Pool Operator Talk News Archives - Page 5 of 16 - Aquatic Facility Training and Consultants

CALCULATE POOL GALLONS CHEMICALLY

Post author:Rudy
Post published:May 8, 2021
Post category:Pool Service Tips

That's it! One method for calculating gallons will work in every pool, no matter what the shape or size. Rectangle, oval, or amoeba-shaped, you'll have greater accuracy if you calculate…

CMAHC’s Dewey Case Discusses Importance of Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act

Post author:Rudy
Post published:February 27, 2021
Post category:Pool Safety

Pool Pro Podcast and Ask the Masters' Podcast Spotlight Critical Requirements and Expiration Dates for Pool Service Professionals and Builders RALEIGH, N.C. – Dewey Case, technical director for the Council…

Public Pool Code Inspections

Post author:Rudy
Post published:February 19, 2021
Post category:Pool News

[responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Male" buttontext="Listen to Post"] Health Department Public Pool Code Inspections. If you have a pool at a property that you maintain I am certain you have realized…

What To Do When Pool Water Freezes

Post author:Rudy
Post published:February 15, 2021
Post category:Pool Service Tips

If you own a swimming pool and have winterized it because you are in an area where that is the common practice - This is NOT for you! You have…

How to Get Rid of Swimming Pool Algae

Post author:Rudy
Post published:February 12, 2021
Post category:Pool News Author Rudy Stankowitz

On the Verge of a More Active Algae Season than Ever Before Due to a Nation Wide Chlorine Shortage - There Are Steps That You Can Take to Prevent a…

2021 U.S. Chlorine Shortage

Post author:Rudy
Post published:February 9, 2021
Post category:Pool News

Chlorine Shortage Expected to Plague Nation into 2022 A follow up to our September 2020 article Biolab Fire Expected to Cause Pool Chlorine Price Increase U.S. Chlorine Shortage What Caused…

Badly Decomposed Body Found in Swimming Pool

Post author:Rudy
Post published:January 28, 2021
Post category:Pool News

Lewisville PD has Not Ruled Out Foul Play. A swimming pool service company uncovered the badly decomposed body of an unknown male early Thursday morning. Nemo's pool service had been…

Water Hammer Pool Plumbing

Post author:Rudy
Post published:January 9, 2021
Post category:Equipment

This one won't be a long one because it's fairly cut and dry. If you move a valve handle, no matter what type of valve, while the system is running,…

How Borates in Swimming Pools Buffer pH

Post author:Rudy
Post published:December 27, 2020
Post category:Water Chemistry Borates pH Adjustments

Borates in Swimming Pools This may very well be the 'New Craze' in swimming pool chemistry and probably comes as close to being the elusive 'Magic Pill' as anything. Though…

How Pool Pump Cavitation Sucks!

Post author:Rudy
Post published:December 11, 2020
Post category:Equipment Pool Service Tips

I'm afraid there's not going to be anything pretty about this one. At least not with the diagrams. I want to talk about Why Pool Pump Cavitation Sucks and the…

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.

Pool Pros text questions here

In this episode of Flock It Friday, Rudy Stankowitz revisits the topic of borates in swimming pools, exploring the chemistry behind them, the regulatory history, and why recent geopolitical tensions have brought boron compounds back into the conversation.

Recent instability in key shipping corridors such as the Strait of Hormuz, the Red Sea, and the Suez Canal has raised concerns about global freight movement. Since Turkey holds the world’s largest boron reserves and supplies a significant portion of the global market through its state-owned producer Eti Maden, disruptions in shipping routes could tighten the supply chain that delivers boric acid to the U.S. market. The chemistry itself hasn’t changed—the mines are still operating—but the logistics that move industrial minerals around the world can shift quickly.

Rudy then breaks down the science behind borates. In pool water, boron compounds typically exist as boric acid and borate ions, forming a secondary buffering system that helps resist pH drift, especially in pools with saltwater chlorine generators, where aeration accelerates carbon dioxide loss and causes pH to rise.

Most pools that use borates maintain concentrations between 30 and 50 ppm. Below that range the buffering effect becomes minimal, and above it there is little additional benefit. Once added, borates remain stable in the water and are only removed through dilution, splash-out, backwashing, or water replacement.

Borates are often described as algistatic, meaning they may inhibit algae growth, but they should not be considered a primary algaecide. Chlorine remains the primary sanitizer responsible for algae control.

The episode also touches on the regulatory evolution surrounding borates. Following the introduction of NSF/ANSI Standard 50 Annex R in 2015, many niche pool chemical additives—including borate products—were not pursued for certification under the updated framework. As a result, borates largely disappeared from modern certification listings, though they remain widely used in residential pools where certification is not required.

The bigger takeaway is that the chemistry hasn’t changed—but the systems that deliver pool chemicals have. In today’s global economy, the most complicated part of pool chemistry may not be the reactions happening in the water, but the international supply chains that bring those chemicals to the pool service professional.

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