code concerns, and why a professional sometimes has to walk away. From there we row—literally—into a pool with a center island only reachable by raft, and talk about how design choices create recurring labor costs. We break down builder mistakes that make equipment unserviceable: pipes over pump lids, heaters mounted above baskets, and filters wedged against walls. You’ll get a fast bid checklist to catch these issues early, and language you can use to recommend fixes before they become weekly headaches.
Then we move to the living, barking variables. Dogs on route can be sweet companions or sprinting escape artists. You’ll hear a Doberman sprint, the small-dog chase you never want, and simple rules that prevent escapes and protect your schedule. We also cover pricing when pets use the pool and the quiet grief of losing a familiar yard companion. Finally, we tackle the roadside chaos: a tire punctured by pliers, starters that die mid-route, and the tools that save your day. We share the tap-the-starter trick, why a compact jump pack like a NOCO Boost GB40 belongs in every truck, and how AAA can swap a battery while you keep working.
• garage conversion creates unsafe equipment access and liability
• island pool requires raft access and sets service limits
• inaccessible equipment from poor plumbing and tight pads
• practical bid checks to catch design flaws early
• pet policies, dog escapes, grief and pricing for pet use
• roadside chaos, blowouts and the starter tap trick
• jump starter picks, why AAA is worth it
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Episode Transcript
And welcome to the Pool Guy Podcast Show.
In this episode, I'm going tocall it Pool Guy Campfire
Stories.
And this is when I'm going totell you some stories out there
that have happened to me orsituations that I've been in
that you can of course learnfrom, and these sometimes can be
humorous and sometimes a littlescary as well.
So I hope you enjoy this episodehere, and I think you're going
(02:13):
to get some knowledge out of it,hopefully, and maybe a few
laughs out of it.
Are you a pool service prolooking to take your business to
the next level?
Join the Pool Guy CoachingProgram.
Get expert advice, businesstips, exclusive content, and get
direct support from me.
I'm a 35-year veteran in theindustry.
Whether you're starting out orscaling up, I've got the tools
to help you succeed.
(02:34):
Learn more atswimmingpoollearning.com.
I'll start with my all-timefavorite story, and you may have
heard this one before, you maynot have.
But there was a pool that I wasdoing, and it was a pretty nice
account, easy account.
For some reason, I'm not surewhy they did this, but they put
the they put an equipment roomin the garage.
(02:54):
So there was a garage, a one-cargarage with a bathroom already,
and then off to the side wasthis equipment room with a small
filter.
It had a 36 square foot Dfilter.
It also had a heater in thereand a pump.
And it was all cement, so it wasnot a problem.
So I would go in the side door,access the equipment room.
(03:14):
When I cleaned the filter, Iwould just take the whole grid
assembly outside because it wasa small filter.
I could take the 36 square footassembly outside and hose it
off.
So it wasn't a big deal thatthey had this equipment room in
the garage.
It's not very common in SouthernCalifornia actually to have an
enclosed equipment room, really,unless you're in a commercial
account.
That in itself is not the story,of course.
(03:35):
And then one day I got to thestop and I noticed that they
were doing some construction inthe garage.
And I was curious, and you know,I thought they were remodeling
the garage.
So I went the following week andI noticed that they were putting
drywall in.
And so I started thinking, well,it looks like they're actually
building a bedroom in here.
Of course, they didn't getpermits because this is kind of
what people do.
And they actually, after aboutthree weeks, they actually had
(03:58):
the floor in LVP.
It was in the actual whole areaof the garage.
They put a new door on theequipment room to make it look
nice.
It had a bathroom already.
They added a shower to it, andthey made it a one-bedroom
mother-in-law unit, and theyactually moved their parents in
from overseas.
And so I would get to the stopand then I would knock on a door
(04:19):
and the person would open thedoor.
It was kind of embarrassing.
I'm like going into the theirlittle house to access their the
filter and the timer andeverything.
And it's just kind of kind ofcreepy, you know.
Like I'm entering thisone-bedroom unit that they
converted to get to the poolequipment.
And then I started thinkingabout some liability.
(04:40):
I'm I'm like, okay, there's aheater in here.
