New · 2026
The Pool Operator Playbook by Samuel Holmes, front cover
The Field Reference Series

This is the
cheat code.

I always stress to my students the importance of real-world learning, the kind that comes from troubleshooting and using the fundamentals in the field. Getting certified as a CPO matters, but that course is written for regulators as much as it is for operators. Nobody takes an online course and becomes a pool operator in a day. Learning to be the expert comes with time and experience.

Until now, there wasn’t much out there giving an operator an edge in the field. This is that edge. This is the book I wish had been sitting in the seat next to me in my little Ford Ranger that first year I started working on swimming pools. It is the real-world guide that will help you be the expert you need to be, even when you don’t have all the experience to back it up yet.

Built for commercial and residential operators alike, it is what you take with you to make sense of what the job puts in front of you. This is the playbook you need, and the one I wish I’d had when I started out.

350 pages
52 chapters, 8 parts
159 diagrams & tables
6 appendices
Get the Digital Edition, $24 → Read a Chapter Free

Written by Samuel Holmes, PHTA Certified CPO Instructor. 14 years in the trade, two pool companies built and sold, 300+ operators certified.

Get the Book

Two ways to own it.

The digital edition comes straight from me and lands in your inbox in about a minute. The paperback comes from Amazon and takes a couple of days.

Digital Edition
$24
EPUB + full-color PDF · $33.95 in print
  • EPUB for iPhone, Android, Kindle, Apple Books and Kobo, reflowing to whatever text size your eyes want
  • The complete 350-page full-color PDF, the same file the paperback is printed from
  • Searchable in a pump room, on the phone already in your pocket
  • All 91 diagrams and 68 reference tables, in color
  • Free updates for the life of this edition, emailed to you
  • Yours to keep, on as many of your own devices as you like
Buy the Digital Edition →
Secure checkout via Stripe. Download links emailed the moment payment clears.
Paperback
$33.95
Paperback edition
  • Printed in full color throughout
  • High-quality paperback, 6×9 in, 350 pages
  • Ships from Amazon, Prime eligible for quick shipping
Buy the Paperback on Amazon →
Sold and shipped by Amazon. ISBN 979-8-1927222-7-5.

Enrolling in a CPO class? The digital edition is $15 as an add-on at checkout — pick a test date and tick the box.

Read First

Chapter 9, on cyanuric acid.

The longest chapter in the book and the one operators argue about most. It is the whole chapter, eleven pages, free, and it will tell you inside two minutes whether the rest of the book is written for you. No email required.

Download the Sample Chapter (PDF)
What Makes It Different

Not another textbook.

A CPO course certifies you. Nobody walks out of two days in a classroom knowing what a loaded sand filter sounds like, or why the pool in front of them is eating chlorine by two in the afternoon. This is that part.

🧮

Every number is worked

One master dosing formula, then a dose library built on it, each one carried through on a real pool volume. Not a formula printed once and left for you to apply.

📐

159 diagrams and tables

Ninety-one figures and sixty-eight reference tables, drawn for this book, in color. Saturation index factor tables, dose tables by product, and a complete cheat sheet you can print for the pump room door.

⚖️

Positions the industry argues with

Filter sand does not need replacing. Rain does not crash your pH. A bigger pump is usually the wrong answer. Each one comes from what actually happened, with the reasoning next to it.

🏨

Commercial and residential, side by side

The chemistry is the same; the code you answer to is not. The book runs both, and it marks where the rules bend on a backyard pool and where they do not bend at all.

🔍

A real diagnostics section

Part Eight is the diagnostic method, then water, chemistry and equipment problems, then weather and seasonal events. It is written to be opened at the equipment pad, not read in an armchair.

📋

Blank forms you may copy

Appendix E is daily logs, weekly records, incident reports and inspection checklists, and the copyright page explicitly permits a purchaser to print them for their own facility. Free full-size versions live on the Resources page.

Samuel's Rule
Don't guess! Test!
The pool is the final authority. Test the water, read what it tells you, and consider the whole story before you draw a conclusion. Everything in the book exists to help you do that with more confidence than I had walking through my first gate.
The Contents

Fifty-two chapters, eight parts.

Parts One through Five are the foundation every operator needs. Part Six is the commercial facility. Part Seven is the residential pool. Part Eight is what you open when something is wrong.

Part One

The Operator's Foundation

What the job actually is, what has to be written down, and how to measure any body of water.

1. What a Pool Operator Actually Does · 2. Records & Documentation · 3. Constants, Units & Conversions · 4. Measuring Any Body of Water
Part Two

Water Chemistry

Eight readings, the order they get corrected in, and every dose worked out from one number.

5. What Is Actually in Your Water · 6. pH · 7. Total Alkalinity · 8. Calcium Hardness · 9. Cyanuric Acid · 10. The Saturation Index in Practice · 11. Chlorine · 12. Bromine, Salt Systems & Alternatives · 13. UV, Ozone & AOP · 14. The Master Dosing Formula & Dose Library
Part Three

Circulation, Filtration & the Pump Room

Water in, water out. Hydraulics without the headache, pump curves, turnover math, and entrapment.

15. Reading the Circulation Loop · 16. Hydraulics Without the Headache · 17. Pumps: Types, Curves & Sizing · 18. Variable Speed Pumps · 19. Filtration · 20. Filter Sizing, Flow Rate & Turnover Math · 21. The Pump Room · 22. Main Drains, VGB & Entrapment
Part Four

Plumbing & Chemical Feed

Pipe sizing and velocity, valves, feeders, controllers, and the installation mistakes that cost thousands.

