fastfade

Installed the new E5 Circ Pump today & all works great. High limit switch is no longer tripping. Thanks again for the helpful comments

Well, after testing to see if the pump would fire up with power connected to an alternate test power source (other than my hot tub) it looks like you're correct about the Circ pump being bad since it would not power on. I'm ordering a new E5 today. Thanks again for the helpful comments

Thanks for the suggestion - I'll check for voltage at the circ pump plug & post back

Well, here I am back again after 3+ years & having the same problem as before & looking for more help:) Same Hotsprings 1991 Classic Hot Tub plus I've not had it up & running for about 2 yrs. I wanted to see if everything was still running ok in case any of my summer guests might want to use the hot tub so I got it filled & running ok except the high limit heater Switch trips after about 5min. I put my hand on the heating element & I can feel it is pretty hot to the touch. All jets & main pump seems to work fine. One thing that is different this time is that I cannot hear or feel the Cir Pump kick on (same E5 I installed in Jan 2009). I've removed the Circ Pump & all looks fine to me (rotor spins fine (no debris) & the wiring is connected correctly & clean. I've unplugged/re-connected the Circ Pump electrical cord from the hot tub. Could this be a problem other than the Circ Pump? Is there a method that I can try to make sure the Circ Pump is getting power from the Tub (dig. multimeter, etc.? Would a bad thermostat be my problem or perhaps this old tub is ready for retirement:) Thanks for any comments/suggestions Fastfade:)

I'll check it in 5-6 hours and see how it's progressing. Thanks very much Dan for your generous time and patience I'll give some of your Sponsers some business since I need filters & other supplies

You may have an air-bound circ pump. When you reset the high limit and try it again, quickly put your hand on the heating element to see if it starts to get boiling hot. Did you put the older silent-flo pump in or one of the new E5 circ pumps? Thanks for your rely Dan. Here's the latest on my problem... I'm sorry as this is a long winded reply I have installed the new E-5 Circ Pump. This morning while looking for the flow/pressure valve I did locate a valve of some type behind the drain cock near the heater. I'm uploading a photo to see if you/others might recognize this valve. The hose/tube that connects to this valve leads to a split joint with one tube going to the back of the heater and the other (hard to see for sure) looks like it might go to the main pump. I disconnected the hose on top of this valve and water spurted out from the hose and from the valve. After replacing the hose on this valve I ran the Circ Pump (used a magnet to activate the magnetic door switch so I could observe the pump with the door open. I could hear the Circ pump running but after 5 secs or so it would turn off. While doing this I noticed some smoke coming from the heater wiring. There was some exposed wire (both black & white) that was caused by rubbing up against something I presume. Guess I'm lucky to not get electrocuted. I repaired the wire and now the Circ pump runs for about 30 secs a then cuts off. Also, after this repair the High Limit switch no longer trips.I repeated this several times & the Circ Pump cuts off each time after about 30 secs but the High Limit switch do not trip. I'm guessing it was tripping all this time because of the exposed wiring. I did feel around the heating element after the Circ pump stopped and I could feel some heat on the metal surface (not so hot though...I could leave my hand there without burning. If this is a flow valve can you tell me how to remove it...does it unscrew. I tried a bit but it would not turn with average torque. Thanks for any further help/comments with my problem Are you sure that the circ pump is quitting after 30 sec? It may just rattle when first started and then may be getting quiet. If the circ pump stops, the heater would get extremely hot and then the high limit would trip. If it's not tripping and the power light isn't flashing, I would let it run and see what happens. If the tub is 110 it will only heat about 1 degree/hour. The E5 pump actually is made to turn on and off by itself when first started if it senses that there is air in the system. If it turns on/off too many times trying to purge the air it may need to be reset again by resetting power. There is no flow or pressure switch in that tub, don't touch that black elbow, it's just a bleedline. You're spot on Dan... When the Circ pump comes on I can feel with my hand the humm of the Circ Pump and after about 25-30 secs it seems to kick off and I cannot feel the pump running. After about 12-15 secs the Circ Pump fires up again. Sometimes it only runs for 5 secs and kicks off again. After letting this repeat for about 5 min I notice that the High Limit switch tripped. After resetting the High Limit switch I have turned it back on and I'm letting the Jets Pump run also in hopes that the High Limit will not trip. Also, I have removed the filters(3) to make sure I'm getting good water flow. (My assumption:) Does this sound normal or do you think I might have other issues? Thanks very much for your help:) That sounds like you are close to getting it going. If it still is struggling to get the rest of the air out, here is what I normally do: 1. Heat up the line going into the circ pump with a heat gun/hair dryer and slide the clamp back. 2. Reset the power, then slightly pull off the hose leading into the pump...you may get a few gurgles of air then a blast of water...once you get the blast of water jam it back onto the pump. Obviously try to minimize the spray of water onto anything in the compartment. Dan... I did as you suggested by removing the hose leading into the pump. When I pulled the hose off there were no gurgles or blast of water...the water just flowed out smoothly. Since I've done that the Circ Pump has been running continuously for the past 15 minutes without cutting off once. However, when I felt of the heater metal surface & around the heater element there was no sign of heat what so ever. It was just cold to the touch and when I felt the water coming out of the heater return in the tub it was also cold. Is this an issue with the Heater Element or Thremostat? Earlier today, when working this problem there was some heat present on the Heater metal housing around the Element. Is there a way to tell if it's the Heater Element vs the Thremostat? I apologize for hogging your time

