Hillbilly Hot Tub

First, I don't know why a bromine floater would be more irritating than bromine concentrate. Both chemicals are a mix of bromine and chlorine, although some brands of tabs have different foams of chlorine. Our brand of tabs does not have dichlor, but the concentrate does. HTH brand(walmart, ect) has dichlor in the tabs. Either way you need to keep the bromine levels up via the concentrate or tabs. Less is more, but I dont understand how throwing in bromine concentrate is "less", no matter what you have to put enough in to keep your levels up. Maybe I am missing something.... I find tabs easier since they are consistantly putting bromine in the water. When you shock with non chlorine shock, you are oxidizing the contaniments in the water and "reestablishing" the bromine. Bromine is kind of neat that way. The white ring could be a number of things, is it slimy feeling? If so, it is a build up of body oils, sweat, soap ect. You can use an enzyme product to help remove this or a clarifier. The non chlorine shock should also help with this.

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First, I am so sorry we suggested back when you asked about Honey Tubs to go to them. They always were pleasent to us, a bit pushy but nice enough. A couple of things to check, although you should not have to....are the gate valves fully open? Also, if they used a waterway pump we have ran into a few that the impella was lose on and had to be tightened. Don't give up. Make them deal with it. Since you are local you could give them a bad name quickly. Word of mouth travels and I would push that with them. I would call your states BBB. A letter from them will usually kick the buisness in the *** to do something. Was this a rebuilt pump? Most pumps have more than a one year warranty, thats why I am asking. Something is definatly wrong and if you keep tripping the breaker it will eventually make the breaker go soft and have to be replaced. I would ask if they would like to pay for that repair also. Keep a note book of everytime you talked with them, with whom and what they said. You will need this for the BBB (we went through it with 4 wheeler purchases) Go into their retail store when customers are there and B**** in front of them, theen the president can say you really did B**** ! Good luck, and again I am sorry I suggested you go to see them.

After draining the water, take a shop vac to every jet in the tub, down in the filter and everywhere there could possibly be water. If the tub has a blower, unplug the pump and heater from pack, turn tub on and quickly turn on blower to purge water out of the lines. Shut power to tub right back off. Open pump unions and heater unions, suck water out of those. Put non toxic RV anti-freeze in the pump, heater, filter housing and we do each jet to be safe. Clean cover real well let it air dry standing upright while you are doing tub to help prevent that mildew smell.

Chas, you are so right. A new tub is sometimes a pain in the *** the first month. All the oils that come off the new plastics ect. Other reasons of foam are...high PH, soft water, and sweat/body oil(each person swaets about a pint per 30 min. spa use)

The green water could be 2 things. 1. It could be algea since you have no bromine reading, 2. It could be metals in the water such as copper. To do a bromine system correctly, you must start with a bank of sodium bromide. Most spa places sell a little 2 ounce pack for start up. You won't need it again till the next fill. Bromine tablets do not dissolve quickly enough to get a good reserve when you first start up. Check your calcium hardness. If you can get this where it belongs it will help keep the PH from jumping around. Next get your ALK in the proper range, then adjust the PH. You should be shocking with a non chlorine shock for the best results. You can shock with di-chlor or the bromine granulating concentrate also. The 2 later products will over time raise your CYA level though which may cause other issues later(read previous threads) You should shock at start up and at least weekly. If you use the tub a lot you will need to shock every couple of days. Make sure you have your filter cycle set for at least 4 hours. These are the basics for starting a bromine tub, as you go you need to clean your filters, may need a clarifer ect. If the green is from algea because you sanitizer level is so low, you need to get the sanitizer level up and shock, shock, shock! There are algecides for spas, but we have not had good luck with them, they cause other issues. If the spa has a cover and sanitizer levels are kept up, you should never get algea. If the green is from metals in the water you will need to use a metal remover at start up and each time you add fresh water. Hope this helps you start off on the right foot.