Yes, it's vented, but I justfelt like it was just the whole
thing was weird having to knockon the door to get in there,
because now it's a little houseinstead of a garage.
And then at the crossing L VPand be careful, I don't get it
dirty.
And then I was thinking, how amI going to clean this filter and
take it across this floor?
It was just a big mess.
(05:01):
So I told the owner, you know,since you converted the garage
to a room, I don't feelcomfortable servicing the pool
anymore.
I just feel like it's it's justnot something that I want to do.
And I don't know who took overthat account, but again, they're
gonna get there and it's gonnabe a total shocker when they see
the equipment room insidesomeone's house.
So one of those things that canhappen, probably never would
(05:22):
happen to you on your route, butthese are odd things that can
happen out there.
So thankfully I got rid of thataccount, and I don't have to
every week knock on someone'sdoor and enter their house to
get to the filter, get to thepool equipment, turn it on.
And it was quite loud too, soI'm not sure what the idea was
behind this.
You know, you know, during theeight-hour runtime, it's gonna
(05:45):
be pretty loud in that littleone-bedroom place back there.
Another one that I thought wasinteresting was this pool that
was built by a builder, and heactually put a little island in
the center.
This was like it was a prettybig pool.
Now the island in the center hadlike a little area you can sit
in, and you know, the the ownersaid if I could brush around the
(06:06):
the island, like clean the tilesand make sure it's clean around
the island area.
So he bought a little raft forme, like one of those uh orange
rafts where I can get into androw over to the little island.
I mean it was like eight feetaway from the the edge of the
pool, and so you know, I waslike, well, this is a bit
unusual and interesting.
I guess I can do this once in awhile, go there and clean the
(06:28):
pool and go through the islandand brush the tiles and make
sure that area is clean.
The the funny thing is, youknow, I didn't really need it a
lot, but he was really insistentthat every week I get into this
little raft and row over thereand clean that area, so it just
got to the point where it'slike, okay, yeah, there's an
island.
I can get over there in the raftand brush the tiles and clean it
every so often, but I don't haveto do it every week.
(06:50):
And he was really insistent thatI get in this little raft and
paddle over there to clean it.
It looked weird.
I wish I had a video of it.
This is before I was filming allmy stuff, and it's just one of
those weird accounts where it'slike, well, I mean, if you built
a bridge or something, that'd bebetter.
I just didn't feel comfortableevery week getting in there and
rowing over there.
It was really an awkwardsituation, and so that account,
(07:11):
of course, I took off my route.
And so the other pool guyinheriting it is gonna get the
same kind of you know insistencethat he gets into this raft
every week and row over thereand clean that area.
So, this is an example of abuilder going a little crazy and
not really being considerate ofthe Pool Service Pro.
Now, since I'm talking aboutbuilders not being considerate,
(07:32):
this happens a lot, and this isa situation that you may find
yourself in, but you may haveequipment that's really
inaccessible because of the waythey installed the equipment at
the pad.
This happens a lot in Californiabecause you know we have really
small equipment pad areas,really small footprints in
backyards, and you may run intobizarre things.
There was one installation, I'mgonna share a couple here.
(07:54):
There's one in particular wherethey had put the piping or the
plumbing in such a way that itwas impossible to get the pump
lid off the Intelliflow pump.
So they had a pipe going acrossthe top.
I don't know how it passed theinspection, to be honest with
you, but you probably have runinto the situation where it's
really hard to get the lids offthese pumps because there's
(08:16):
pipes around it.
You know, there's oneinstallation that I had where
they had the heater on thisactual metal pad above the pump
because there was no room forthe heater.
I guess you could do it, I guessit was code, I'm not sure.
But I couldn't reach the pumpbasket because it was underneath
the heater, the whole heaterapparatus that they put in
there.
And this other one that I'mtalking about, the plumbing was
(08:39):
over the pump lid, literally,and so it was no way you can get
the basket out.
So you would take the lid off,and then I would use my hand and
I would kind of just get thedebris out of there.
(09:07):
And then I thought one day,well, what's gonna happen when
the pump basket cracks and Ican't access it anymore?
And so I told the customer, thisneeds to be replumbed, this is
kind of crazy.
