Arctic Spa New-Style Filters

[au176]

Hey all. I have a 2011 Arctic Spa Frontier with Onzen 8. It came with spaces for two filters. One has a normal filter, and the other has a very short filter in the bottom with a pre-filter "sock" above it. (My dealer gave me two regular filters to go in this- they were unaware of the "improved" filters, and the manual from Arctic was for the 2010 model, so it only showed one filter weir, not two.) They both seem to work off the plumbing for pump one, and don't appear to run in series as far as I can tell. My questions:

1. What's the advantage to this?
   
2. How do I clean the short filter and "sock"? (I have read elsewhere about using the dishwasher. Do I use detergent, or just run it thru, water only?)
   
3. I know a standard filter will fit in this housing. Can I just switch to that?
   

I apologize if this has been asked before. I searched posts for quite a while, and didn't find it. My dealer doesn't seem to be on top of the technology, as I told THEM how to install the new-style filters after I found out, and when I use Arctic's web page to ask, my question gets referred to my dealer who calls me.

I love the tub, but the support seems to be sorely lacking...

[Water Boy]

Hey all. I have a 2011 Arctic Spa Frontier with Onzen 8. It came with spaces for two filters. One has a normal filter, and the other has a very short filter in the bottom with a pre-filter "sock" above it. (My dealer gave me two regular filters to go in this- they were unaware of the "improved" filters, and the manual from Arctic was for the 2010 model, so it only showed one filter weir, not two.) They both seem to work off the plumbing for pump one, and don't appear to run in series as far as I can tell. My questions:

1. What's the advantage to this?
   
2. How do I clean the short filter and "sock"? (I have read elsewhere about using the dishwasher. Do I use detergent, or just run it thru, water only?)
   
3. I know a standard filter will fit in this housing. Can I just switch to that?
   

I apologize if this has been asked before. I searched posts for quite a while, and didn't find it. My dealer doesn't seem to be on top of the technology, as I told THEM how to install the new-style filters after I found out, and when I use Arctic's web page to ask, my question gets referred to my dealer who calls me.

I love the tub, but the support seems to be sorely lacking...

Hi Au176,

Does your spa have Peak Ozone 2 with the Onzen? If so, you cant use the standard filter on both sides. You would want to use it how you have it currently. With the Peak 2, it comes with the circulation pump, and you want to use the compact pleated filter with the filter rescue bag. Make sure if you do have the circulation pump, you put the compact pleated filter and the filter rescue bag on the side with the gray weir. But, if you do NOT have Peak 2, then yes, you can use any combination of filters that you desire. The rescue bag does a good job of filtering and catching bigger particles and debris before it gets to your filter. I still recommend the compact pleated with the rescue bag as they seem to work well together, but that is totally up to you.

As far as cleaning, don't use any detergents or soap ever in cleaning filters or the spa for that matter. You can use the dishwasher, but I don't like doing that. Your dealer should sell spa filter cleaner, and that it what you would want to use. The rescue bag you just rinse out under the sink, and replace about every 4-6 months, depending upon usage.

[au176]

Hey Water Boy, thanks for the response. I know the tub has Ozone, but I don't know if it's Peak 2 or not. Do you know if there's an easy way to tell? I didn't get a "spec sheet" with the tub and as I stated earlier, the manuals which came with the tub were for the 2010 model which don't help me at all, as a lot seemed to change for 2011. (In fact, I originally set the tub up according to those, which had me adding WAY too much salt, as the latest (my) version of Onzen uses much less than older versions.)

As far as a grey weir? The floating parts and the place where the filters screw on are all black. Underneath the threaded filter mount way down at the bottom on one side is definitely black, and the other side is white or grey. Is that what you mean? When I got the info from Arctic way back when I discovered what the short filter and sock were, they said to put it in the left weir, as seen when I'm standing outside the tub. They didn't say anything about black or grey weirs. My dilemma now is that that's the "all-black" one- not the one that appears to be grey/white at the very bottom. Any idea?

