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The Pool Envy Podcast is where real, licensed pool professionals speak up. In an industry overflowing with DIY chatter and surface-level advice, we dive deep into code, compliance, and craftsmanship that set licensed contractors apart. Our goal is to educate and elevate the industry — teaching safety, sharing knowledge, and helping those who build and service pools do it the right way.
You're listening to the Pool Envy podcast. Code, compliance, craftsmanship hosted by Jason Davies. Let's dive in.
Jason D:Hey, everyone. It's Jason with the Pool Envy Podcast. Around here, our mantra is code, compliance, and craftsmanship. And I like to joke that I'm a professional thorn in the side of unlicensed builders and anyone whose idea of credentials is a magnet on a tailgate. Today, we're talking about something that gets abused constantly.
Jason D:The difference between certified and being licensed. And how people weaponize that confusion to take your money, we're going to use Florida as the main example because that's where the CPC pool contractor license lives under chapter four eighty nine of the Florida statutes. And that's the chapter that says actually who's allowed to be a contractor, what they can do, and what happens when they try to fake it till they make it. This is education, not legal advice. Laws change, and every state is different.
Jason D:And if you're in a real dispute, go talk to an attorney or your state's licensing board.
Spyder:Let's dive in.
Jason D:I'm gonna put this in three buckets to make it easy this week. Number one, a real state contractor license. Two, a certification, like the CPO or pool operator cards. Random paperwork, which is number three, that just looks official, it's not a contractor license. And if you're driving, don't write that down because both hands on the wheels at ten and two.
Jason D:Just remember license, certification, nonsense. In Florida, a CPC or certified pool contractor number is the state license under chapter four eighty nine through the Department of Business and Professional Regulation or a DBPR if you like. To get that, you don't just order a laminated card off the Internet. You have to meet experience requirements, sit for the business and trade exam, get vetted by the state, and you can be disciplined to find or shut down if you don't follow the law. That license is what lets you do the following.
Jason D:Legally contract with the public for building swimming pools, obviously. Pull permits for building swimming pools, and be held accountable for codes and statute. Not bro, trust me, I've been doing this for thirty years. That's the lane Pool Envy lives in. Code, compliance, and craftsmanship.
Jason D:Backed by an actual license, not a fancy truck wrap. But if I do say so myself, the truck looks kinda pretty. Now let's talk about alphabet soup. CPO, certified pool spa operator. It is an education program.
Jason D:It teaches you how to operate and maintain pools, especially public and semi public ones. Water chemistry, filtration, health codes, sizing filters, these are all good things to know. Florida also has its own public pool operator and service tech programs through the Florida Health Department. Here's the key. These are operator credentials.
Jason D:They are not contractor licenses. They do not suddenly make you a legal pool builder or remodeler or service technician by holding them. So if you see CPO 12345 on the side of a truck in Florida with no CPC or other contractor license number anywhere, it's a big yellow flag. The CPO card does not license you to resurface a pool. It doesn't let you replumb your equipment pad.
Jason D:It does not let you run new electrical wires. It does not let you change heaters or pumps. It does let you clean filters. You also cannot legally represent yourself to your homeowners or customers as licensed pool contractor. It is an operator class, not a construction license.
Jason D:Florida's own pool operator cards are much of the same story. Great for running a public pool under health rules, totally separate from being licensed as a contractor. If someone waves a CPO card around like it's the golden ticket to remodel your pool, that's not industry inside baseball. It's misdirection. Then we've got the paperwork people that love to flash when you're asked, are you licensed?
Jason D:A sales certificate for sales tax, for example. It means they lawfully and legally can collect sales tax in the state of Florida. The IRS isn't going to plaster your pool though. County business and tax receipt or occupational license. This means they paid a fee to do business in that county.
Jason D:LLCs and corporate registrations means that entity exists. It doesn't say this person may now touch your electrical structure and plumbing. None of those are contractor licenses. If the proof they show you is a tax form, a county receipt, or an LLC printout, let's just make this super clear. It's like showing somebody a Costco card and claiming to be a cardiologist.
Jason D:Let's talk scam tactics. One I actually saw with my very own eyes, both of them actually. There was a truck where the side of it said c p o dash c, and then there was a number in big bold letters. This way it was spaced and stretched, and from a distance your brain wants to read c p c, which is Florida certified pool contractor prefix. Up close, it was just a CPO dressed up like a CPC.
Jason D:No real CPC numbers anywhere on the vehicle. It's called misrepresentation. It's not an accident. There is a graphic designer being hired to help you lie.
Spyder:It's still illegal.
Jason D:Another common move, borrowed license numbers.
Spyder:It's still illegal.
Jason D:A guy uses his buddy's license number. An ex employee uses their boss's old CPC number, and a company slaps somebody else's license on their website.
Spyder:It's still illegal no matter how many bad Google reviews you leave for those doing the job the right way.
Jason D:On paper, it looks legit. Look, we have a license. In reality, the person you're paying is not the one the state licensed. And this isn't just a Florida thing. Recently, in fact, there was a story that's going on right now in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Jason D:Company takes deposits, leaves people with craters instead of pools, different state, same playbook, fuzzy credentials, big promises, no follow through. Wherever you live, the rule is the same. Verify the license and verify who it actually belongs to. What Florida law actually says without turning this into a bar exam, because again, I'm a pool guy, not an attorney. If you like to nerd out on the legal side of things, chapter four eighty nine is Florida's construction contracting law statute.
Jason D:It says who has to be licensed how and what happens if they fake it. Section four eighty nine dot one one nine says if your name is on a truck or signed as a contractor, your state license number needs to be there too. Section four eighty nine dot one twenty seven lays out that it is illegal to act as a contractor or even advertise as one without being properly licensed. And yes, that can mean misdemeanor or even felony charges for repeat or serious unlicensed activity. You don't need to memorize the statute numbers.
