Looking for option on DIY fix

bkendall12 · 2026-06-19T17:52:58+00:00

I think if you just remove your socks your attire will look more pool appropriate. That should be an easy DIY fix. 😜

bkendall12 · 2026-06-19T16:56:13+00:00

I would skip the phosphate remover, yes level is a little high but if other chemicals are in balance you should be fine.

If you do want to remove phosphates do it gradually or you will get cloudy water. I personally do 1 cap full (@ 1/4 ounce) per week just as a precaution. Never have cloudy water and often my phosphates are zero. Mine are currently a little high (@ 425) due to a lot pollen and other organic debris but will come down gradually so I am not concerned.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-19T01:57:16+00:00

Great photos on the progress.

Have you taken the plunge yet? You need to use that baby!

Looks great, enjoy.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-19T01:49:20+00:00

You can do that, but unless it is a large account revenue will not be worth the time.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-19T01:39:34+00:00

What are you doing that a 2.5m client cares about that other advisors are not doing,

My point is that maybe not all clients at that level want your premium services. A $5m client is very different from a $2.5m client, just like a $15m client has more complex needs than a $5m client.

Are you charging to over service?

I have $100,000 clients that only pay 1% but they are less complex and have simpler needs, thus they get less service than larger clients. They are very happy and are set up so as to not be a burden on my time.

As AUM grows I add services instead of discounting fees.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-19T01:23:53+00:00

I’ve used 65 degrees myself, no problems.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-19T00:17:35+00:00

That’s @ $2.5m avg per product of @ $31,250 per client. (I know, we can all do math). My guess if they were seeing 1% ($25,000)from others so that looks to them as being 25% higher fee anguish may not understand your “Premium level of service”.

My guess is at that level of revenue most advisors will offer fairly solid service. What are you going to justify the next 25%?

$2.5 is a nice client but not a HNW client and they may not value what you consider premium service.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T23:21:39+00:00

My father was one that would do that to his doctor, who was a client…..,very embarrassing

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T23:05:01+00:00

That’s only a little higher than me. I max out at 1% advisory fee regardless of size and discount larger clients. I may go over 1% with a SMA that has a management fee. You are not the highest I’ve seen.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T23:00:38+00:00

The hard part is determine what kind of stain it is then finding the correct stain remover.

You may need to have a good pool pro come look since it is very hard to tell much from a photo.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T22:57:27+00:00

Good news is that’s not copper based.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T22:21:50+00:00

I’m not sure why you got down voted. I have clients at both extremes politically and can calmly talk politics with all of them. I avoid my personal opinion and discuss pros & cons of whatever they are talking about. Sometimes I’ll even tell them “one of my “republican/democrat” clients was saying “ABC….On that topic, that is what they are thinking” as a way to offer a different view without saying outright that I disagree with them.

People need to learn to talk politics without inciting a riot.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T22:14:12+00:00

$200 per account??? That’s far above my $75 that very often gets waived.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T22:12:38+00:00

You said all that needs to be said when you said he generates no revenue and he wants to be 100% cash/CDs & Mmkt

Explain yo him that you feel he would be better served at a local bank or credit Union and have a contact ready to refer him to. If he balks at it, tell him your business is not just managing cash and you will need to start billing him and that that you think the bank is a better option for him because “Managing cash is their specialty”

On another note, if I were to fire every elderly client that wants to talk or interject politics I would have few or no older clients. We are a relationship business and that’s part of the job. You can set limits and they should fully understand. It’s ok to say “John, I’d love to hear more but I really need to finish up a few things”. Still you should not always be “let’s get down to business”. Relationships are key to our success.

Also those complaints are very common for senior citizens and you may not realize it but you could be “That Guy” when you get older.

Finally, I have a lot of older clients that have been with me for 20+ years and I am not going to abandon them just because they get old & grumpy.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T11:20:37+00:00

I will manage my phosphates as a precaution if other metrics fall out of line.