I've learned a lot from these forums. I just wish Arctic would set up something like this that is "brand-specific". Arctic's web site is a joke for "after purchase" info. The FAQ's are as basic as one can get, and when I send a question via the "Contact Us" link, it gets forwarded to my dealer, who seems to know less than me about these systems. (This can also be quite embarrassing, as I have e-mailed after getting an unsatisfactory answer from the dealer, then the dealer calls me...) This is a real shame- the tub is fantastic and lives up to all the promises when it's working, and I paid a lot for it expecting the support to be top-notch as well.

[Water Boy]

Hey Water Boy, thanks for the response. I know the tub has Ozone, but I don't know if it's Peak 2 or not. Do you know if there's an easy way to tell? I didn't get a "spec sheet" with the tub and as I stated earlier, the manuals which came with the tub were for the 2010 model which don't help me at all, as a lot seemed to change for 2011. (In fact, I originally set the tub up according to those, which had me adding WAY too much salt, as the latest (my) version of Onzen uses much less than older versions.)

As far as a grey weir? The floating parts and the place where the filters screw on are all black. Underneath the threaded filter mount way down at the bottom on one side is definitely black, and the other side is white or grey. Is that what you mean? When I got the info from Arctic way back when I discovered what the short filter and sock were, they said to put it in the left weir, as seen when I'm standing outside the tub. They didn't say anything about black or grey weirs. My dilemma now is that that's the "all-black" one- not the one that appears to be grey/white at the very bottom. Any idea?

I've learned a lot from these forums. I just wish Arctic would set up something like this that is "brand-specific". Arctic's web site is a joke for "after purchase" info. The FAQ's are as basic as one can get, and when I send a question via the "Contact Us" link, it gets forwarded to my dealer, who seems to know less than me about these systems. (This can also be quite embarrassing, as I have e-mailed after getting an unsatisfactory answer from the dealer, then the dealer calls me...) This is a real shame- the tub is fantastic and lives up to all the promises when it's working, and I paid a lot for it expecting the support to be top-notch as well.

Well I am here to help in any way that I can, so feel free to ask any questions. Sorry you haven't got much help, but that is why I am here. You can also message me at any time. Do your know spa serial number. If you do, message me your serial number and I should be able to look up what is factory installed on it. Chances are if you do not have the gray weir, then it doesn't have the Peak two. On Peak 2, one of the weirs has a gray lid/cap, and the other has a black lid/cap.Here is a picture of what the gray weir would look like:

If they are both all black, then chances are you dont have peak 2. The easy way to tell if you have Peak 2 is that there would be a circulation pump installed on it. That is a very small circulation pump installed on the spa for the ozone, in addition to the primary pumps. But, if you cant figure it out, see if you can find your serial number and I will try looking it up for you. The serial number is listed on the outside of the spa on a small metal plate.

[david_bilton]

Hey all. I have a 2011 Arctic Spa Frontier with Onzen 8. It came with spaces for two filters. One has a normal filter, and the other has a very short filter in the bottom with a pre-filter "sock" above it. (My dealer gave me two regular filters to go in this- they were unaware of the "improved" filters, and the manual from Arctic was for the 2010 model, so it only showed one filter weir, not two.) They both seem to work off the plumbing for pump one, and don't appear to run in series as far as I can tell. My questions:

1. What's the advantage to this?
   
2. How do I clean the short filter and "sock"? (I have read elsewhere about using the dishwasher. Do I use detergent, or just run it thru, water only?)
   
3. I know a standard filter will fit in this housing. Can I just switch to that?
   

I apologize if this has been asked before. I searched posts for quite a while, and didn't find it. My dealer doesn't seem to be on top of the technology, as I told THEM how to install the new-style filters after I found out, and when I use Arctic's web page to ask, my question gets referred to my dealer who calls me.

