Pool maintenance cost?

We just filled and opened our saltwater pool for the first time two weeks ago. We have no idea what we're doing and DH went to the pool supply store today. He almost fell over when they sold him $350 worth of chemicals to put in over the next week, which we were totally not expecting.

Is this typical? How hard is it to maintain the water yourself? We have a robot so don't need to worry about vacuuming, just keeping water levels good. Really no clue what we need to do and the pool guy is super busy and keeps rescheduling our tutorial on how to take care of the pool.

Re: Pool maintenance cost?

I think that is pretty typical with a salt water pool. My girlfriend has one. I usually spend about $150 in chemicals to get my pool up and running. It is pretty easy to maintain once it is open and clean. I put my robot in a few times a week (we have a lot of trees in our yard and around the pool) Other than that it is pretty easy to maintain.

Message edited 6/18/2020 8:20:01 PM.

Pool maintenance cost?

Thank you!

Re: Pool maintenance cost?

Sounds just about right. I wish you many happy years with your new pool! This is year 7Th with our inground pool and only this year did we have to repair a part of the filter which did not cost much thankfully. Your goal is to keep the filter alive and problem free. If you’re worried about anything just get a sample of your pool water and bring it to the pool store for analyzation.

Message edited 8/3/2020 4:59:23 PM.

Re: Pool maintenance cost?

Word of advice, DO NOT buy the salt at the pool stores. It is double the price. I buy and stock up at Walmart. It is like $6.00 a bag, and the pool stores charge $12.00 for the same size bag.