From a personal point of view, we are a small family run company. I have very low overhead, and I do not put tubs on Textron or any other financing, I pay for them, so I have no interest adding up. Makes it so I can offer the tub at a lower price than the other dealers may be able to. The commercial rent in my area is also about 1/3 of dealers in others areas. We have more cows in town than people, so I can't get as much for my tubs as the dealer on the coast can, so it works out for us. Do your research to why there is a huge price difference. As was said, the dealer may haggle to a lower price or offer something else. The lower price dealer may not haggle (I usually don't, I offer the best up front) Dealer verses Box store....no question, I can go to a dealer and drag them out to the tub and fix it, not spend hours on the phone to then spend days waiting for a service tech or may or may not know what they are doing and burn the house down. Many things to think about. We have a Nordic dealer in our area and the prices you got from the first dealer are really good, but check around. Look into other brands too.

From a personal point of view, we are a small family run company. I have very low overhead, and I do not put tubs on Textron or any other financing, I pay for them, so I have no interest adding up. Makes it so I can offer the tub at a lower price than the other dealers may be able to. The commercial rent in my area is also about 1/3 of dealers in others areas. We have more cows in town than people, so I can't get as much for my tubs as the dealer on the coast can, so it works out for us. Do your research to why there is a huge price difference. As was said, the dealer may haggle to a lower price or offer something else. The lower price dealer may not haggle (I usually don't, I offer the best up front) Dealer verses Box store....no question, I can go to a dealer and drag them out to the tub and fix it, not spend hours on the phone to then spend days waiting for a service tech or may or may not know what they are doing and burn the house down. Many things to think about. We have a Nordic dealer in our area and the prices you got from the first dealer are really good, but check around. Look into other brands too.

We have a Del MCD-50 ozonator on our tub. I wondered the same thing; how do you know it is working. We have no odor from the bubbles coming up through the water. According to some experts, a well designed system will have no odor. This happens because the ozone contacts the water long enough to be converted back to oxygen. We tried ozone measuring strips but the results seemed to track Free Chlorine so I'm not convinced they work in the presence of FC. Finally, I called Balboa customer service and asked a tech. He said that if the green light is on, the unit is producing ozone. Our only problem is that the ozonator is installed under the skirting and so you can't see if the green light is on without removing one of the skirts. I plan to drill an inspection hole when the weather clears; it's snowing again here in Colorado. The Del ozone is not made by Balboa, so I am suprised the guy answered you. One of the things Balboa taught us is to check for the clean fresh scent it produces. It is very distint and we use a mazzi injected ozone system, and we can still smell it. Mazzi injection mixes the ozone and water very well, not just bubbles of ozone coming into the tub. If you chemical smell is strong you will not be able to smell the fresh ozone. The light is usually accurate. I would not suggest drilling a whole in your cabinet. You will lose heat and give easy access to bugs. You only need to check your ozone at water changes and you should be taking a peek under the cabinet anyway to look at your pump seals and make sure you don't have unwanted residents. Its like opening the hood on your car, preventitive maintenance. If the ozone stops working you may notice an increase in chemical use and water quality issues.

We have a Del MCD-50 ozonator on our tub. I wondered the same thing; how do you know it is working. We have no odor from the bubbles coming up through the water. According to some experts, a well designed system will have no odor. This happens because the ozone contacts the water long enough to be converted back to oxygen. We tried ozone measuring strips but the results seemed to track Free Chlorine so I'm not convinced they work in the presence of FC. Finally, I called Balboa customer service and asked a tech. He said that if the green light is on, the unit is producing ozone. Our only problem is that the ozonator is installed under the skirting and so you can't see if the green light is on without removing one of the skirts. I plan to drill an inspection hole when the weather clears; it's snowing again here in Colorado. The Del ozone is not made by Balboa, so I am suprised the guy answered you. One of the things Balboa taught us is to check for the clean fresh scent it produces. It is very distint and we use a mazzi injected ozone system, and we can still smell it. Mazzi injection mixes the ozone and water very well, not just bubbles of ozone coming into the tub. If you chemical smell is strong you will not be able to smell the fresh ozone. The light is usually accurate. I would not suggest drilling a whole in your cabinet. You will lose heat and give easy access to bugs. You only need to check your ozone at water changes and you should be taking a peek under the cabinet anyway to look at your pump seals and make sure you don't have unwanted residents. Its like opening the hood on your car, preventitive maintenance. If the ozone stops working you may notice an increase in chemical use and water quality issues.