I love the tub, but the support seems to be sorely lacking...

small filter with a "sock" above it ? humm sounds like a rip off from the JACUZZI J-400 line.looks like the wannabe's are still following a leader,would be nice to see some one come up with a original idea and not copy someone else's hard work and efforts

[Water Boy]

Hey all. I have a 2011 Arctic Spa Frontier with Onzen 8. It came with spaces for two filters. One has a normal filter, and the other has a very short filter in the bottom with a pre-filter "sock" above it. (My dealer gave me two regular filters to go in this- they were unaware of the "improved" filters, and the manual from Arctic was for the 2010 model, so it only showed one filter weir, not two.) They both seem to work off the plumbing for pump one, and don't appear to run in series as far as I can tell. My questions:

1. What's the advantage to this?
   
2. How do I clean the short filter and "sock"? (I have read elsewhere about using the dishwasher. Do I use detergent, or just run it thru, water only?)
   
3. I know a standard filter will fit in this housing. Can I just switch to that?
   

I apologize if this has been asked before. I searched posts for quite a while, and didn't find it. My dealer doesn't seem to be on top of the technology, as I told THEM how to install the new-style filters after I found out, and when I use Arctic's web page to ask, my question gets referred to my dealer who calls me.

I love the tub, but the support seems to be sorely lacking...

small filter with a "sock" above it ? humm sounds like a rip off from the JACUZZI J-400 line.looks like the wannabe's are still following a leader,would be nice to see some one come up with a original idea and not copy someone else's hard work and efforts

Not really, but you know as well as I do that this is a copy cat industry. Arctic Spas was the first to have a app to control your spa wirelessly and stream music via bluetooth last year before any other spas, and now this year there are other spas doing the same. It seems to happen in just about all products these days, and not just hot tubs.

[au176]

An update for anyone following this thread. I PM'd Water Boy with my serial number so he could look up my tub. Here is the pertinent info:

"It does have Ozone and it is the Peak one system without the circulation pump, which explains why you have the two black weirs. So, they are right. So, back to your original question, yes you could use the standard filters on both sides(both filter canisters) if you decided to do that and it wouldn't hurt a thing."

Hopefully, this info will be useful to others and thanks again to Water Boy for his help!

[spatech (the unreal one)]

small filter with a "sock" above it ? humm sounds like a rip off from the JACUZZI J-400 line.looks like the wannabe's are still following a leader,would be nice to see some one come up with a original idea and not copy someone else's hard work and efforts

Not really, but you know as well as I do that this is a copy cat industry. Arctic Spas was the first to have a app to control your spa wirelessly and stream music via bluetooth last year before any other spas, and now this year there are other spas doing the same. It seems to happensin just about all products these days, and not just hot tubs.

C'mon, are we really talking about filter socks and wireless music like they are original, earth shattering ideas? Even if you're first they're the type of things that someone was going to do soon after anyway, its not like they are unqiue really. Is someone going to next claim the title of first to use LED lighting in a spa? First to use synthetic siding?

[Water Boy]

An update for anyone following this thread. I PM'd Water Boy with my serial number so he could look up my tub. Here is the pertinent info:

"It does have Ozone and it is the Peak one system without the circulation pump, which explains why you have the two black weirs. So, they are right. So, back to your original question, yes you could use the standard filters on both sides(both filter canisters) if you decided to do that and it wouldn't hurt a thing."

Hopefully, this info will be useful to others and thanks again to Water Boy for his help!

No problem at all. Glad to help!

[mustangmccance]

hello. I joined this forum to hopefully get some answers about my arctic spa. I do not know what the protocol of this forum is but this topic was close to what I wanted to know so I thought I would add on to this thread. if that is the wrong way to approach it please let me know.

I just got my arctic spa today direct from the factory since there is no dealer near me so I am having to set it up myself. I have the peak II onzen system with the large filter the small filter and the "rescue filter sock" thing. I cannot for the life of me figure out how that sock thing is supposed to be installed. the other two filters obviously just screw into the bottom of the skimmer columns but how does that stupid little sock thing work. thanks for any help you can give me. since I am on my own out here I will likely be on here a lot trying to figure stuff out. again thanks

[Water Boy]

It goes inside the active skim filter weir above the small pleated filter. You take the weir out, and you have to reach up into the tube to take out the threaded strainer. Lefty loosey, righty tighty! Once you get that out, them the filter rescue bag just thread into the threads on the weir. Its hard to describe, but it is quite easy. Just take the weir out, take out the black round threaded strainer, and thread in the bag, and you are good to go.