tony

The Spa Necessities ozonator you have is one of the Sundance/Jacuzzi OEM CD ozonators. These do not have chips that need to be replaced. They last 5 - 7 years and then throw away. The tubing will develop a white to yellowish color. This is normal. Lack of bubbles generally indicates a blockage...usually the check valve/valves. The ozonator is operating if it is humming. Like all ozonators, there is no real easy way to tell how much ozone it is actually producing.

Spa Guard Enhanced Shock is actually a pretty good product. It is half dichlor and half MPS. Some use it after soaking, others as a weekly shock. Your purchase certainly will not go to waste.

I have the K-2005 for $50.00 that works well. Check out RHTUBS.COM for a couple of different models at reasonable prices.

I keep Aquacheck strips around for free chlorine only. I use a Taylor test kit for everything else. IMO, it is the only way to go. Test strips, even the best, are just not accurate enough.

Hopefully you are using bromine sanitizing tablets and not chlorine tablets. Both have a low pH but chlorine tablets are for cold water pools and will dissolve faster in the warm hot tub water running your chlorine level high and pH/TA very low.

If you look closely, there is a model that is stabilized by a piece that slides under the spa rather than screwing into the skirt.

I believe you made a wise decision. The deal you have today will most likely be there tomorrow. Caldera is a very fine spa, but you should take your time and be sure it is the one you want.

Faoming to the point of creating suds is most always from soaps in suits, hair or from filters not rinsed enough. If this happens to me, I run all my jets with air on to get as much foam as possible, then scoop the suds out with a pool net and shock. This generally does the trick. I also like to use enzymes to help with oils and soaps.

I have a Taylor K-2005 test kit that can be used for chlorine or bromine. I find it accurate and simple to use. Along with chlorine and bromine, it tests pH with a base and acid demand reagent, TA, calcium hardness and CYA. The booklet that comes with it gives great instructions and a good understanding of water chemistry. IMO, you are better off being your own chemist with a good kit than relying on someone else. There is a learning curve, though.

Generally I change every four months...April, August, December. One year I changed early summer at the two month mark because of severe teenage usage, but got back on my normal schedule that August.

My first set lasted just about three years. I swap out one while cleaning the other so each had about 18 months of usage. FWIW, the filter media looked fine but the plastic ends started to fall apart. My second set is approaching three years now and everything still looks good, so I imagine I'll get longer life from this set. All the filters were from my dealer and are Sundance parts.

This happened to my 2002 Sundance a couple of years ago. Replaced the aux topside and the temp switch.

I find I do not need to use a clarifier on a regular basis. In my six years of ownership I have used slightly more than one 32 oz bottle of clarifier. Once in a while, my water will get a slight haze to it...not cloudy but just not crystal clear like it usually is...this is when 2 oz of clarifier works for me. Cloudy water generally needs a shock dose of sanitizer and extended filtering. I do like to use an enzyme product on a regular basis. Enzymes will "eat" the oils and soaps, keep your filters clean and smells nice. Enzymes are good preventative maintenance products while clarifiers will fix a problem. I believe the Sea Klear product is a combination of both...I have been using the Leisure Time products.

Fast Gloss is not really a cleaner. Leisure Time makes a citrus cleaner that may remove the stickiness. Fast Gloss is more a protective product.

I think you made a wise choise. Congratulations. Great spa.

Check the price of a new Altimar vs the new Certa. This will give you an idea of the difference between the two spas. The biggest difference between the two will be in the electronics, not the air blower or the air jets. The Altimar uses the LCD electronics vs the LED electronics in the Certa. The LCD is a much higher end product. The LCD and the LED are manufactured by different companies so there is no comparison. Can you negotiate the price of the Altimar down...spas typically don't hold their value well.

If I were making the choise, I would go with the Altimar as long as it is in good condition. The Altimar, though four years old, is a higher level spa than the Certa. It is the 850 series vs the 780 series. The Altimar has a much better controller, two 2.5 hp pumps vs one 2.5 and one 1.5, a titanium heater vs ss. They both have the microclean I filter system. Looks like a pretty good deal.

I have heard people say this, but I have found it is not true. The Tri-X filter is tough enough to run through the dishwasher (without any 'jet dry' or similar product mind you) but even HS regular filters do not last very long if you put them in the dishwasher. Both spas are very high end. They both filter well, have excellent shells and are full foam which will aid with support. Either one will serve you well. Get the spa that feels best to you.

The Natural is one of the more popular enzyme products. You can find some extensive information at www.rhtubs.com. You can also purchase the product there. In the past there were some posters on that forum who were long time users of The Natural and loved the results.

I've encountered repeated errors, dropouts, and slow loads today and over the past week. Managing posts and threads has been distressingly slow. I notified Dave the Owner yesterday (or was it just this morning? Time seems to be dragging) with no reply -- but give him time.... the message probably hasn't reached him yet. "Little Miss Moderator" Crystal seems to have dropped off the face of the earth and no longer responds to PMs. Too bad, I thought she was a sweetie. Jim_the_Jim no longer considers me the "only honest moderator" on this site and has banned me from his. Things are just going all to heck! Don't distress. You probably don't remember this forum in its previous format. You had to wait 24 hours for your post to show up, except weekends when it might take three days.

Richard, I've had a very good experience with the dichlor then bleach after soaking sanitizing routine. My water has stayed crystal clear and fresh to the end with what to me seems to be very little TDS accumulation. I've just changed my water after five months, but really don't think I needed to.

With almost everything we add to the water, something is left behind. Chlorine, MPS, Spa Up, Spa Down, etc all leave something in the water what we collectively call TDS or Total Dissolved Solids. TDS and cyanuric acid are two main reasons water needs to be changed. It is interesting that you brought this subject up because I just changed my water last weekend after five months. It was my first full season using bleach in my spa and I honestly felt I didn't need the change. I've felt this in the past using dichlor but when I drained and filled, I could see how my water had deteriorated over time and lulled me into thinking it was still good. Of course, there is nothing like new water. This time, though, I found no difference. At the three month mark I was noticing how nice the water still was, but I needed to verify this with the water change. My TDS levels seemed extremely low for five month old water. I normally change my water every four months. Lack of TDS and of course CYA (which also adds to TDS) is what I summize accounts for the difference. Needless to say, I will continue with my "experiment" another season to see if the results continue.

Its painful to come here these days. I can see my phishing filter working overtime here.

Weekly filter cleaning and normal pH of 8 are pretty standard for enzyme systems, the more popular being Eco One and The Natural. AF seems to be this also.

Good site. Looks like reasonable prices. I notice that there is a longer lasting replacement circ pump for the Laing low flow.