I am no stranger to pool care. Indeed, pool and lawn maintenance were a large part of my life growing up. Failure to perform one or both of these assigned weekly tasks could result in a dramatic loss of income (aka, allowance); or worse, the withholding of dad’s car keys on Saturday night.

Much later, as a middle-aged adult with a pool of my own, I also performed most of the pool care functions myself. Only this time for free. (Full disclosure: I had no kids of my own to foist the job on.)

Then I retired to Florida a few years ago and everything changed. Right off the bat I noticed that most of my neighbors had swimming pools but used professional pool services to clean and manage them. Coming from a place up north with far fewer pools, and even fewer pool service companies, I was intrigued.

It was quickly explained to me by a concerned neighbor—who raced over the moment he spotted me cleaning my own pool—that when it comes to pool care in Florida you can’t do-it-yourself for much less than it costs to have a professional do it for you. The land of endless summers, it seems, has given birth to a large and very competitive market for pool services and supplies. Any one of dozens of local pool companies, he explained, will gladly dispatch a service technician to your home to take over the responsibility of keeping your pool clean and worry-free. With so many companies to choose from, the competition is intense, so the price you pay is likely to be very reasonable.

Basic pool maintenance isn’t complicated. It’s not rocket science. But it does demand a basic understanding of pool chemistry as well as a solid block of your time each week. Miss a week or two of pool care up north and you will probably get off easy. Miss a week or two in Florida and your pool could easily be overtaken by algae, a slimy and unsightly process that is complicated and costly to reverse.

Now that I am happily settled in our palm tree paradise, I have discovered all sorts of ways I’d rather spend my time besides cleaning the pool. After my neighbor’s visit I did some research into local Pool Service Companies, after which I resolved to choose one and treat myself (at long last!) to a weekly pool service. Company-wise there are plenty of reputable choices, prices are very competitive and there are packages to fit every level of need.

Most companies offer monthly packages, priced from $120-$170 (or $30+ per week), depending on the range of weekly services you select. Basic service can be as simple as a weekly analysis of your pool water’s chemistry followed by adding the chemicals necessary to keep it in balance. Extra services that can drive up the cost include cleaning the filter, vacuuming the floor, bushing the walls and steps, emptying the pump and skimmer baskets, cleaning tiles and handrails, etc. Caged pools, such as mine, don’t require many of these extra cleaning functions each week, as most of the dirt and debris has already been screened out. So, I opted for a package at the lower end of the scale.

For dedicated do-it-yourselfers, many pool companies offer a vacation service, where a technician will step in and maintain the pool for as long as you are away. Additionally, many offer a once-a-month cleaning that can range anywhere from $80-$120. The rest of the time, emptying the skimmers, testing the water and adding the chemicals is up to you.

A one-time, top-to-bottom cleaning is also offered by many pool service companies. These can be a godsend just before your annual 4th of July pool party, when you have more important things to worry about. For each of these occasional service calls, you can expect to pay anywhere between $100-$200 depending on the size of your pool and the services you select.

Keep in mind that when you opt to manage your own pool, you still need to purchase the requisite cleaning equipment, water test kits and monthly chemicals, all of which the pool technician has stored in his or her vehicle. These can add up to a big upfront expense.

When all is said and done, the profit margin for the average local pool company must be incredibly slim. If they charge you $120 per month (or $30 per weekly visit), once you subtract out the cost of chemicals, equipment and overhead, they don’t clear a whole lot more than it costs to pay the pool technician, who averages about $17.42 per hour in the State of Florida.

Not really sure how much my time is worth these days, but by hiring a pool service, I know I’m making much better use of the hours I used to spend cleaning the pool.