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I know this is going to make an old post float to the top, but I had to pop in and give an update. Still have my GCS Spa, it STILL, even through the heat of the summer, its getting used most nights by either myself and my wife, or my kids. Sometimes several times a day as the kids like to play in the sprinkler, get cold and then go jump in. Adding a floater with bromine tabs in it was the best investment I could have made! It's keeping the water clear, the bromine levels are almost always right where they need to be and the tub is always ready to go. I STILL have yet to have a single problem with the tub. I check Ph and bromine every morning, normally not needing to adjust anything. I think keeping water quality up is the key here. We change the water once every 3 months since it gets used so much. Takes a coupe of days to get the Ph to stop swinging, but once thats done, I don't have to add anything to keep it right. I haven't had a problem with anything mechanical on the tub, no cracks or anything, and I've been contacted by GCS three times to re-assure me that my warranty is still valid and that if I need anything "to feel free to call" - It's very reassuring. The only gripe I have is that the stitching on the cover is coming loose. We use a cover lift and seam beetween the two halves is starting to show significant wear. I've contact GCS and they've agreed to replace the cover thoough, so no biggie! Cheers to all.

Well, I still love my GCS tub... I guess I got one of the good ones and can count my lucky stars. We've not had a single problem with it. We maintain it faithfully and always keep the water balanced to prevent undue stress on the internals, maybe that has something to do with it. I've not had any problems at all, in fact I've even added the IR remote to my tub - since it's a Balboa unit underneath and the topside controls are easily accessible, it was a quick add on. I'm still a happy camper.

Spatech, I have to assume that since you consider yourself a "guru" that you work for a spa company? perhaps a dealer? what lines do you sell? roromissd - I've read every post you've put on this board and have yet to find where you say you have ANY experience with Gulf Coast Spas... did I miss something? Honestly, the only people that I have seen that have posted on the internet and are unhappy with their gulf Coast Spa are the people that don't want to do a little work themselves. Things are going to break, it's a fact of life. No tub is impervious to problems.

we were originally very skeptical of Gulf Coast Spas because they are marketed through Costco. This immediately made us feel like this was a cheaper spa, so we originally passed on them and started looking at more expensive spas. We looked at Cal Spas, DreamMaker Spas, Artesian and Viking. These were all very well known brands and carried by a number of stores in our area. We didn’t get the opportunity to actually LOOK at a Gulf Coast Spa until we noticed a dealer at our local State Fair. After looking at all the other dealers, we opted to drop in and see what they offered and were SHOCKED at how low the prices were and how WELL BUILT the spas were!! We knew right away that we weren’t dealing with a cheap spa when we were finally able t compare the Gulf Cast spa hand-in-hand with the competitors, and I hate to say it, but NONE of the other spas offer this much value for the buck. We opted for the 864 Lei, which was touted as a “limited edition” spa with several extras. The spa is a 6-7 person spa with 64 jets, 2 pumps and a blower connected to 14 Champaign bubblers. This tub also featured LED perimeter lighting and an aroma-therapy port, which was awesome! So far, it's been flawless - not a single problem, not a single air-lock, not a SINGLE sneeze. It's not the most lavish tub, given, but at the price point there's no other tub out there that compares. The Balboa spa pack is WIDELY used in the industry and parts are easy to find and cheap, technical support was great - I applaud any company that has enough faith in their product to allow a USER to work on it. If you’re looking for a spa company that will hold your hand, baby you, and come running anytime you have a question, Gulf Coast is not for you. BUT, if you’re interested in saving a TON of money, and don’t mind turning a screwdriver on occasion, you will get a QUALITY spa, at a considerably cheaper price than the competitors! I would recommend Gulf Coast to ANYONE that is even the tiniest bit mechanically inclined. This spa, like any other, will require maintenance and chemicals. Be prepared to get online and read about water quality and maintenance, as you won’t get much from the manual. We are very very very happy Gulf Coast Spa owners. I did a LONG and thorough review of the tub, if anyone is interested in it, let me know and I'll post it.

So far, every site that I've gone to and read about water hardness states my water is not too hard.. in fact, it's just right - like this: http://www.rhtubs.com/info/water.htm http://www.lamotte.com/pages/pool/handbook/chapter3.html . http://www.spacare.com/understandingspaand...rchemistry.aspx So, with a Calcium hardness of 250ppm, I'm in good shape... am I reading this stuff wrong?

No, I didn't use a pre-filter when filling the ho tub. I think this Spa Monthly stuff has a Ph locker in it. It says "stable Ph and Alkalinity" right on the bottle. I think this is the cloudy water culprit and won't be using it any more. With Harness this high, I'll just have to keep a closer eye on the Ph, TA and Chlorine, thats all.

Tap water Hardness is 250ppm - It's really high. I have confirmed my findings with my neighbor as well - it's known around here that you just don't let water sit on your vehicles after you wash them - you HAVE to dry them off because of the hard water.

Actually, I'm using a product from Ecoone, called SpaMonthly, I guess it's really not a sanitizer - thats the Chlorine. This is supposed to be a water conditioner. I'm starting to wonder if perhaps it's causing some of the problems with cloudy water. It claims to have a Ph stabilizer and I know, based on reading other posts, that with Calcium levels as high as I have, this stabilizer could cloud the water. We got a 3 month kit from EcoOne with our spa, thas why we're using it. The other chemicals we're using come from a local pool and spa supply company. We enjoyed our Spa last night after the Chloring levels got down under 4, after we were done, I tossed in a chlorine packet and closed it up for the night. This morning, I went out and checked everything and was pleasently surprised to see the Ph at 7.5, the Alkalynity at 70 still and the Chlorine at 2ppm... perfect!! AND, I still have perfectly clear water to enjoy today.

Okay, I've got the TA down to 70ppm, the Ph to 7.2. I used a clearing agent to clean up the cloudiness, and the chlorine is still a little high from shocking it earlier, but that will come down (right now it's a 4). My spa is beautifully clear, clean, non-foaming - I back to new! Thanks for the pointer on lowering the T/A - once I did that everything fell right into place!! (I was prepared to adjust the Ph, but didn't have to)

Thanks guys, I'm in the process of lowerin the TA right now. I'll work on it this evening and report what happens. I really appreciate your responses. Oh, and no, I didn't add any calcium. We are actually on Rural Water where I am, so who knows what's in this water! I grabbed a test bottle from a local pool supply place and will take a sample in for them to test. I am sure they can give me lost of info. In the mean time, I'm using a test kit from HtH to check everything. I think the kit was designed for pools, but it seems to be pretty accurate. Once it's all used up, I'll probably move to using strips, is that what everyone recommends?

hello, I am new to hot tubs, but have enjoyed it emensley so far. I am running in to a little bit of an issue with water quality at the moment. Less than a week after my second time refilling the tub I have cloudy water. The water becomes foamy with the aerators on. people have only been in a tub twice in the 5 days that it's been filled. Initial chemicals were 4-6 ppm chlorine and a sanitizer, as well as enough Ph DOWN to get my Ph to 7.2 Alkalinity wasn't too bad, but a little on the high side. Now, a week later, here are my readings: Chlorine: 1-2ppm (after adding a self-dissolving packet) Alkalinity: 210 ppm Ph 8.2 Hardness 250ppm (calcium) I'm not sure where to go from here as far as chemicals are concerned so here are my questions: how do I get the Ph to stabilize without affecting Alkalinity (which seems ok - correct me if I'm wrong) how do I clear up my water and make the foam go away? The tub really hasn't been used that much, can this be oils already? The Sanitizer is supposed to have an anti-foam agent. many thanks from a newb!