Yelp Review for J&B Pool Services LLC - Cathedral City, CA…read more
Rating: (1 out of 5 stars)
I'm extremely disappointed with the service I received from J&B Pool Services LLC, operated by Anthony Bono. (If there was a zero rating, I would have used that rating, but not given that option.) After hiring Anthony in November 2024, in early April 2025 I needed Anthony to address algae growth in my pool and spa, the situation never improved...even after more than a month of his weekly visits and excuses of why it wasn't clearing up.
The algae bloom remained visibly present, and despite my personal investment in brand new pool filters to assist with cleanup, Anthony failed to resolve the issue in a professional and timely manner.
Here's what I experienced:
I hired Anthony Bono of J&B Pool Services LLC to maintain my pool and spa in November 2024. While I was out of town from April 12 to May 6, 2025. Before I left, I clearly instructed him to monitor the water levels to prevent damage to the pump and to fully eliminate the algae that had begun forming in the pool. Anthony assured me that everything would be taken care of and that I'd return to a clean, algae-free pool.
Instead, I came home on May 6 to find my pool in a shocking state of neglect. The spa water level was dangerously low, the walls and floor of the pool and spa were still coated in algae, and both were filled with dirt, leaves, and debris--clearly not cleaned in days.
I had even received a text from Anthony on April 23 acknowledging that the water level was "under the skimmer box" and that he added some water. I replied the same day, reiterating the importance of keeping the water high enough to protect the equipment. I reminded him again on April 24 that I'd be gone until early May. Despite all that, my neighbor--who kept an eye on the property--confirmed that Anthony never showed up on his regular cleaning day of April 30.
That means my pool likely went untended for at least 12 days, if not more, while I was gone--causing continued algae growth and a build-up of filth. When I confronted Anthony about it, he made excuses and tried to downplay the issue. Then, unbelievably, he billed me $300 for the month of May and even threatened to place a lien on my property to pressure me into paying it--an illegal and baseless threat, confirmed as such by Cathedral City officials.
Once-a-week visits, instead of the daily or multi-visit care that any certified professional knows is required to aggressively treat active algae in a warm desert climate like Cathedral City.
Anthony himself admitted the chlorine levels remained low during his final visit on May 28, 2025, which is a clear sign of poor maintenance and chemical mismanagement.
I repeatedly raised concerns about the lingering algae on the spa and south pool walls, and despite that, his cleaning efforts were minimal at best.
I also found out from a new pool company that came out to look at the poor state Anthony left my pool and spa in, that they found the pool pump settings were improperly set in the wrong positions, resulting in no water jets circulating water into the pool, which in turn was causing the water to stagnate and exacerbated the feeding of the algae bloom.
Anthony refused to increase service frequency to twice a week, citing he was short staffed...unless I paid him extra, even though I was already paying $200/month premium for below-standard, once a week service. The normal average rate is cleaning twice a week for $200.00.
Moreover, I find it unacceptable that rather than taking accountability for the ongoing issue, Anthony suggested that the algae is somehow currently my fault and expressed disinterest in continuing to service my property, due to the distance from his usual service area. He even blamed me for not keeping the water levels at the proper levels...a job that is his responsibility and what I was paying him to maintain!
He also was apparently doing a very poor, if non existent brushing, of the pool and spa walls and floor. For when I had a new pool company come out to examine my pool & spa on May 29, 2025, they brushed off a dark layer of dirt, grime and chemicals left by Anthony one day after he supposedly "cleaned" my pool and spa on May 28, 2025.
I gave Anthony more than enough time to clear up the persistent algae growth on the pool and spa walls with still no satisfactory results.
Once he received my termination notice on May 29, 2025, rather than taking accountability for his poor service, Anthony chose to intimidate me with an outrageous and baseless legal threat. This is unacceptable behavior from any business owner.
I've since hired a professional and responsive pool company that resolved the algae issues promptly -- something that should have been done weeks earlier by J&B Pool Services. Do yourself a favor, stay far away from J&B Pool Services LLC. There are better, more honest, and more reliable pool service providers out there.