You may have an air-bound circ pump. When you reset the high limit and try it again, quickly put your hand on the heating element to see if it starts to get boiling hot. Did you put the older silent-flo pump in or one of the new E5 circ pumps? Thanks for your rely Dan. Here's the latest on my problem... I'm sorry as this is a long winded reply I have installed the new E-5 Circ Pump. This morning while looking for the flow/pressure valve I did locate a valve of some type behind the drain cock near the heater. I'm uploading a photo to see if you/others might recognize this valve. The hose/tube that connects to this valve leads to a split joint with one tube going to the back of the heater and the other (hard to see for sure) looks like it might go to the main pump. I disconnected the hose on top of this valve and water spurted out from the hose and from the valve. After replacing the hose on this valve I ran the Circ Pump (used a magnet to activate the magnetic door switch so I could observe the pump with the door open. I could hear the Circ pump running but after 5 secs or so it would turn off. While doing this I noticed some smoke coming from the heater wiring. There was some exposed wire (both black & white) that was caused by rubbing up against something I presume. Guess I'm lucky to not get electrocuted. I repaired the wire and now the Circ pump runs for about 30 secs a then cuts off. Also, after this repair the High Limit switch no longer trips.I repeated this several times & the Circ Pump cuts off each time after about 30 secs but the High Limit switch do not trip. I'm guessing it was tripping all this time because of the exposed wiring. I did feel around the heating element after the Circ pump stopped and I could feel some heat on the metal surface (not so hot though...I could leave my hand there without burning. If this is a flow valve can you tell me how to remove it...does it unscrew. I tried a bit but it would not turn with average torque. Thanks for any further help/comments with my problem Are you sure that the circ pump is quitting after 30 sec? It may just rattle when first started and then may be getting quiet. If the circ pump stops, the heater would get extremely hot and then the high limit would trip. If it's not tripping and the power light isn't flashing, I would let it run and see what happens. If the tub is 110 it will only heat about 1 degree/hour. The E5 pump actually is made to turn on and off by itself when first started if it senses that there is air in the system. If it turns on/off too many times trying to purge the air it may need to be reset again by resetting power. There is no flow or pressure switch in that tub, don't touch that black elbow, it's just a bleedline. You're spot on Dan... When the Circ pump comes on I can feel with my hand the humm of the Circ Pump and after about 25-30 secs it seems to kick off and I cannot feel the pump running. After about 12-15 secs the Circ Pump fires up again. Sometimes it only runs for 5 secs and kicks off again. After letting this repeat for about 5 min I notice that the High Limit switch tripped. After resetting the High Limit switch I have turned it back on and I'm letting the Jets Pump run also in hopes that the High Limit will not trip. Also, I have removed the filters(3) to make sure I'm getting good water flow. (My assumption:) Does this sound normal or do you think I might have other issues? Thanks very much for your help:)

You may have an air-bound circ pump. When you reset the high limit and try it again, quickly put your hand on the heating element to see if it starts to get boiling hot. Did you put the older silent-flo pump in or one of the new E5 circ pumps? Thanks for your rely Dan. Here's the latest on my problem... I'm sorry as this is a long winded reply I have installed the new E-5 Circ Pump. This morning while looking for the flow/pressure valve I did locate a valve of some type behind the drain cock near the heater. I'm uploading a photo to see if you/others might recognize this valve. The hose/tube that connects to this valve leads to a split joint with one tube going to the back of the heater and the other (hard to see for sure) looks like it might go to the main pump. I disconnected the hose on top of this valve and water spurted out from the hose and from the valve. After replacing the hose on this valve I ran the Circ Pump (used a magnet to activate the magnetic door switch so I could observe the pump with the door open. I could hear the Circ pump running but after 5 secs or so it would turn off. While doing this I noticed some smoke coming from the heater wiring. There was some exposed wire (both black & white) that was caused by rubbing up against something I presume. Guess I'm lucky to not get electrocuted. I repaired the wire and now the Circ pump runs for about 30 secs a then cuts off. Also, after this repair the High Limit switch no longer trips.I repeated this several times & the Circ Pump cuts off each time after about 30 secs but the High Limit switch do not trip. I'm guessing it was tripping all this time because of the exposed wiring. I did feel around the heating element after the Circ pump stopped and I could feel some heat on the metal surface (not so hot though...I could leave my hand there without burning. If this is a flow valve can you tell me how to remove it...does it unscrew. I tried a bit but it would not turn with average torque. Thanks for any further help/comments with my problem

It could also be that the pressure switch or flow switch is stuck closed. I don't know what one is used in your spa but it would mounted near the heater Thanks ps558 for your response and suggestion. There is no mention of either of these switches in my Owners Manual Equipment Compartment Component Diagram. I'll take a look to see if I can spot the pressure switch or flow switch. Thanks again for your help.

I have a Hotsprings 1991 Classic Hot Tub that I just today put a new Circulation Pump in. However, I continue to have the same problem prior to putting in new Circulation Pump. When I connect the Tub electically I can hear the Circulation Pump running but after about a minute it kicks off and I have to wait to reset the highlimit switch. I was told that this was because of a bad Circulation Pump which is the reason I just installed the new Pump. Could my problem be becasue of a bad heater element or thermostat? Thanks for any help with this. Fastfade

Wished I would have found this site sooner I ordered a circulation pump from SpaStore.com on 1-5-2009 and have gotten the same run around as others here have reported. I never received a UPS tracking # so I sent email that they did not respond to. I called the store and was told that it would be delivered the next day. He did not have the tracking # but said he would email it to me. Two days later I called to check once again and was then told that it was on the shipping dock in San Diego (point of origin). I asked for the Tracking # but was told he did not have it but would send it via Email. I've not received the email as of today so I'm going to call Discover and see about disputing this payment. I will send email/with Copy to Discover that the order has be cancelled. What's the best way to report these crooks or get the word out? BBB? Thanks