Jason D:Just know this. In Florida, pretend contractor isn't just tacky.
Spyder:It's still illegal no matter how many bad Google reviews you leave for those doing the job the right way.
Jason D:And that's why I proudly call myself a professional thorn in their side. Using DBPR without getting tricked by eligible for exam. This is something I wanna point out when you're vetting contractors, you need to be mindful and keen in awareness about. Let's talk about how to quickly check someone out. In Florida, you can go to myfloridolicense.com or use the DBPR app.
Jason D:Search by license number or by name. Click into the result that looks right and look for these things. The status, you wanna see that it is current or active. And the license type, that it's a pool contractor, not a pest control or hair braiding company. Does the name on the DBPR search match the name on the truck, the contract, and the website?
Jason D:And here's the sneaky one I really want you to remember. Sometimes the status will say eligible for exam. I know this sounds really official. It's not a license. Eligible for exam just means the person has an application on file and that the state has said, Okay, you can take the test.
Jason D:They don't have a license yet. There's no real license number issued to them as a contractor. If someone sends you a message or a screenshot that says, Status eligible for exam and claims, See, I'm licensed, that is not a mix up. That is, I'm hoping you don't understand what the words on the screen mean. You, as the homeowner, want one thing, current slash active contractor license with a name that matches the person or company you're hiring.
Jason D:Anything less than that is either not ready yet or run away now, or at least ask more questions. Let's shift gears to money because payment structure and licensing are joined at the hip. A legitimate builder doesn't need $50,000 just to start the process and get a permit. Your city isn't charging you $50,000 for it either. A much healthier structure for both you and a good builder, it looks something like this.
Jason D:They'll charge you a consultation, design, or planning fee, and you pay them for their brain. Walking the site, checking the pool, checking code and setbacks, maybe some coordinating with an engineer. That's real work, and it's fair to pay for that. The permit cost. You cover the actual permit fee for your job.
Jason D:They can show you the fee schedule or the receipt. Milestone draws based upon when the boots hit the dirt. Money moves when specific visible work is done. This is a good example of what I would use. Stage one, excavation.
Jason D:One chunk to cover the excavator and start of the hole. The balance when the hole is fully dug and ready for inspection. Stage two, steel and rebar. Maybe 80% when the steel is in place, 20% when the rebar inspection is signed off. Stage three might be plumbing, rough in and shell with the stage four, tile, coping and deck.
Jason D:And stage five equipment, interior finish and startup. And you could break this down even into different pay milestones. You can literally walk outside and see if each stage has happened. And now from the builder side, not every good honest code compliant builder has a giant line of credit to front your entire pool. That's reality.
Jason D:Legally, breaking it into small, chewable, clearly defined chunks is gonna give enough cash flow to keep your job moving, keep you from handing over a massive mystery deposit and ending up in the next victim of a scam, and it removes a lot of temptation to rob Peter's pool to pay Paul's pool. The builders who care about code compliance and craftsmanship usually love this structure. The ones who hate it are typically the ones who, well, really needed that giant deposit for reasons that have nothing to do with your project. And that is gonna be a topic for another podcast episode. So here's your quick checklist.
Jason D:You can screenshot this part if you like. Ask, what is your state contractor license number? In Florida, listen for CPC or another proper pool contractor prefix. Look them up on the state site. In Florida, myfloridolicense.com or the DBPR app.
Jason D:And then confirmation, is the status current and active, Not eligible for exam or delinquent or suspended. Type of license is actually for pool contracting and not something unrelated. This happens a lot. The name on the license matches what you're seeing on the truck, website, and contract. When your contractor sends proof and it's just a number, ask them, is that a contractor license, certification number, tax, or business document?
Jason D:Make sure you see the actual document that has the number on it. And then again, make sure their name matches, and watch their reaction. Professionals will be calm, open, and encourage you to double check. The pretenders will get defensive very quickly. They'll be vague or suddenly very fond of topic changes.
Jason D:So to recap, certification, CPO, operator cards, it's about operating and maintaining pools, especially the public ones, keeping them clean, the superficial stuff on the surface. It's an important job, but it's not a license. And then, of course, licensing under Florida chapter four eighty nine is what lets you legally contract, pull permits, and do construction and major repairs of swimming pools. The difference between the two is where a lot of the scams live. And I do want to mention there's three different tiers of CPC licenses.
Jason D:Some that allow just remodeling, some that allow residential building, and one that allows commercial, and that is in the description of the license. At Pool Envy, what we do is we build on code, compliance, and craftsmanship, and we work under real licenses, real statutes, and real accountability, whether that's CPC one four six zero six nine five in Florida or the required electrical credentials and the TICL licensing in Texas when we're dealing with pool equipment and bonding work. When we talk about this stuff, we're talking as people who actually live under these laws, not just shouting them out on Facebook for popularity. Before you hire anyone for pool work, take one minute to verify the license. Make sure the name on the status line lines up, and don't let a three letter decal make a 5 figure decision for you.
Jason D:If you know someone who's about ready to hire the pool guy with the nicest truck, send them this episode. You might save them a ton of money and the joy of looking at a giant mud hole for six months. I'm Jason, licensed pool contractor and, again, professional thorn in the side of unlicensed builders. Thanks again for listening to the Pool Envy podcast. I'll see you on the next one.
Spyder:Thanks for listening to the Pool Envy podcast, where licensed pool professionals speak up. Hosted by Jason Davies, licensed across Wisconsin, Florida, and Texas. For more insights, subscribe and join us next time.