jackmorgan

Hi, I changed the water in my aruba spa (acrylic i believe - about 5 years old) about a month ago and am now getting a black streak stain on one of the seats (about 1 x 6 inches long). I was able to scrub it off once, but it came back about two weeks later in the exact same location. I was sure to add plenty of stain and scale control, but to no avail. This used to occur before in another corner of the spa, but it hasn't really come back since i scrubbed it the first time. Any idea what this could be? I read something about cobalt staining? I don't think it's algae as the tub is always covered - plus i would think it would scrub off much easier. Thanks.

I ended up wrapping the foam cores in 6 mil vapor barrier while they were out. I sealed all the seams with tuck tape. It took me around 1.5 hours to get the cores out, wrap them and put the cores back in. If you try to do this make sure you don't have any wrinkles, etc showing (on the top anyway) or it will show through the vinyl cover. Time will tell if it makes any difference to the life of the cover.

I was actually thinking about doing something along these lines as well - basically just fiberglassing the foam cores and adding a stainless steel piano style hinge. Not sure why this isn't an option - I guess since all spas have different shapes the costs would be extremely high. However, for a company such as aruba that has sold 10's of thousands of tubs through costco - all with the same dimensions needed for the cover - it may be viable.

Hi, I actually ordered this exact cover a couple of months ago. I have to tell you I wasn't very impressed. The end seam seals didn't seal (i could see all the way through to the other side of the cover and out the other side - basically a index finger size hole on either side of the "seam pillows" or whatever they are called). Also, where the skirt meets in the middle there is a 1.5 inch gap which leaves the acrylic rim of the hot tub exposed (and mine's aqua green so it's quite ugly). Basically the manufactuer didn't extend the skirt to cover this area. I called the customer service number for alpine spa covers, basically to say i would be returning it, and they were quite helpful. They offered to ship me out an upgraded vinyl cover that i would have to swap with the original one. It was better constructed and had a full seam seal and the skirt was made to cover the entire spa rim. I had to take the insulation panels out of the old cover and put them in the new cover - which actually wasn't that difficult. When i had the insulation panels out i noticed that the plastic vapor barrier was quite thin. The ends were vacuum sealed, but it almost looked like the main seam was just taped (although the tape may have been there to just keep the excess in place - it was hard to tell. I opted to add an additional layer of 6 mil vapor barrier i had laying around and sealed it with tuck tape. Not sure if it will help or not, but it couldn't hurt. All in all, I believe this costco model is just alpine's bottom end model and I wouldn't recommend it. I would recommend the "classic gold" (this is what they sent me as an upgrade) or above. Their customer service is excellent.

actually I wasn't pleased with my purchase and the company is sending me out an upgraded cover. They asked that i remove the cores and ship back the old cover when i receive the new one. They came out quite easily and now the cores are just sitting in the garage waiting for the new cover to be shipped. Would tuck tape not work at all? They use it as a permanent vapor barrier sealing tape in homes. It's supposed to last for a long time.

I just received a new spa cover from alpine spa covers and was wondering if it would be in my best interests to add some extra polyethelene vapor barrier around the foam cores? (I happen to have a roll of 6 mil poly lying around from a renovation). I was thinking of using tuck tape to seal it. I realize the tape will fail eventually, but in my mind it makes sense that it will extend the life of the cover. Any comments? Thanks.

Ok, i'm interested, please let me know what info you have. Jack

I was reading an article today about the dead sea and how very few types of microorganisms can survive the extremely high level of salt (around 35%). Would it not be possible to do the same in a spa? I realize the equipment would have to be all stainless steel / titanium and i'm sure some extra engineering would be required to deal with salt crystalization and water filtering, but the benefits would be enormous. Chemical usage could be eliminated and high levels of salt are apparently great for your skin. It would definitely necessitate a shower after spa use, but i do that anyway. I couldn't really find any information about this on the web, so I'll just see what other people think. Maybe i'm crazy. Thanks. Jack

If you remove the back cover, in the middle of the motor is a triangle looking switch that is mounted to the bottom of the motor. This takes the start cap in and out of the circuit. Make sure the plastic block is moving free as well as the brass looking switch with springs on the side is moving free also. It is hard to explain and make sure breaker is turned off. If everything is ok you might just want to get a new motor and seal. The Super Pumps take a AS201, PS201 or Hayward spx1600z2 seal. AO Smith replacement motors are 3/4 HP UST1072 1 HP UST1102 1.5 HP UST1152 2 HP UST1202 I had the same problem with mine. The "triangle looking switch" was not operating smoothly. The pivot for the switch was misaligned. I just had to bend in one of the tabs that holds the pivot of this switch to prevent it from beind dislodged again. Again, hard to explain.

Easy way to figure out how quickly your spa should recover after refilling: (gallons x 8.4)*(temperature differential) / (3413 * kw of heater) So if your spa is 400 gallons, water temperature upon filling is 60 degrees, you want to heat to 100 degrees, and your heater is 5kw it will take: ((400 x 8.4) x (40))/(3413 x 5) = 7.9 hours

What brand, model, year spa? It's an older (maybe 10 years) aruba spa. We purchased the house last year and it was existing. Can't remember the controller name, but can look up when i get back home if needed. Let me know. Thanks.

Hi, Our electrical company has placed its customers on a time of use pricing plan. I would like to add a timer to my hot tub so that it will only run during off-peak hours (10PM to 7AM). I was thinking about a standard intermatic mechanical timer, but wondered what would happen if the heater was on and the timer cut power to the entire tub. (meltdown?) Then I thought about wiring the heater wiring from the relay to the timer, so that the heater would only run during the off peak period. The problem with this setup would be the low speed pump running constantly since there would likely be a call for heat, but no heat. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks Jack