But they put a pipe right overthe pump basket and I can't get
it out.
And he saw it, he's like, Yeah,that's kind of weird, and so
that was of course replumbed.
I believe the builder went backthere and did it.
(09:28):
It was kind of embarrassing.
I think the excuse was he wasn'teven paying attention to where
the pump was or where the pumplid was when he did the
insulation and was on him.
Another one is when they put thefilters or pumps and motors
right up against the wall of thehouse.
Now there is a code about that,and of course they don't follow
that to the letter, and a lot oftimes you can't get the filter
(09:53):
clamp off, or if you have asystem three filter, you can't
get one of the clamps offbecause right up against the
drywall.
Happens a lot.
I've had this problem wheresomeone installed a Penter 420
square foot clean and clearcartridge filter, they built a
wall around the equipment area,and they built in such a way
that the only way to get theclamp off is to get it off the
filter in a certain way to whereyou can kind of rotate it and
(10:16):
pull it towards you with thefilter lid and kind of get it
off that way.
And getting it on is nearlyimpossible, and it was very
frustrating.
So, this will happen to you outthere where you're gonna have
equipment that's unaccessible,and you may not notice when you
take the account and do the biduntil you go to clean the filter
or go to change a motor that'sright up against the wall, and
there's no way to remove itwithout cutting the plumbing.
(10:37):
And it does happen a lot outhere in Southern California.
Now, I do love dogs, and I havenothing against people having
pets, and I really don't care ifthe dog wants to use the pool,
that's that's the customer'spriority.
And there's things you can putin place, of course.
You can charge extra forchemicals, extra filter
cleaning, you can add all thesethings to the pool to help
(11:00):
enhance that.
So dog swimming is an issue inCalifornia, of course, and
probably your area too, andthat's something that I can
address in a different podcast.
But I have a few pretty funnydog stories here as well.
There was one dog, his name wasDuke, and he you know he was a
Doberman pincher, and he had atendency.
(11:22):
So the way this account works isthat they they keep him in this
little side area, and for me toaccess the account, there's a
gate they move by the way, andso the dog's no longer there.
The gate kind of moves out, andit's a big gate that for the
driveway, and I have to throwthe dog a treat to get him away
from there when I'm coming inbecause it takes a while for the
gate to actually close again.
(11:43):
I have to get in there, get thekeypad, and close the gate.
So I have a dog treat.
I carry these chicken chewtreats, I get them on Amazon, so
I give him the treat, andusually he doesn't run away.
But for some reason, this onetime he ran out the gate when it
was closing.
I don't know why he did that,he's never done that before.
So I opened it and went overthere, and he ran down the
(12:06):
street.
I can hear people screamingbecause he's a big dope-man
pincher, and so I just yelledhis name.
It was one of those things whereI was like, Well, I can't chase
this dog, he's fast and he'salready scaring people in the
neighborhood.
So I just yelled for him and Iclapped really loud, and lo and
behold, he turned around andcame running back to me and went
back into the gate and I gavehim another treat.
(12:26):
But it's one of those thingswhere you will have these
situations where dogs will getout.
Unfortunately, I had a small dogget out.
Now, these small dogs areterrible to catch.
I mean, if you've ever had oneget out, I think it was like a
collie or something, and thisdog is was fast, of course, and
no way to corner these smalldogs.
Every time I get near a corner,you know, the dog would bolt a
(12:49):
different way, and so I'm I'mlike about halfway down the
street now, a quarter of a milechasing this dog.
But fortunately there wasanother neighbor or someone a
homeowner, I wouldn't say aneighbor since I'm half a mile,
quarter mile away.
He helped me corner the dog andI got it back in there.
But I guess the moral of thestory is don't let the dog out
(13:10):
because you're gonna have a hardtime getting it back in there,
and it's gonna waste a lot ofyour time and effort, and it's
frustrating and kind of scaryhaving your customer's dog
running around out there in thestreets.
So I'm really cautious about it,and every time I'm going back
there, I make sure the gatecloses and the dog's not gonna
get out.
It's gonna happen.