23. Pipe Materials, Sizing & Velocity · 24. Suction Side, Return Side & Valves · 25. Chemical Feed Systems · 26. Controllers, Probes & Calibration · 27. Installation Mistakes That Cost Thousands
Part Five

Heating Systems

BTU sizing, heat loss, what a correct gas installation looks like, and when to stop and call a licensed pro.

28. Heater Types & How to Choose · 29. BTU Sizing & Heat Loss · 30. A Correct Gas Installation · 31. Heater Troubleshooting & When to Stop
Part Six

The Commercial Facility

Written against the model code and the CDC's own inspection data. Bather load, testing, inspections, contamination response, and when to close.

32. MAHC and Daily Operating Standards · 33. Bather Load & Design Capacity · 34. Testing Like a Pro · 35. The Inspection-Ready Facility · 36. Spas, Splash Pads & Interactive Features · 37. Indoor Pools · 38. Contamination Response · 39. Emergencies, EAPs & When to Close
Part Seven

The Residential Pool

Where the rules bend, which is most of them. Saltwater in the real world, surfaces, cleaners, algae, and working with homeowners.

40. How Residential Really Differs · 41. Residential Chemistry · 42. Saltwater Pools in the Real World · 43. The Residential Equipment Pad · 44. Surfaces · 45. Cleaners, Robots & Vacuum Systems · 46. Home Spas & Hot Tubs · 47. Opening, Closing & Winterizing · 48. Algae · 49. Working With Homeowners
Part Eight

Diagnostics

The part you open standing at an equipment pad with something wrong in front of you.

50. The Diagnostic Method · 51. Water, Chemistry & Equipment Problems · 52. Weather & Seasonal Events
Plus six appendices, a glossary and an index

A The Complete Cheat Sheet  ·  B Dose Tables by Product  ·  C Saturation Index Factor Tables  ·  D Conversions & Constants  ·  E Blank Forms and Logs  ·  F Resources, Codes & Where to Get Certified

Every table in the back prints full size, free, from the Resources page, for the pump room door. The printed index is in the paperback and the PDF; the EPUB uses your reader's own search instead, which is better.

The Author

Samuel Holmes

Samuel Holmes, PHTA Certified CPO Instructor

Four months into an IBEW electrical apprenticeship in San Antonio, Samuel worked out he could not do it. A friend introduced him to the idea of being a pool guy. He got CPO certified before he had a single customer or a truck to put anything in.

Two pool service companies built and sold since, most recently The Aqua Academy in Bend, Oregon. PHTA Certified CPO Instructor since 2017, more than 300 operators certified. Still on pool decks every week.

Read the full bio →
An independent book

This book is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance, the CDC, or any health authority. It is not a substitute for the CPO course or for any certification your jurisdiction requires.

No product named in it is a paid placement. Neither Samuel nor CPO PRO has any affiliate, referral or commercial relationship with any brand named in these pages. Products are named because he uses them, or because they are the clearest example of their type.

Pool operation involves hazardous chemicals, pressurized equipment, gas-fired appliances and electrical systems. Codes vary by state and locality and change over time. Always verify against your current local health code.

Questions

Before you buy.

What exactly do I get with the digital edition?+
Two files. A reflowable EPUB that works on iPhone, Android, Kindle, Apple Books and Kobo and reflows to whatever text size suits you, and the complete 350-page full-color PDF, which is the same file the paperback is printed from. Both are yours to keep, on as many of your own devices as you like, and any correction or update to this edition gets emailed to you free.
Is this a CPO exam prep guide?+
No, and it does not pretend to be. It is an independent work, not affiliated with or endorsed by the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance, and it is not a substitute for the CPO course or for any certification your jurisdiction requires. A CPO course certifies you against the model code. This book is the field material a course outline has no room for. Most people who own both find they use them for different things.
Digital or paperback, which should I get?+
Get the digital edition if you want it searchable on the phone already in your pocket, and if you want it in the next minute. Get the paperback if you want a book that lives in the truck, gets wet, and does not need a battery. Plenty of operators end up with both, which is part of why the digital edition is priced below the printed one.
Can I print the reference sheets and blank forms?+
Yes, and you are meant to. The copyright page explicitly permits any purchaser to print or photocopy the reference sheets and the Appendix E blank forms for their own facility, because the book tells you to tape them inside a door. Every one of them also prints full size, free, from the Resources page, whether you have bought the book or not.
Who is it written for?+
Four readers. Someone new to the trade with a certificate in hand and a pool they have never seen before. The maintenance person at a hotel who was handed the pool along with the boilers and the parking lot lights. A homeowner tired of paying somebody to guess at it. And a certified operator looking for the part of the job the class had no room for. The chemistry is the same for all four. What changes is the size of the water, the code you answer to, and how much of the work is yours to do.
I am buying for a whole team. Is there bulk pricing?+
Yes. A facility certifying several staff can buy printed copies direct at below the Amazon price, and there is a site-licence rate for the digital edition. Get in touch with how many you need and Samuel will quote it. If you are also booking a class, say so, because the two get bundled.
How does delivery work, and what if my download fails?+
Checkout is handled by Stripe. The moment payment clears, an email with your download links goes to the address you paid with, usually inside a minute. Check spam if it has not arrived in ten. If anything goes wrong, email sam@cpopro.com and Samuel will send the files straight to you.
Do you offer refunds on a digital file?+
The sample chapter is there precisely so you can decide before you pay, and it is the whole chapter, not an excerpt. That said, if the book genuinely is not what you expected, email within 30 days and it will be refunded. Nobody wants a $24 argument.
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EPUB and the full-color PDF, $24. Or the paperback from Amazon at $33.95.

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