larrys1

Hi again. Just wanted to pass along that we purchased a lot of 6 MF-170 spa filters for our Arctic Summit for $50 + $25 shipping on Ebay from Pooltechmidwest. We were paying $36 each locally. Something to look in to... Also, we drained and re-filled the tub a couple of months ago and only put 5 lbs of salt which seemed to work for a few days but then dropped bromine level again. I called our dealer for repair and they got a little worked up because she had me give her the ORP reading and then told me I didn't have enough salt in it (The new recommendation is 5.5 to 8 lbs). I told her the ORP reading didn't have anything to do with the salt level. Anyway, long story short is I added another 2 lbs for a total of 7 lbs and the tub has been perfect ever since. I run the Onzen at CP4 which seems to work great for our amount of usage. I tried turning it down to 3 but the level started dropping off again. Turned it back up to 6 just to get it stabilized, then back down to 4 and left it alone. Have not added one capful of shock. It's great!

I used Source 1 Outlet to purchase 6 lbs of MPS for $15 + shipping.

We have been using Blue Devil 5-Way test strips (Total Chlorine, Free Chlorine/Bromine, pH, Alkalinity, Hardness). since we got the tub mainly because these are the ones supplied by our dealer. Our dealer is quite a distance from our house so I would like to find some that I can order online. Does anyone have any suggestions for comparable strips reasonable with shipping costs?

We started having trouble keeping bromine levels at the proper level so I purchased some salt test strips ($10 w/ free shipping on Ebay)and a handheld TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) meter ($15 w/ free shipping on Ebay). Salt level came out to 3200 ppm, which was a little high. TDS showed around 3800 ppm. After doing a bunch of internet research on TDS especially reading about the Genesis Bromine Generator, I found that a level of 3500 ppm TDS is time to change the water. Here's what I learned. When we first got our tub, Arctic said to put in 8 to 10 lbs of salt. I put in 8 and didn't think it was producing enough sanitizer so I through in the remaining 2 lbs. Now Arctic recommends 5.7 to 8.1 for our Summit. Genesis says 1 lb of salt for every 100 gallons. So I completely drained the tub and only put in 5 lbs. The sanitizer levels came up perfectly and things are working better than ever! So I recommend testing not only your salt level but your TDS also. Mine is now at 2500 ppm. The rule of thumb is if EVERYTHING else is perfect, check your TDS.

We started having trouble keeping bromine levels at the proper level so I purchased some salt test strips ($10 w/ free shipping on Ebay)and a handheld TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) meter ($15 w/ free shipping on Ebay). Salt level came out to 3200 ppm, which was a little high. TDS showed around 3800 ppm. After doing a bunch of internet research on TDS especially reading about the Genesis Bromine Generator, I found that a level of 3500 ppm TDS is time to change the water. Here's what I learned. When we first got our tub, Arctic said to put in 8 to 10 lbs of salt. I put in 8 and didn't think it was producing enough sanitizer so I through in the remaining 2 lbs. Now Arctic recommends 5.7 to 8.1 for our Summit. Genesis says 1 lb of salt for every 100 gallons. So I completely drained the tub and only put in 5 lbs. The sanitizer levels came up perfectly and things are working better than ever! So I recommend testing not only your salt level but your TDS also. Mine is now at 2500 ppm. The rule of thumb is if EVERYTHING else is perfect, check your TDS.

We purchased a Summit only because the dealer at the fair kind of led us to that model. I understand the Tundra is computer designed and has won several awards. It looks like it has four great captains chairs; the Summit has two with a third that sits higher up with OK jets and the fourth is kind of three seats together with so-so jets. We love it since it is just the two of us 95% of the time and we didn't want to pay anymore than we did which was $11,000 U.S. before taxes. I have read people in the neighborhood of $15,000 for the Tundra. We don't really care for the Therapy Air as it is noisy and cools the water slightly...maybe we will like it better in the summer. Our Summit has Onzen which I have grown to love for ease of use. It has a little bit of a learning curve but is so much easier and cleaner than other folks I have heard about their difficulties maintaining chemicals and cleanliness.

Just be sure to check your electrical requirements BEFORE you pour. I found out I was supposed to have the rebar EQUIPOTENTIALLY tied together inside the slab and now I have a couple of stray volts you can feel if you stand on the slab barefooted and put your hand in the water...

Be careful using clarifiers if you use the micro-filters you throw away. It is not recommended at all unless you use pleated filters that you can clean. Our Arctic w/Onzen turns milky white when you turn the jets on simply due to air bubbles. It clears off several minutes after the jets go off. We use a kitchen sieve to scoop off soap bubbles. You will always have SOME bubbles and you can tell the difference between the air ones and the soap ones. The air ones dissipate immediately and the soap ones stay formated.