The situations are gonna comeup, like I mentioned with the
(13:32):
Doberman Pincher running outwith a weird way the gate opens
up, but it's one of those thingsto be aware of and be really
cognizant of not letting thedogs out.
It's actually a little sad whenyou get to an account that you
you've had for a long time andthe dog's been there a long time
and you find out the dog hadpassed away, and so there's a
little bit of sadness that goeswith kind of bonding with these
(13:54):
dogs on your route.
And I've had several of thesesituations, and it's pretty sad.
Some of the dogs you really missbecause they they're kind of
like part of the pool itself,you know, they're sitting there
watching you, and they come upto you, and they're like your
dog basically.
So it is kind of one of thosethings where you have to kind of
be detached, but at the sametime, you do miss these dogs
(14:17):
when they do pass, and theydon't last a long time.
You know, my dog lasted 12 yearsand they just have a short
lifespan.
So it's one of those things youhave to kind of get used to out
there on the pool route.
There are some dogs, however,that you're hoping that they
pass away sooner than later,especially those small dogs that
just never stop barking whenyou're at the pool.
(14:37):
It's the most annoying thing inthe world, and it's almost to
the point where you have to dropthe account because the dog is
just so irritating, but you knowwhat I'm talking about.
Dog just never stops barking forthat 15 or 20 minutes that
you're there, and it's superannoying.
You know, you can maybe put somemusic on with headphones or
whatever, but you know, thoseare the dogs that you're like,
(14:59):
okay, how old is this dog?
Is it eight or nine?
You know, do some math in yourhead.
Of course, there's some storiesI can tell about not being able
to access the stop for somereason.
One really sticks out in my mindhere in California or my area,
they do a lot of filming in thehomes.
So there's been some film shootsin the area where they had the
street blocked off.
(15:20):
But this one's prettyinteresting.
This was a street that wasblocked off with police tape,
couldn't get down into the pool,and wondering what's going on,
you know.
I saw like a lot of weird thingson the street.
You know, I saw a tree trimmingtruck that was there that had
trees that were halfway trimmed,and I thought, well, did the
tree trimmer get sucked intothat machine?
(15:41):
I always think about that, youknow, those machines.
I've heard people get sucked inthere and get cut up with the
the tree bark or the tree makingthe bark, those machines that
was there on the street, and thestreet was really quiet.
There was like no one on thestreet, basically.
They had closed the whole thingoff, and I was really curious of
what happened.
So the following week I askedthe customer, hey, what happened
(16:02):
on your street?
Why did they block it off?
And why would there's no one noone in the neighborhood?
Well, apparently, this is aweird story.
The gardener had gotten upsetwith the homeowner.
I don't know exactly whathappened.
He rammed his truck into theirproperty, and then he set
himself on fire in the truck.
It was like really bizarre, andso it was like a big giant
(16:24):
investigation.
Everyone was evacuated from theneighborhood.
I guess they thought maybe hewas like there was some more
terrorist activity associatedwith it.
So that was like the weirdestthing that I've ever seen.
Uh, you know, not able to accessthe pool because of this kind of
terrorist act that this guycommitted in a residential
neighborhood, and I'm not surewhat happened to him.
(16:46):
The neighbor wasn't too sureeither, but it's really weird,
and you know, those things canhappen.
That was like the weirdeststreet closure that I've
experienced.
Then, of course, you have themechanical issues with your
vehicle.
All of us have had the batterydie, the starter go out.
There's been a few things I'veran over that were weird.
You know, when you're out there,you're gonna get flat tires.
(17:08):
But I ran over a pair of pliersone day, and my tire just
popped.
It was like I'm driving 40 milesan hour down this street, and
then I hear a pop, and then ofcourse, my truck, the tire is
like dun dun dun dun dun dun dundun.
I'm like, wow, I had a blowout,that's weird.
So I pull over and I look, andliterally the pair of pliers was
in such a position on the roadthat when I hit it, it went
(17:30):
right through the tire andpopped it.
And so when I took it, I ofcourse I call triple A, and by
the way, I recommend you havetriple A, they come over and
they change the tire for you,it's much easier.
Took it to the tire shop, andhe's like, Well, that's the
weirdest thing I've ever seen.
You actually ran over a pair ofpliers and it went right to your
tire.
