pnw_1987

Thanks for the reply! Yes, the tub is old and probably needs to be replaced; however, it cannot be easily done as the sunroom doesn't have a door large enough to bring a new tub in. I am going to try to see how much life I can get out of this shell. It is possible that the substance is bacteria, but it smells more chemically than bacterial. I suspect it has something to do with the chlorine reacting with the adhesive used to attach the acrylic to the fiberglass, but I have no idea what sort of nasty chemicals it could contain.

Hi all, I recently moved into an older home with a sunroom that contained a 1986 Beachcomber in-ground hot tub with an acrylic shell over what I believe to be fiberglass. The shell had a bunch of cracks that were leaking a brown/tan substance with the consistency and color of maple syrup. I let the tub dry out for a few weeks until the leaking stopped and then covered the cracks up with plast-aid then sanded it. It seemed to have stopped the leaks. After filling up the tub for the first time a noticed a few more very small cracks that were slowly leaking the same substance, so I must have missed a few areas. I will empty the tub soon and repair those leaks in the same way. I am wondering if anyone knows what that substance is and whether it may be toxic or harmful. I want to continue using the tub for a few more days before I dry it out. I did get some advice to ignore those cracks and the oozing substance, since they don't impact the water-tightness of the tub, but I ignored that since I was concerned about whether the substance was potentially toxic. It doesn't seem like the substance is dissolving in the water, as I can see and touch the substance on the tub shell. Thanks in advance.