Tiers: All
Note: Some Checklist Template options require the Scaling Up or Enterprise tier.
Service types allow you to define your service offerings and create checklist templates that can be quickly applied to customers depending on their body of water, service type (for example, full service, chem only, or tiered offers), and customize readings and dosages. When you use this feature, your techs only see the checklist items and readings & dosages that apply for each visit.
Nothing changes for your techs until you assign a new service type. If the current global checklist works for you today, you can keep using it.
Getting started with service types
Whether you are new to Skimmer or moving from a one-service type setup to multiple service types, these articles take you through the key stages of the process:
Plan your service types (this article): decide which service types you need and how they tie to checklists and bodies of water.
Building checklist templates: build reusable blocks of checklist items that several service types share. This step is optional.
Setting up service types: create each service type and choose its checklist, readings, and dosages.
Add service types to bodies of water: set default service types, assign service types to existing bodies of water, and add items for exceptions.
What techs and customers see: review what changes on the tech’s phone, in the office, and in service emails, and get your team ready.
How service types work
Service types are built from three pieces. You find all three under Settings > Service Types.
Piece | What it is | Examples |
A reusable block of checklist items you build once and add to many service types | Standard Cleaning, Salt System Care | |
The work done at a stop: checklist sections, plus which readings and dosages show | Full Service, Chem Only, Spa Service | |
The kind of water, like Pool or Spa. Each type has a default service type that new bodies of water of that type get. | Pool, Spa, Water Feature, Salt Pool, Basin |
Why use service types
Define the work once - build each kind of service you sell one time, instead of building checklists one body of water at a time. The standard lives in Skimmer, not in someone's notes or memory.
Different work for different water - a pool and a spa at the same address each get their own checklist, readings, and dosages.
Techs see only what applies - a fountain stops asking for pool chemistry. A body of water with a cartridge filter doesn't show a backwash item.
Reuse checklists - keep a checklist template in sync across several service types, so one edit updates them all.
Set the standard for each item - choose whether an item is required to finish the stop, needs a photo, and how often it comes due, like monthly filter cleans or quarterly salt cell cleanings. Available on Scaling Up and Enterprise.
New bodies of water land on the right service - set a default service type for each body of water type, and new bodies of water pick it up automatically.
Update many bodies of water at once - change a service type and every body of water on it updates. Assign service types to existing bodies of water in bulk.
Room for exceptions - add items to a single body of water without changing every other body of water on that service type.
Easier training - new techs follow the checklist on their phone, grouped in the order the work happens.
When service types turn on
Nothing changes for your techs on day one. Here's what you see in the office:
Settings > Service Checklist is now Settings > Service Types - the page has three tabs: Checklist Templates, Service Types, and Body of Water Types. It opens on Checklist Templates, and each tab has How It Works cards with setup tips.
Your checklist is now Routine Service (Default) - every body of water starts on this service type, with the same checklist, readings, and dosages it has today.
Your original checklist becomes the Legacy Checklist - it sits inside Routine Service. You can't rename or delete it, and techs on older app versions still see it.
Examples to start from - new accounts get a Spa Service example service type and example checklist templates. No bodies of water use them until you assign them. Edit, copy, or delete them.
Each body of water has a type - Pool, Spa, and Water Feature are set by name. Anything else shows as Unclassified, but it stays on Routine Service, so techs keep their checklist.
Readings & Dosages stays where it is - it's still your master list. Each service type picks which readings and dosages to show from it.
Plan your service types
A little planning up front saves rework later. Service types go live the moment you assign them, so decide what you need before you build.
One service type or several?
If every body of water gets the same work, there's nothing to set up. Edit your checklist the way you do today, and add service types whenever you're ready.
If you sell more than one kind of service, or your pools and spas need different work, plan your setup using the steps below.
Find the services you already sell
Most companies already label their services somewhere in Skimmer. Look at these places to see what service types you need:
Customer tags and customer codes - labels like Full Service, Chem Only, or Salt usually point to a service type.
Location codes and notes - words like Spa, Fountain, Salt Pool, or Sand Filter usually point to a body of water type.
Checklist items added to single bodies of water - if you add the same items to many bodies of water, they likely belong in their own service type or template.
Item names with conditions - an item like "Clean Salt Cell (Salt Pool ONLY)" tells you the work differs by service.
Write down your plan
Before you open Settings, fill in a simple plan like this one.
Service type | Checklist templates it uses | Items only this service needs | Readings and dosages to show | Body of water types that default to it |
Full Service | Arrival, Standard Cleaning, Departure | Brush walls, Vacuum | All | Pool |
Chem Only | Arrival, Departure | Check water level | All | None, assign as needed |
Salt Pool Service | Arrival, Standard Cleaning, Salt System Care, Departure | None | All, plus Salt | Salt Pool |
Spa Service | Arrival, Spa Care, Departure | Clean cover | Spa readings only | Spa |
As you plan, keep these in mind:
Find the shared items - items that show up in several services, like arrival and departure steps, make good checklist templates.
Decide how often each item comes due - for example, every stop, every month, or every 3 months.
Decide which items are required - a Required to finish item must be done before the tech can finish the stop. A Required with reason to skip item can be skipped if the tech gives a reason, like bad weather or equipment that's down.
List your body of water types - start with Pool, Spa, and Water Feature. Add your own, like Salt Pool or Cold Plunge, only if they need a different default service type.
Get ready to roll out
Update your techs' app - service types need Skimmer Pro 12.16 or later on every tech's phone. Techs on an older app only see your original checklist. Service emails sent from the phone need Skimmer Pro 26.0 or later to include service type checklist items and notes. To check each tech's app version before you assign service types, go to Settings > Users.
Tidy your current checklist - it's still the checklist every body of water gets until you assign something else.
Clean up body of water names - Skimmer gives each body of water a type when its name exactly matches Pool, Spa, or Water Feature. Any other name, like "Pool/Spa," shows as Unclassified until you give it a type.
Pick your start day - techs see a new service type on their next stop after you assign it. Assign at the end of a route day, and tell your techs what to expect.
Ease in new recurring items (Scaling Up & Enterprise tiers) - a brand-new monthly or quarterly item comes due on every body of water at its next stop. After that, each body of water counts from when it was last done. If you make a new recurring item Required to finish, techs can't finish any stop until they do it. Consider making it Optional or Required with reason to skip for the first cycle, then switching it to Required to finish.
When your plan is ready, continue to Building Checklist Templates.