MPS, or non chlorine shock is low on the PH scale, so it will pull the PH down a little. People using the spa will pull the ph down, but airration and outgassing increases PH. I also beleive I have read that Genesis has a tendency to run a higher PH. With fresh water you will not otice the difference shock makes. Over tome and heavy use you will see the difference (and feel). The small unfilterable particles start building up, causing the water to feel thick for lack of a better term. Thanks for your response. Now it all makes sense. We have had sore muscles lately and normally the 2 speed pump alone works out the knots. The last few days we have been pounding ourselves with pump and air. I will monitor the Ph more closely if we tend to use the air more. We will also probably shock once a week as I can then turn the genesis dial down even further. Yes, thanks for the information. Any chance that not shocking regularly also could be a reason I can't get rid of foam brought in from "outsiders" and their swim wear? Yes, Shock will help break down soap as it is an oxidizer. Ozone and MPS are 2 very good oxidizers that help a lot. Ozone normally only runs while the tub is in a filter cycle. Shocking after heavy use will also help prevent issues.

I haven't owned a spa very long, but I am pretty darn sure that you MUST use stabilizer/buffer to keep your pH in check. That is why it is drifting up. It is not a must. Some people like it, other do not. The less chemicals the better to them. You also have to be careful if you have hard water. Regular PH balance does not work in hard water areas and we have seen with people that have used this product have had issues with scale. It works real well with the right water, but does not totally stop the need uf adjusting the PH. It helps for PH swings, the fast up and down you can sometimes get with use.

I haven't owned a spa very long, but I am pretty darn sure that you MUST use stabilizer/buffer to keep your pH in check. That is why it is drifting up.

First thing to check is does it hold water. Fill it and leave it for a few days, see if there are any signs of leaks such as water level dropping and wet under the spa if you can see under the deck.

No these appear to be soapy bubble. We noticed a lot when we had our first guests in and we know that came from their bathing suits. We have very soft water in our home and we used Hardness up in the spa to get it to correct levels, but this foam keeps hanging around. Maybe I should clean the filter. If you use a clarifier(one that coagulates and flocuates) to help the small unfilterable particles stick to your filter run for a day or 2 then clean/rinse your filter out good, it should help. Some particles are so small they just pass through your filter going right back into the spa water causing foam. All the foam down does is creates a tension on the water not allowing the bubbles to form, it does not last long nor does it remove the issue. I do not use a Clarifier. Should I be using one? Are you telling me that the suds introduced by our guest a few weeks ago are still there and causing this bubbling? Sounds like it might last a while. Am I unique with this problem? Thanks by the way Anything you bring into the tub stays in the tub untill you get it out. Most stuff gets trapped in the filter, but filters only pick up to about 4-10 microns depending on the filter. The stuff that by-passes the filter continues to cause issues. Risdual soap on swimsuits is a huge one, very common. You may not need a clarifier all the time, but after guests use the tub it will help, even if the water is not cloudy (the name is a bit deceiving) If you get the right kind it will make the smaller particles stick together, becoming larger so the filter can pick them up, then rinse the filter and you have got them out of the tub. I personally use a clarifier weekly, it seems to make things easier such as chemistry and filter cleaning. The one I use is all natural (made from crab shells) so I am not added "chemicals" to the tub. Sweat, body oil ect will also cause a foam, but usually it will not stay on the waters surface after shutting tub down as you described.