Tom, looking forward to a new rev to the Onzen manual! Dust, thanks for the info. I printed it out and am going to check my settings tonight when I get home.

Dust, are you certain that your Onzen generator dial is turned ALL-THE-WAY to the left (counter-clockwise) to the plus sign? Also, try emailing len@goarctic.com. I called and they said he was the one to answer any and all questions dealing with Onzen. I have got e-mail replies back from him so I know it works. Normally, the wife and I do not ever need to throw in Refresh. I have the Onzen topside set to CP3 (per Len's recommendation). I may boost it up a notch or two if we have people over AND use a half capful of Refresh (you should never need more than that if it is working correctly). Then I turn it back down to CP3 when it is just the two of us again.

Glad to hear your Onzen problems are getting worked out. Ours has been working great. We just got back from a week in Maui and checked the sanitizer. System took good care of itself while we were gone. Have had no problems and no complaints. On the other hand. I have been talking to a guy at my work who also bought a tub at fair time but it uses regular chemicals and he has been having nothing but problems. In fact, he told me the other day his was green and smelled bad. The wife and and I are extremely glad we went with the Onzen system.

No objections here Tom. Sounds like a great idea. Are you going to make an Onzen sub-folder?

I was told about rhtubs.com and found good ones.

www.rhtubs.com Thanks for the info!

Our friends have an 8' Clearwater spa that needs a new cover. I saw a post the other day for a cheap ($75) umbrella on Ebay that we bought for them and it was GREAT! Now, does anyone have any ideas on where to buy a good quality but reasonable cover? They want it to match the burgandy color that the umbrella is.

I have had a FLO error on our Summit LE since we got it a couple of weeks ago. Pumps all work, jets all work, just that nagging FLO message. So the repair guy from Apollo comes out (nicest guy BTW) and changes out the wire going to the pump switch. I guess our tub was actually manufactured in 2007 and it was a common problem that the wire's female connectors were too large and didn't make good contact. Swapped it out and no more error! Don't know why Arctic didn't change out all remaining 2007 models wires prior to shipping them out but nonetheless we are happily soaking in the rain and cold! Just thought if someone else might be having the same problem this info would help... Also, Arctic mailed us our ORP meter we didn't get when they delivered the tub. That will be nice for measuring sanitizer level.

Does anyone know Global Spa Pack's web site address? I can't seem to locate any info about them.

Onzen support phone number is located in the Onzen user manual. The number is in Canada. There are no US telephone numbers. Chuck They do have an 800 number. It is 1-800-309-1744

I am amazed also. Especially since we had 6 people in this weekend and I shocked it with a capful of Refresh, checked it the next day and was down to ZILCH. I must not know what I'm doing. I cranked Onzen up to CP6 and shocked again. Finally got it back up by the second day. Did I not add enough shock? They said to be careful how much you put in the salt system. Also, have LOTS of leftover foam that won't go away...

Does anyone out there have the complete list of all the low level programming codes and their meanings for Arctic Spas? The only one I have is "CP" for setting the Onzen cycle. I would like to know the others to see if I want or need to change anything else.

We have the Arctic Spa Summit LE and have the Onzen dial turned all the way to the left toward the + and are using the topside panel to control Onzen distribution. I currently have it set for CP 4 for the Global Pack and the bromine level has been very good. Had our first "party" with six people in the tub for most of the evening last night. I shocked the tub with a capful of Refresh when we were done for the night and did a boost filtration. Went to get in this morning and the water was cloudy and foaming quite a bit. Checked the bromine which was down to nothing. I shocked again and am running boost filtration again. Any Onzen users have any ideas or suggestions?

Thanks for that info Chuck. I will look into those. Where did you get your doors and how much were they?

It is wonderful! It was raining today pretty bad and we sat in the tub with the umbrella open and the entire tub is dry! Here's a pic...

OK, here is what I have found out so far. Checked each and every wire for color and placement. Even looked inside the spa's electrical box. We shut off the breaker in the main panel going to the spa disconnect and tested with a meter. Got nothing. Hand in the water with bare feet....bzzzz. Got a tingle still!!! So we started talking about how the guy that wired our garage put the ground wire directly under where we poured the slab for the spa. Hmmmm, maybe getting some kinda backfeed from the garage. So we shut off the power at the main power for the house and the garage (where the power company meter is). And still got a buzz. So, needless to say, we are totally confused. I think we are getting some kind of natural electrical field up through the concrete and felt in the tub because we are using salt water (which makes a GREAT conductor). We got in the tub and thought some more about it... Any ideas???????

Dial should be all the way to the LEFT and give it a half capful of Refresh should help.