So, yeah, those road hazards areout there.
Typically, it's like a screw ora nail, and you have a slow
(17:52):
leak, but this was a pretty wildflat tire, and then of course I
had my starter go out all thetime, and this happens a lot.
You're gonna go through startersin this business because you
take turning your truck on andoff 20 or so times per day, and
it's gonna wear out.
And there's a little trick youcan do, by the way, if you
wanted to finish your route, youhave to have the customer help
(18:14):
you, but have them start thecar, crawl under there with a
hammer or your large channellocks.
That's what I use.
So if you have those large bluechannel locks, you should carry
those.
Tap your starter with it andhave them turn the ignition on,
and your car should start up,and then your truck should start
up, and then you can drive itaround to your finish your
route, but don't turn the truckoff, of course.
(18:34):
Keep the motor running, and youcan finish your route and then
go to your mechanic and get anew starter put in.
So a little trick, that's whatone of the tow truck drivers
taught me.
And I've been using that trickwhenever my starter goes out,
you just tap it with the withyour wrench, have the customer
turn the car on at the sametime, and it should start up.
And of course, battery, adifferent story.
(18:55):
Now, one thing that you probablyshould get is one of those
portable battery chargers theysell on Amazon, and it's it's
better than jumper cables, youjust attach it to the terminals
and you turn it on, and itshould give you enough juice to
turn your truck on.
And in that case, once you getyour truck running, you
definitely don't want to turn itoff again.
And actually, I have a funnystory with that.
(19:16):
I had I used to carry a pair ofjumper cables before they had
those devices, and so my batterydied at a customer's house.
She had a Mercedes SUV, and soshe's like, Oh yeah, I'll give
you a jump, no problem.
So I pop her hood up and I'mlooking for the battery.
Could not find the battery inthe engine, and she was like,
What do you mean there's nobattery in there?
I'm like, Yeah, there's nobattery here.
Like, you know, she knows wherethe battery should be in the
(19:37):
front compartment area, and sowe opened the trunk looking for
the battery, no battery there,and so I just was out of luck.
I had to call triple A.
She left and went to work.
And next the following week shetold me, Oh, you know where the
battery was?
It was under the passenger seat.
It's like, okay, Mercedes.
They don't have cup holders,they put the battery under the
passenger seat.
Really strange.
(19:58):
So, yeah, this device is greatto have.
I'll actually give you the nameof it.
Definitely order it, and it's agreat way to jump your truck
without having to rely on jumpercables, looking for a battery
and a Mercedes, things likethat.
And so the brand I use is Noco NO C O, and it's a battery boost
plus, it has the actual jumpercable clips, kind of like a
(20:19):
jumper cable, and there's alldifferent prices, but uh you
probably get away with the$90one.
Get that, keep that in yourtruck, keep it charged, and
whenever you need a jump yourtruck because the battery will
invariably die.
Disconnect the positive andnegative, hit the power button
on the charger, turn theignition, and you can probably
start your truck.
Usually it works 100% of thetime.
(20:41):
I haven't had a fail yet.
I've used it for neighbors, I'veused it when I was out at the
shopping center, jumpingsomeone's car.
So it's a great little thing.
Again, the Noco Boost, the onethat I have here is the NoCo
Boost GB40.
So it's a thousand um ampcharger.
Definitely want to get one ofthose so that you can jump your
car.
But triple A is also greatbecause then they come out and
(21:03):
they just swap out the batteryright there while you're
waiting.
So you can clean the pool, dowhatever, maybe clean the filter
since you're gonna be there alittle longer, and then triple A
will come there with a battery,swap it out.
Then when the battery diesagain, since you have the triple
A battery, they'll warranty anykind of proration on it, and
they'll just drop anotherbattery.
And so triple A is great forthat.
I would definitely recommendgetting a membership there and
(21:25):
then using their batteries goingforward so they can easily swap
it out on the road for you.
If you're looking for otherpodcasts, of course, I have
plenty of those.
Go to my website,SonyproLearning.com on the
banner, click on the podcasticon.
There'll be a drop down menuthere with over 1800 podcasts.
