How To Start a Pool Cleaning Business

If you want to start a pool cleaning business, there are a few simple steps to get started. It’s a great time to start a pool cleaning and repair business.

According to PoolProMag.com, 70% of pool cleaning and repair businesses reported positive impact on their business overall from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, despite supply challenges and other stressors. IbisWorld says that pool cleaning business have grown 8.1% in 2021, with similar growth year over year since 2017.

To start your own pool cleaning business, you will need to form a business entity, open a business bank account, and get basic insurance and legal support, and then get organized. Here is how to start a pool cleaning business from the grout up.

What Types of Insurance You’ll Need as a Pool Cleaning Business

For pool cleaning businesses, you’ll need basic liability insurance and professional liability insurance, which protect you against claims of negligence and incompetence, as well as covering injuries that might arise from work associated with your company.

Do you need a license? That depends on what kind of home maintenance business you’re starting. For example, are you going to wrap in other grounds maintenance with your pool cleaning? You might need special licensing to apply pesticides to lawns. Some states also require a general contractors license for all home service businesses. Generally for a pool cleaning business you won’t need a license, but to check if you need a contractors license or any permits in your state, visit the SBA.gov website to learn more about rules and regulations for your industry and state.

Marketing a Pool Cleaning Business

The key to standing out among the competition is to make it clear where you specialize as a pool cleaning business. Do you offer full service and exceptional customer care? Do you offer the best price in town? Figure out where you can excel, and make that the core of your marketing to promote what you do better than anyone else can.

Try advertising in:

• Google Ads
• Yelp listings
• Google Map listings for local businesses
• local publications
• online industry publication

Pool cleaning businesses often service larger homes or homes where people have expendable income for home maintenance services, so be sure to network with other home maintenance companies in related industries that might be able to send you clients and vice versa. This might include landscapers, grounds maintenance, housecleaning, and other home service businesses.

How To Run a Pool Cleaning Business

First, materials. You’ll need the following:

• pool cleaning chemicals
• chlorine or salts
• filter/skimmer parts and replacement supplies
• skimmer nets and baskets, pool hooks, poles and brushes
• vacuums, vacuum heads and hoses
• personal protection equipment
• trucks for routes
• scrubber machines for deep cleaning

You can find industrial supplies at a number of pool cleaning supply websites.

Next you need a plan to draw up company policies. Create systems for how you are going to handle:

• New client onboarding
• Creating routes and cleaning chore lists
• Tracking employee and payroll records
• Invoicing and client billing

Once you have your plans in place, you’ll also need a CRM or software tool to manage your clients. Ideally, this software will also handle scheduling, invoicing, and payment processing so you can have all your information in one place. Yottled offers these services along with a white-label website if you need one, to keep everything in one place.

Congratulations on your new pool cleaning business! We wish you all the success in the years to come.