Jason G

In my state all commercial pools and spas are required to have a CPO on staff(http://www.nspf.org/Two_Day_Class.html). No outside testing agents are allowed. Your local health department should offer the CPO class several times per year. I would recommend you contact your health inspector personnaly and ask if you can get away with only testing durring occupancy. He will tell you exactly what he will require. You should also consider getting an automated chemical feed system. $$$ but worth the maintenance time.

Green water can be from a few things. 1- copper: do you have a gas heater or electric? Are you on a well? Whats the copper level in your source water? (get this from your water provider). What is your calcium hardness level? 2- algae- are you using a copper based algecide? If so, you may have oxiydized the copper with your shock. In this case, drain and fill, shock then next day algecide. 3- pH/ Total Alkalinity imbalance. Alkalinity can give the water a green hue. Make sure to test for Total Alkalinity and adjust if needed.

I'd have to agree here. Just recently, I'v seen a rash of problems associated with the new BALBOA m7 controls and some Del Ozone generators. It was a feedback from the ozone that was causing many problems with the control. I had the manufacturer send out another ozone (somehow different) and wa-la. Fixed. What kind of control and ozone are you using?

You have a suction side leak. As posted earlier, check the leaf trap o-ring or filter lid o-ring and bleed screw. Also, make sure the water level is high enough. see if you hear any sucking sounds or vortices forming at the suction.

No, actually heat will go in any direction from hot to cold. Common misconception. Heat rises. Only nominal heat radiation goes any other direction. A new cover is best. You can also get a solar bubble cover to float on the water. This will give you another insulation barrier for heat loss.

It's a diverter valve. If you can post a picture of it I can tell you what brand. Then buy one and just replace the internal/handle portion of the valve.

Thanks Marc- I'm thinking you are having this problem because of the Baquacil. I have had clients use these types of peroxides and biguanides and it seems they always have issues with cloudy water, biofilm residue and a whitish scum. If you like the Baquacil, you should periodically shock the water with a good chlorine. I recommend Lithium Hypochlorite. 4oz per 450 gallon tub should do it. Disolve the chlorine in water then pour into tub with jets on. Leave the cover open for about 3-4 hours in sunlight and the chlorine will completely go away. Make sure to clean your filter regularly. Also, check your filter for any holes between the pletes, or if the filter is 18 months to 2 yrs old, replace it. I will do some research on Baquacil and reply to this post. My choice for my spa is copper, non-chlorine shock, ozone and shock using lithium hypo about once a month (plus the pH stuff too).

Pull your filter out and run the spa. See if it heats up. Do you have an air-lock (do the jets work normally?)? Things that control the heat are: thermostat, pressure switch, hi-limit switch or flow switch. See if you have a hi-limit switch tripped. Try this and post a reply Good Luck!!

Hey Marc- what does the silt look like? What color is the silt, is it forming on the walls, is it rough, what kind of sanitizer are you using, how often do you shock and what kind of shock? Give some more info and I'll bet we can figure it out for you. Also what part of the country do you live in (whats your water like out of the tap??)

If your shell is acrylic, and the scratch does not go through the acrylic, you can simply use sandpaper to buff out the scratch. Start with 400 grit wet/dry and work your way up to 1200 to 1600 grit wet/dry. finally, use a rubbing compound (like the stuff you use on your car) and buff with a buffing wheel to finish. Be sure to sand beyond the scratch some so you don't notice the slight depression you'll create. If the scratch is through the acrylic, you can buy an epoxy repair kit from the spa manufacturer and that should include some color to blend in the epoxy. Hope this helps.

Your spa has a Balboa control. This control has a double sensor set. The large sensor that you saw mounted in the spa wall is the for temp. The high limit sensor is located under a stainless plat mounted to the underside of the heater housing. Replace them both as they come as a set. Balboa part number 30337

There is now a test kit for ozone. I'm trying to fing a link to the manufacturer. It is a tube with some type of fillament that changes blue in the presence of ozone. you just plug it in-line with your ozone feed tube and it will change color if ozone is pulled across it. One thing I found that is paramount is to check the ozone feed tube for suction. These seem to foul up quite quickly with (nitric??) acid. A byproduct of the ozone. It shows up as a yellow-clear goo in the line. It seems to allways end up sticking the check valves closed after a short while. Put the feed tube up to your ear when in low speed and see if you hear sucking. I'll find the link to the ozone test kits and post it ASAP>

Good Job!! In the future, if you see the heat light on steady, the heater should be working. That light is directly tied to the heater voltage. If it's flashing then you probably have a flow issue or bad pressure switch. There are only two tests you will ever need to preform for a heater check. First, with spa running and thermostat turned up. check for voltage across the two heater leads. You should get 240V for a 240V heater and 120V for a 120V heater. If not it's something in the control circuit, p-switch, timer, hi-limit etc.. If you have the correct voltage then: Second, attatch an amp clamp around one of the Line voltages coming into the spa (black or red wire, not white) You should see around 19 to 25A for a 240V and 9 to 15 for a 120V spa. If you don't see this higher amperage then the element is bad. Make sure your spa is protected with a good GFCI breaker at all times! Cheers!

Usually the light and stereo are on seperate power circuits. The light will run on 12VAC from the transformer in the control box. Check for a bad bulb or 12V at the light socket. The stereo will get it's 12VDC power from an inverter located somewhere under the spa. Some inverters have a reset button (hard to see) and some just have a glass fuse. Check all the plugs at the control box for power as well. If it's not switching then you may have a bad control. WARRANTY 5yrs for master spas Good Luck!!

MSRP is usually twice the cost, minus delivery charges, to the dealer. It is only fair that the dealer make a profit to stay in buisness to service you and your spa. He may be adding things like delivery, steps, ozone, lift chemicals, etc. which he'll need to recoup costs. $9k may be fair for a top-of-line spa. Market price will play into this. Good Luck!!