The Pools Scientific Podcast

Elevated Pool Care Through Science.

Every Tuesday. Hosted by John Cooper — M.S. Nuclear Engineering, B.S. Chemical Engineering, U.S. Navy Nuclear Operator and submarine veteran, and five-time PHTA certified professional. The only science-based pool podcast.

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All Episodes — Year 1 · April 2026–March 2027
EP 01
Why Pool Care Is a Science Problem
April 21, 2026 38 min Solo
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John got a call from another pool guy who was in way over his head. What he found when he walked into that equipment room is the single best argument for why pool care needs to be treated as a science — not a trade skill passed down by feel and guesswork. This is the episode that explains why Pools Scientific exists, what’s fundamentally broken about the way pool care is practiced, and what it actually costs when the science gets ignored. Listen before you touch your pool chemistry again.

What You’ll Learn

Why pool water is a chemical system — not a simple maintenance checklist — and what happens when you treat it like one.
The single most important number in pool chemistry that most owners and many professionals never calculate — and what it’s silently doing to pools right now.
Why your chlorine level may look fine on a test strip while doing almost nothing to actually sanitize the water.
What this podcast is, who it’s built for, and why there’s nothing else like it in the pool industry.
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Ready to go deeper? Volume 1 of the Pools Scientific ebook series covers the fundamentals introduced in this episode — the chemistry your pool store never taught you.

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EP 02
The 7.5% Rule — The Most Important Number You’ve Never Heard Of
April 28, 2026 52 min Solo
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Your pool tests fine for chlorine. The strip says you’re good. So why does it feel like the water isn’t quite right — or worse, why is it growing algae when the numbers look acceptable? The answer is something most pool owners have never heard of, and once you understand it, you’ll never look at a chlorine test the same way again. This episode covers the most important number in outdoor pool chemistry — and why ignoring it means your sanitizer may not be doing what you think it is.

What You’ll Learn

What cyanuric acid actually does in your pool — and the hidden tradeoff that comes with it that nobody at the pool store tells you about.
The 7.5% Rule — the mathematical relationship between CYA and free chlorine that determines whether your sanitizer is actually working.
Why the most popular chlorine tablets quietly accumulate a chemical byproduct that can render your sanitizer nearly ineffective — and what the Pools Scientific approach does instead.
When to take action — and what that action looks like — when your CYA has climbed too high to manage effectively.
Why salt pool owners who manage CYA differently are getting better results with less chemical input — and the real-world data behind it.
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The 7.5% Rule reference table — every CYA level and its minimum FC requirement — is in Volume 2 of the Pools Scientific ebook series.

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EP 03
LSI Explained: The Langelier Saturation Index Without the Math Headache
May 5, 2026 47 min Solo
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John gets calls constantly from pool owners with expensive damage — etched plaster, failed heaters, crumbling grout — on pools that looked perfectly fine. Crystal clear water. Chemistry that tested “in range.” No algae, no cloudiness, no warning signs whatsoever. And every single time, the cause is the same thing. This episode introduces the one number that tells you whether your water is quietly destroying your pool right now — and how five variables you can test and adjust are either working for you or against you.

What You’ll Learn

Why a pool can look perfect while silently causing thousands of dollars in damage — and what clear water actually does and doesn’t tell you.
What the Langelier Saturation Index is, what it measures, and why it’s the most important number most pool owners have never calculated.
The five variables that determine water balance — and which one is your most powerful lever for getting it right fast.
The difference between what corrosive water and scale-forming water do to your equipment, surfaces, and budget over time.
Why salt pool owners need to pay even closer attention to this number — and what it has to do with how long their cell lasts.
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Volume 2 of the Pools Scientific ebook series covers the full LSI formula, worked examples, and the complete water balance framework in mathematical depth.

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EP 04
Salt Chlorine Generators: Science, Myths, and Maintenance
June 2, 2026 46 min Solo
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The biggest lie in the residential pool industry is printed on manufacturer brochures, repeated by pool store salespeople, and believed by millions of pool owners making purchasing decisions right now. John has seen the damage it causes firsthand — across thousands of pools throughout my career. This episode dismantles that myth completely, explains what’s actually happening inside a salt chlorine generator at the chemistry level, and gives you the real maintenance framework that protects your investment. If you own a salt pool, this episode may be the most useful 46 minutes you spend this season.

What You’ll Learn

The most damaging myth about salt pools — why it’s wrong, why it persists, and what it’s quietly costing owners who believe it.
What electrolysis actually does at the chemistry level — and what it produces that most salt pool owners don’t know about.
Why salt cells fail years before they should — and the specific, preventable things that kill them early.
The corrosion and safety concerns that every salt pool owner needs to understand before swim season starts.
A complete maintenance framework — salt levels, output settings, cleaning intervals, and water balance targets — drawn from managing thousands of pools across my career.
▶ Listen on Spotify ▶ Apple Podcasts ⬇ Salt Cell Checklist

Free download: Salt Cell Management Checklist. The complete field checklist from this episode — water chemistry targets, cell inspection procedure, bonding check, and lifespan tracker.

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New Episodes Every Tuesday

52 episodes planned for Year 1 — April 2026 through March 2027. Subscribe to the email list to get notified every time a new episode drops.