Anyone else find raising ph in pool harder than it looks?

What's your alkalinity reading? That's usually why pH won't stay up. If total alkalinity is low, raise that first with bicarb (sodium bicarbonate) - it nudges pH up a little and stops it bouncing around. If alkalinity is fine and only pH is low, soda ash is the stronger one. Small doses with the pump running, wait a few hours, retest. Overshoot and you're chasing it back down with acid, which is how everyone ends up going round in circles. Aerating the water - pointing the returns up at the surface - also lifts pH without touching alkalinity.