And if you're interested in thecoaching program, you can learn
more at PoolGuyCoaching.com.
(21:45):
Thanks for listening to thispodcast.
Have your serious week and Godbless.
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The Burden
The Burden is a documentary series that takes listeners into the hidden places where justice is done (and undone). It dives deep into the lives of heroes and villains. And it focuses a spotlight on those who triumph even when the odds are against them. Season 5 - The Burden: Death & Deceit in Alliance On April Fools Day 1999, 26-year-old Yvonne Layne was found murdered in her Alliance, Ohio home. David Thorne, her ex-boyfriend and father of one of her children, was instantly a suspect. Another young man admitted to the murder, and David breathed a sigh of relief, until the confessed murderer fingered David; “He paid me to do it.” David was sentenced to life without parole. Two decades later, Pulitzer winner and podcast host, Maggie Freleng (Bone Valley Season 3: Graves County, Wrongful Conviction, Suave) launched a “live” investigation into David's conviction alongside Jason Baldwin (himself wrongfully convicted as a member of the West Memphis Three). Maggie had come to believe that the entire investigation of David was botched by the tiny local police department, or worse, covered up the real killer. Was Maggie correct? Was David’s claim of innocence credible? In Death and Deceit in Alliance, Maggie recounts the case that launched her career, and ultimately, “broke” her.” The results will shock the listener and reduce Maggie to tears and self-doubt. This is not your typical wrongful conviction story. In fact, it turns the genre on its head. It asks the question: What if our champions are foolish? Season 4 - The Burden: Get the Money and Run “Trying to murder my father, this was the thing that put me on the path.” That’s Joe Loya and that path was bank robbery. Bank, bank, bank, bank, bank. In season 4 of The Burden: Get the Money and Run, we hear from Joe who was once the most prolific bank robber in Southern California, and beyond. He used disguises, body doubles, proxies. He leaped over counters, grabbed the money and ran. Even as the FBI was closing in. It was a showdown between a daring bank robber, and a patient FBI agent. Joe was no ordinary bank robber. He was bright, articulate, charismatic, and driven by a dark rage that he summoned up at will. In seven episodes, Joe tells all: the what, the how… and the why. Including why he tried to murder his father. Season 3 - The Burden: Avenger Miriam Lewin is one of Argentina’s leading journalists today. At 19 years old, she was kidnapped off the streets of Buenos Aires for her political activism and thrown into a concentration camp. Thousands of her fellow inmates were executed, tossed alive from a cargo plane into the ocean. Miriam, along with a handful of others, will survive the camp. Then as a journalist, she will wage a decades long campaign to bring her tormentors to justice. Avenger is about one woman’s triumphant battle against unbelievable odds to survive torture, claim justice for the crimes done against her and others like her, and change the future of her country. Season 2 - The Burden: Empire on Blood Empire on Blood is set in the Bronx, NY, in the early 90s, when two young drug dealers ruled an intersection known as “The Corner on Blood.” The boss, Calvin Buari, lived large. He and a protege swore they would build an empire on blood. Then the relationship frayed and the protege accused Calvin of a double homicide which he claimed he didn’t do. But did he? Award-winning journalist Steve Fishman spent seven years to answer that question. This is the story of one man’s last chance to overturn his life sentence. He may prevail, but someone’s gotta pay. The Burden: Empire on Blood is the director’s cut of the true crime classic which reached #1 on the charts when it was first released half a dozen years ago. Season 1 - The Burden In the 1990s, Detective Louis N. Scarcella was legendary. In a city overrun by violent crime, he cracked the toughest cases and put away the worst criminals. “The Hulk” was his nickname. Then the story changed. Scarcella ran into a group of convicted murderers who all say they are innocent. They turned themselves into jailhouse-lawyers and in prison founded a lway firm. When they realized Scarcella helped put many of them away, they set their sights on taking him down. And with the help of a NY Times reporter they have a chance. For years, Scarcella insisted he did nothing wrong. But that’s all he’d say. Until we tracked Scarcella to a sauna in a Russian bathhouse, where he started to talk..and talk and talk. “The guilty have gone free,” he whispered. And then agreed to take us into the belly of the beast. Welcome to The Burden.