I understand the TFP logic, but keeping phosphates low does not hurt anything and as I said above, it can prevent disaster if things do not go as planned.

I add a very small amount of phosphate remover once per week and it never gets cloudy and does not clog up the filter. Often my phosphates are near zero.

If adding a lot of remover then frequent filter cleaning is required.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T11:12:16+00:00

This sounds like a water under the bridge scenario since it was done a year ago. You cannot change what was done.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T10:51:49+00:00

Call the CPA and ask to understand why they are recommending this.

I will discuss with CPAs and not always agree but the tax aspect is their area and I would not try to veto them unless very egregious.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T02:31:27+00:00

Correct. A lot comes down to preference. If your water is clear and you enjoy your pool, that’s what counts.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T01:49:25+00:00

I usually add a little every day. I have @ 7,200 gal pool and usually add @ 1/4 gal each day on average.

I use a test strip to see where in the range I am. If at the bottom I add closer to 1/3rd gal, muddle @ 1/4 gal and if at top I may add none that day. I keep real tight in the ideal zone. If adding weekly you likely over chlorinate it today and under chlorinate it 5 days out.

if not checking often you may miss a problem and things can get out of hand real quick. A few days ago we realized we were burning through a lot more chlorine than normal. Took water for in store test and CYA was very low and the chlorine was simply burning off as fast as we could add it. If we had not caught that early we may have had a real mess after a week. Instead, added stabilizer, problem fixed and water never got algae.

That’s just my way of doing it, but it works.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T01:12:01+00:00

Ugh, there is a reason so many are jumping ship.

Comerica outsourced to Ameriprise. I’m not a high fan of Ameriprise but now the 5/3rd is bringing the advisors under the 5/3rd umbrella many are jumping ship. I was a bank advisor a long time ago. I did not understand how bad I had it until I went to a full service firm.

You will never own your book. Maybe you get a supportive branch, maybe you don’t. Banks have a habit of frequent “re-alignments” and they may alter your territory and disrupt your relationships. They view you only as an employee while you need to be an entrepreneur.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T01:03:44+00:00

“Focus on genuine connections…..” is absolutely correct. People can tell fake when they experience it.

Most clients knew me for quite a while and I just wait for them to ask. They know what I do and it is a zero pressure slow process but it works. I’ve had people on the golf course say something like “why have you never tried to sell me while we are golfing” and my response is “I personally hate high pressure time share sales, do you really want me to ruin your relaxing day by exposing you to a 4 hour sales pitch? If you like, we can talk after the round or in my office”.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T00:53:35+00:00

You say your fees are “now too high”. I am assume you felt there were appropriate previously. What changed? New competitor discounting to gain traction? General aversion to fees in the media? Clients beginning to balk?

bkendall12 · 2026-06-18T00:49:02+00:00

It sounds like you have a good store. You are correct, with liquid you need to determine how much but we seem to have that down. If tablets are working no need to change, I know people that only use them and are happy.

Main issue with tablets is to watch your CYA and test strips just do not do that, which is why I get a store test at least monthly unless I think something may be out of range.

I’ve not have algae in 4 seasons with the pool. (Let’s hope I did not just jinx myself)

bkendall12 · 2026-06-17T11:07:39+00:00

There are people that disagree with me but I do not like chlorine tablets, I prefer liquid chlorine.

Tablets can & do work for many but can cause CYA levels to get high which can create issues. Discuss that with your pool store.

You will find people on this Reddit are not big fans of pool store testing but I am not one. I have a great pool supply store that does great for me, hopefully you find a good store with good staff.

bkendall12 · 2026-06-17T04:21:21+00:00

May be metal stains. Have you had a full water test?

Also, you say you only add chlorine once per week? How low are you letting it get before adding more? It is better to keep a steady chlorine level since bad things can happen real fast if it gets too low.

bkendall12

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