For a typical residential pool, the short list is shorter than the shelf at the pool store suggests.
A sanitizer (chlorine in some form), a pH adjuster (muriatic acid most often, sodium bicarbonate going the other direction), a stabilizer (cyanuric acid) to keep chlorine from burning off in the sun, and a calcium adjuster only if your fill water is unusually soft. In San Diego the opposite is the issue, so calcium adjusters are rarely needed.
Beyond that, a good weekly service adds enzymes to break down body oils and lotions, and a phosphate remover to starve algae of its food source.
We don't endorse brands, and we won't send you to a specific store. The product matters less than the dose, and the dose depends on numbers you can't read off a test strip. That's the harder problem.
Hiring someone to care for your pool is a personal decision. Look around. Ask questions. When the time feels right, we'd be glad to hear from you.
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