Rudy, Author at Aquatic Facility Training and Consultants

How Much DE Should I Add? ⚖

Post author:Rudy
Post published: March 8, 2020
Post category:Apartment Pool Maintenance CPO Certification Class Equipment Hotel Pool Maintenance

Diatomaceous Earth Hey Guys. Hoping your March is off to a good start. I wanted to talk about this for a while, and going into spring seems to be the…

Why The CMAHC Will Make You Question Everything

Post author:Rudy
Post published: February 16, 2020
Post category:Uncategorized Pool News

Hey, Pool Talkers! Quite a few things are going on that we are pretty excited about. There are also some other topics I think are super important. So, this week…

How To Compete With The Internet

Post author:Rudy
Post published: January 26, 2020
Post category:Marketing

Maybe we shouldn't... Maybe those Mother Fathers should compete with us Somewhere along the way, when these e-commerce powerhouses first came about, they managed to convince us that we would…

Top 11 Swimming Pool Blogs to Follow

Post author:Rudy
Post published: December 22, 2019
Post category:Misc.

Top 11 Swimming Pool Blogs to Follow Okay, so we may be a wee bit biased here. We are convinced that Pool Operator Talk News is the best of the…

The Health Department Closed My Pool

Post author:Rudy
Post published: November 24, 2019
Post category:Uncategorized

Have you ever spent any time speaking with your health official? I mean an actual conversation, not just chatting about pH, but what they do aside from pool inspections? These…

Lower Cyanuric Acid in Swimming Pools Chemically

Post author:Rudy
Post published: November 17, 2019
Post category:Water Chemistry

[responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Male" buttontext="Listen to Article"] What chemical lowers cyanuric acid in swimming pools and actually works? Believe it or not, it's sold in the spice aisle of your…

Journey to the 9/11 Memorial Pools

Post author:Rudy
Post published: October 26, 2019
Post category:Pool News

Most of you know that I am a New Yorker. Yup, I am one of those transplanted Yankees. With that, I am a little embarrassed that I had not yet…

NEWS | Mr. Clean Algae Eraser

Post author:Rudy
Post published: October 13, 2019
Post category:Pool News

A Revolutionary New Pool Product Hits Shelves? 95 Thousand Reactions & 205 Thousand Shares Mr. Clean Magic Eraser On July 5th of 2018, Lisa Pack shared a photo to her…

How You Can Help a Friend’s Small Business Grow

Post author:Rudy
Post published: September 22, 2019
Post category:Marketing

#SmallBusinessEveryday ? It would be great if everyone patronized the small businesses that were owned by friends. If you have a need for whatever product it is that they offer,…

Could a Deadly Chlorine Gas Cloud Happen at Your Apartment Complex Pool

Post author:Rudy
Post published: September 14, 2019
Post category:Chemical Safety Apartment Pool Maintenance Risk Management

Liquid Chlorine Bleach + Muriatic Acid = Chlorine Gas ? Almost All of the Gas Cloud Incidents in the News occurred in Pools using Liquid Chlorine Bleach (Sodium Hypochlorite) Hey…

Talking Pools Podcast

If you’ve ever stared at a test kit like it personally insulted your family… welcome home.

Talking Pools Podcast is the pool industry’s “pull up a chair” show—part shop talk, part field manual, part therapy session—built for people who actually live on pool decks: commercial operators, service techs, builders, facility managers, and anyone responsible for water that can’t afford to go sideways. The network was created to level up the pool industry with real-world conversations on water chemistry, filtration, troubleshooting, construction, safety, and the business side of keeping pools open and budgets intact.

Here’s the hook: it’s not theory-first. It’s experience-first—a roster of seasoned pros (with 250+ years of combined “been there, fixed that” wisdom) turning complicated problems into practical moves you can use the same day. And it’s not one voice, one vibe, one corner of the industry: it’s a network of shows designed to reflect how diverse this work really is—different regions, different specialties, different personalities.

Also worth saying out loud: women aren’t “special guests” here—they’re on the mic as hosts, from the beginning, with an intentionally balanced roster. That matters, because the best ideas in this industry don’t come from one lane—they come from the whole road.

If you want a podcast that can make you laugh and make you better at what you do—without pretending the job is easier than it is—Talking Pools is the one you queue up before the first stop, and keep on when the day starts getting weird.

Ask a question here

Your total alkalinity is 100 ppm. So is the pool next door’s. Why does one keep climbing in pH while the other takes a dive when you add alum?

On this Floc-It Friday, Rudy Stankowitz breaks down what’s behind that number on your test kit. He runs through a pool with 100 ppm total alkalinity and 100 ppm cyanuric acid, shows how the one-third shortcut changes the Langelier Saturation Index (LSI) calculation, and explains where that shortcut can get you in trouble. Then he takes it back to the equipment pad with a pool whose pH keeps creeping up, an acid dose, and an alum treatment.

Rudy opens with a thank-you to Olga Welch at Rutgers University for a letter about his years teaching pool water quality. He also reads past the headline on Haviland’s announced $26 million Indiana facility and gets to the questions that matter when chemicals are included in your monthly service rate. Will it handle the products you buy? Will it change what’s available? What will you actually pay?

And in Hudson, Florida, two pickups roll onto a jobsite with a championship belt for John Poma, the 2026 Talking Pools Podcast Pool Industry Mentor of the Year. Rudy tells the story of the surprise and shares how John handles a late-night call about a plaster problem. He asks what you saw, what you checked, and what you think it means. The next time you see it, you know where to start.

Chapters

00:01 A letter from Rutgers and a thank-you to Olga Welch
00:38 Haviland’s $26 million announcement and what to ask your supplier
03:28 What your total alkalinity test actually measures
07:59 The 100 ppm example, the LSI calculation, and rising pH
11:48 John Poma’s surprise championship belt reveal
13:24 The mentor who shaped John’s approach and how the award was decided
19:01 The limits of the one-third CYA shortcut and what happens when you add acid
24:21 Alum, alkalinity demand, and why starting pH only tells you part of the story

Got a water chemistry question you’d like Rudy to tackle on Floc-It Friday? Email talkingpools@gmail.com.

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Email us: talkingpools@gmail.com