A small pool company that shows its work
Saltbrush started in 2014 with one truck and forty pools in central Phoenix. It is still owner run, and every technician is an employee.
- Owner on a route every Friday
- Employees, never subcontractors
- Arizona ROC R-6 licensed
Why did Saltbrush start?
Nico Velarde spent six summers on another company's routes, servicing more pools a day than anyone could do well. Customers rarely knew his name, and he rarely had time to brush. He left to build a company around two rules: fewer pools per route, and a report after every visit.
Those two rules still run the business. A technician has about half an hour at each pool. The report goes out before the truck leaves your street. Everything else, from the flat monthly price to the way gate codes are stored, follows from wanting customers to be able to check our work.
We stay inside a small part of the Valley on purpose. Tight routes through Arcadia, Ahwatukee and Tempe mean less time on the freeway and more time with a brush in the water.
Who looks after your pool?
Fictional people, written for this demo.
Nico Velarde
Owner and lead technician
Nico started Saltbrush in 2014 with one truck and forty pools in central Phoenix. He holds the company's Arizona R-6 pool service and repair license and still runs a Friday route.
Tamsin Ortega-Bell
Service manager
Tamsin builds the routes, reads every weekly report before it goes out, and is the person who calls when a reading looks wrong. She is a Certified Pool Operator.
Wendell Okafor
Repair lead
Wendell handles pumps, filters, salt systems and automation. He writes the price down before he picks up a wrench, and he keeps the old part so you can see it.
What is Saltbrush licensed to do?
The scope of Arizona's R-6 classification, in plain words.
Covered by our R-6 license
Service and minor repair of residential pools and accessories: pumps, filters, salt systems, automation, valves and equipment plumbing.
Outside it
Connections to a drinking water line, gas lines, gas chlorine systems, electrical work beyond the first disconnect, and full replacement of plaster, pebble or decks.
What we do then
We tell you which licensed trade to call, what to ask for, and we coordinate our part of the job around theirs.
Scope summarized from the Arizona Registrar of Contractors residential classification R-6, Swimming Pool Service and Repair. See equipment repair for what that looks like on a job.
What do customers say?
Sample reviews written for this demo.
The report lands on my phone before the truck has left the street. Chlorine, pH, a photo of the pool, and a note that the gate latched behind them. I stopped wondering whether anyone came.
We bought a house with a pool the color of pea soup. Wendell gave us a written price on the first visit, and five days later the kids were swimming. The price on the invoice matched the one on the quote.
After the big dust storm in August they were here the next morning without me calling. Same technician as always. She emptied the baskets twice, cleaned the filter and left the pool blue by the weekend.
About Saltbrush, answered
A few things people ask before they hire us.
How long has Saltbrush been in business?
Since 2014. We started with forty pools in central Phoenix and grew one route at a time.
How many pools does each technician service?
We cap routes so a technician has about half an hour at each pool. A route that is too long is how brushing gets skipped.
Are your technicians employees?
Yes. Every technician is an employee who is trained, background checked and insured. We do not hand routes to subcontractors.
What does the name mean?
Saltbush is a tough desert shrub that grows all over the Valley, and salt and a brush are two things a pool technician uses every day. The name is a nod to both.
Tell us about your pool
Five details and we send a written quote the same business day. No one comes to the gate until you say so.
Routes run Monday to Friday from 6 AM. The office answers 7 AM to 4 PM, Arizona time.