SoakEh?

We live in NW Washington state and have a 20+ year old Discovery spa. We're planning to be away for three weeks this winter and are wondering what we should do to "park" the spa while we're gone. Nighttime temps here frequently drop below freezing, occasionally into teens or single digits (though that seems less likely this winter with El Niño weather pattern). Short duration power outages (usually less than one day) aren't uncommon. When power comes back on, tub automatically resets to 100 F. I'm thinking that just before we go I should just shock it, raise the total bromine level to 20 ppm or so, leave the bromine dispenser float full, set the temp at 90 F, and hope for the best. Is that a reasonable approach? I'd be interested in learning what others do in this situation.

yes the bulbs loose there gusto about a year or so. Better ones are corona discharge but they will need service also in about 2 years give or take. They last forever. I am still on the fence wether they do any good or not. The output is low on some, Some companies say you should smell the ozone, some say you do. The life 03. is so short in warm water. I look at them as a option. IMO He said the industry has been moving away from ozone? No way. The industry might be moving away from UV bulb generating ozonators. As stated above, corona discharge is better. Higher output. Longer lasting. However, to be effective, if you do not have a circ pump, you need long filtration cycles. Thanks Hot Tub Afficionado and HotTubDan, If we we were to go with the corona discharge ozonator option, do you have any recommendations as far as brand and/or model? John

Our used Discovery D-3 spa came with an ozonator that I think was installed when the original owners bought the tub in 1997. The light in the ozonator would come on automatically when the tub was connected, so it was apparently working. One of the tech guys at our local spa outfit told me that it wasn't worth keeping, so I took took it out. He said the industry has been moving away from them and that they are only effective for the first 18 months or so of operation. Anyone have an opinion or other info to share on this topic? Thanks, John

My sister-in-law gave us her used Discovery D-3 spa last year and, after replacing a badly cracked, leaking (freeze damaged?) jet manifold, we recently got it running. It works great now, but is missing the filter compartment cover and floating weir. I'm guessing that since Discovery has been defunct for a number of years, it's unlikely we're going to find the exact parts, so I'm hoping someone can give us some advice on what we might use as substitutes. The opening where the floating weir goes between the tub and filter compartment is 13 1/2" wide. Our local spa outfit says they can't find a replacement weir that's narrow enough to fit the opening. Does anyone know of a source for such an item? Failing that, do you think it would be possible for us to get a wider generic weir and modify it to fit? Our local spa folks say the weir isn't all that essential, but it seems like it would help remove some of the floating crap that gets blown in when we're soaking during our current blustery spring weather. For the filter compartment cover, I was thinking about getting a piece of that heavy plastic that's used for cutting boards and cutting it to fit. I figure that stuff might be strong enough that we could then use that spot as a a seat. Any other ideas out there? Thanks, John