Pool Envy LLC

09/08/2026

🎙️ THE POOL ENVY® PODCAST

Swimming pool construction is full of opinions. We prefer published standards, manufacturer requirements, code, documentation, and evidence.

The Pool Envy® Podcast goes beyond basic pool ownership and maintenance to examine the issues that actually create failures, disputes, unsafe conditions, and expensive repairs.

Across 37+ episodes, we discuss:

• Pool construction and workmanship
• Building, electrical, and safety requirements
• Plaster, tile, waterproofing, and structural failures
• Equipment and hydraulic problems
• Renovation and repair practices
• Licensing and contractor accountability
• Failure analysis and forensic investigations
• Expert witness and litigation issues
• The standards behind how pools should actually be built and repaired

Whether you’re a pool owner, contractor, designer, attorney, property manager, or simply want to understand why something failed, the goal is the same:

Better information. Better decisions. Better pools.

Listen to The Pool Envy® Podcast on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/3vNE8kxJuRtkn7fzWMBRQD

Standards. Not suggestions.

09/07/2026

Reflecting on why following standards is not for the weak.

On the left is “ah well attach a tile.” — on the right, is a back buttered tile with coverage. Which was subsequently pressed into the surface collapsing all of those ridges.

That’s the difference with pools. Swimming pools mandate coverage. No gaps, and taking it carefully.

LATICRETE International, Inc. can we get an amen?

09/06/2026

🚨 IF YOU ARE BUILDING A CUSTOM POOL, READ THIS BEFORE THEY PLASTER.

You didn't spend six figures on a custom concrete estate pool just to let a contractor ruin the finish in the final 48 hours.

If your new pool plaster arrives looking streaked, splotchy, or uneven, many crews will reach for the exact same outdated "fix": dumping aggressive muriatic acid all over it.

Stop them.

New plaster is a developing chemical system, not a garage floor. You cannot acid wash poor hydration into a healthy, long-lasting finish. Aggressive acid washing strips away the dense cement matrix, exposing the aggregate prematurely and permanently compromising the lifespan of your pool shell.

Protect your multi-million-dollar asset with actual cement science.

In this episode of The Pool Envy® Podcast, we break down exactly why the pool industry has been getting plaster startups wrong for 50 years—and what you need to demand from your builder to protect your warranty.

👇 Click below to listen to the full episode on Spotify now.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/52bKLuLNCVjp1b8ZUUZ3Rl?si=xB4kTslUSoSf8fVHCZxBTg

The Pool Envy® Podcast · Episode

09/05/2026

This week, Wisconsin made my heart happy.

Not because I had a part in it, but because politics stepped aside and Wisconsin adopted the 2023 NEC electrical code.

Effective September 1, 2026.

I should never be reading **6.45 amps on a grounding path**.

A landscape crew nailed the buried neutral.

**We found it.**

Your pool should not tingle.

And if “those pool guys” tell you otherwise, I’ll let ya know:

**It’s not right.**

Did an unlicensed handyman, maintenance person, pool guy, landscaper, or somebody else change or repair a pool pump motor after September 1, 2026?

Was it at your hotel? Aquatic center? Outdoor public pool? Residential pool?

Things just got more complicated.

The 2023 NEC specifically addresses ground-fault protection when applicable pool pump motors are replaced or repaired.

**Follow the rules. They exist for a reason.**

Want to learn more about Wisconsin’s adoption of the 2023 NEC and what changed for swimming pools?

https://www.poolenvywi.com/wisconsin-2023-nec-pool-changes/

And here’s the part nobody really wants to admit:

**Pool Envy has worked to make pools safer since the day we started.**

GFCI protection on pumps — before the code forced the issue.

Why?

Because we value safety.

Now the code says it, too.

**Standards, not suggestions.**

09/05/2026

https://open.spotify.com/episode/1WJ9uTmv0A8BOP75pJcwCG

The Pool Envy® Podcast · Episode

09/03/2026

This is why I don't diagnose pool failures from one photograph.

A homeowner may see a crack and call it settlement. A contractor may call it a bad deck. An engineer may immediately start thinking about soil.

Before assigning a cause, I want to know what actually moved.

Shell? Deck? Both? Neither?

Diagnosis starts by separating observations from conclusions.

09/02/2026

Wisconsin swimming pool homeowners, landscapers, pool service companies, handymen, and anyone else working around swimming pool equipment: pay attention.

Wisconsin adopted the 2023 National Electrical Code, effective September 1, 2026, and several changes directly affect swimming pools.

Some work that has traditionally been treated as routine pool maintenance can now trigger specific electrical requirements.

One significant example: under NEC 680.21(D), repairing or replacing an applicable pool pump motor can trigger current ground-fault protection requirements—even if you are replacing only the motor and leaving the existing pump and plumbing in place.

“Like-for-like” does not necessarily mean the electrical installation can simply be put back exactly as it was.

Pool owners should know what they are paying for. Contractors and service companies should know what their work may trigger before the equipment comes apart.

Read the Wisconsin 2023 NEC swimming pool update here:

https://www.poolenvywi.com/wisconsin-2023-nec-pool-changes/

Wisconsin 2023 NEC pool changes take effect Sept. 1, 2026. Learn new Article 680 rules for pump motors, GFCI, bonding, corrosion, spas and public pools.

09/01/2026

Explore the real-world side of swimming pools—from construction and troubleshooting to codes, safety, standards, expert insight, and unusual industry issues.

Listen to The Pool Envy® Podcast:

The Pool Envy® Podcast explores swimming pool construction, codes, safety, troubleshooting, standards, expert insight, and real-world industry issues.

09/01/2026

Wisconsin is moving to the 2023 National Electrical Code on September 1, 2026.

For swimming pools and spas, some of the changes are significant — particularly when an existing pool pump motor is repaired or replaced.

We put together a practical guide covering NEC Article 680 changes involving pump motors, ground-fault protection, bonding, corrosive environments, equipment rooms, public pools, spas, and existing installations.

Same pump. Same horsepower. Same plumbing. Same location. A motor replacement can still trigger an electrical change.

Read the full guide:
https://www.poolenvywi.com/wisconsin-2023-nec-pool-changes/

Standards, not suggestions.™

09/01/2026

https://www.poolenvywi.com/wisconsin-2023-nec-pool-changes/