No these appear to be soapy bubble. We noticed a lot when we had our first guests in and we know that came from their bathing suits. We have very soft water in our home and we used Hardness up in the spa to get it to correct levels, but this foam keeps hanging around. Maybe I should clean the filter. If you use a clarifier(one that coagulates and flocuates) to help the small unfilterable particles stick to your filter run for a day or 2 then clean/rinse your filter out good, it should help. Some particles are so small they just pass through your filter going right back into the spa water causing foam. All the foam down does is creates a tension on the water not allowing the bubbles to form, it does not last long nor does it remove the issue.

MPS, or non chlorine shock is low on the PH scale, so it will pull the PH down a little. People using the spa will pull the ph down, but airration and outgassing increases PH. I also beleive I have read that Genesis has a tendency to run a higher PH. With fresh water you will not otice the difference shock makes. Over tome and heavy use you will see the difference (and feel). The small unfilterable particles start building up, causing the water to feel thick for lack of a better term.

You can get muriatic acid AKA hydrocloric acid. The pool store should have it as should most hardware stores. You have to be VERY carful when using this in a hot tub. Mix with water first, don't spill ect. I don't know if it will help you skin reaction since it is still an acid. Are you waiting for a period before going into the tub after adding PH down? If you go in when you are adding it it will bother your skin since it is an acid.

I would suggest some ant traps (maybe many!) because when you turn the air on in the tub it will pull stuff from under the cabinet area, thus pulling that bug killer into the tub via air controls while you are using the tub, then you are breathing it. Mabe the traps inside the tub, spray around the outside of tub, or sprinkle the powder around the outside of tub.

First, did you replace the check valve? Sometimes the ozone, over time will cause the check valve to stick and not allow the ozone into the water, and eventually burn up the ozonator. Next, besides the light, there are test strips that check for ozone. Ozone only has a 20 minute risdual in the tub water and I do not know how accurate they are. The best way I can tell is by the smell. When ozone is running, the bubbles have a very distinct smell (like the smell after a lightning strick that was close by) Its like a super fresh air smell, and if you get a deep whiff of it, it may effect your breathing (takes your breath away)

First, did you replace the check valve? Sometimes the ozone, over time will cause the check valve to stick and not allow the ozone into the water, and eventually burn up the ozonator. Next, besides the light, there are test strips that check for ozone. Ozone only has a 20 minute risdual in the tub water and I do not know how accurate they are. The best way I can tell is by the smell. When ozone is running, the bubbles have a very distinct smell (like the smell after a lightning strick that was close by) Its like a super fresh air smell, and if you get a deep whiff of it, it may effect your breathing (takes your breath away)

First, did you replace the check valve? Sometimes the ozone, over time will cause the check valve to stick and not allow the ozone into the water, and eventually burn up the ozonator. Next, besides the light, there are test strips that check for ozone. Ozone only has a 20 minute risdual in the tub water and I do not know how accurate they are. The best way I can tell is by the smell. When ozone is running, the bubbles have a very distinct smell (like the smell after a lightning strick that was close by) Its like a super fresh air smell, and if you get a deep whiff of it, it may effect your breathing (takes your breath away)

We have customers that use the frog and really like it. You can keep your bromine levels down on the lower side and the mineral stick helps keep the water softer and there is hardly any "bromine" smell. Yes you do have to shock once per week, more if the spa is heavily used. The shock oxidizes (breaks down) any contaniments brought into the spa and "recharges" the bromine, freeing it up and making it so less bromine is used. It may help with your spa itch since you can keep lower levels of bromine and are not adding chlorine to the tub. It seems to be more gentle on the skin than traditional bromine tablet systems. Keep your PH in check. Very important. Cons may be the cost. It may be more pricy than tradional bromine tabs.

Shocking helps break down body oil, sweat, urea, and other contaniments. (each person sweats about a pint for a 30 minute hot tub session) It also "recharges" the bromine, freeing it up so it can do its job. If you do not shock, you may develop water quality issues and you will use more bromine.