DGmarie

I understand that these thermal blankets are nothing more than non absorbing, or closed-cell foam. So I searched on just that (who needs the mark up?) and found a company which sells them online by the yard. I found this company I am going to order from: http://www.foamorder.com/closedcell.html

I am not an expert by any means. But what I'm doing is pretty simple. I shock weekly with 2 T of shock, add 1T water clarifier, and 3T of stain and scale. That's it. I don't add anything after use. I am in the spa about three times per week, no suntan lotion or anything. Our water has a high Ph, high Alk and lots of iron. When I started it fresh, I added some bromine concentrate, some Ph down over a period of a week, and stain and scale. Since then it is spa chemicals on Sunday and bromine in the floater. It's never been cloudy and only got foamy when the alk went too low after adding some Spa Silken (never again!). I do't have an onzonater or anything fancy.

http://www.foamorder.com/closedcell.html Volara - Closed Cell Foam by the Yard Ideal for hot tub covers, acoustic insulation and more. Volara's squishy texture allows rolling for easy shipping. Volara comes in a white or a charcoal color. Currently only the 1/4 inch thickness is available in both colors, but charcoal can be ordered in other thicknesses by special arrangement. This product comes on a roll 60 inches (152 cm) wide and is sold by continuous whole yards (91 cm) only. 1/4" closed cell foam is $12.70 per yard. With shipping one yard is like $19. Half inch is $25 a yard plus shipping.

Thanks everyone! We purchased 2" insulation board and wrapped it all around the tub. It took about two hours to do. I think it looks pretty good, neat and even. We'll see how it affects energy but I guess it can't hurt. I think the R factor is something like 8-10. We have a cover, too, and I saw an place online where you can buy closed cell foam for $12 a yard (36" x 60" wide roll). This is the same material as used in thermal blankets (no dissolving, not absorbing). This is much cheaper than what you buy pre cut and packaged from spa places. It is the same material. I plan to use it for a thermal blanket under the lid. I think that's about all I can do to insulate this thing!

I own a 97 Echo model Jacuzzi. It is built down into the deck so that you cannot see the exterior of the tub. You can access it however from under the deck pretty easily as you can walk under the deck area. My spa repair man mentioned it might be a smart idea to wrap the exterior in some foam insulation board (like 2" thick). We live in the freezing midwest so electric costs are a concern. Any thoughts on this? My husband could easily do this project so the cost is minimal. We'd do it in such a way that you could remove the foam board if service was needed. Thoughts?

We have only just filled this spa for the first time and it has only been filled since the end of May. We followed the spa store instructions and added a bromine concentrate (Leisure brand) at set up to create a "bank." Since then we only put the little pucks in the floater and shock weekly. It has been chugging along fine ever since. I just bought a $25 bucket of spa shock so I guess it will be a while before I will need the bleach, but this is good to know. Does the bleach fade swimsuits in the spa post shock? Should we wait longer than 1 hour before getting in?

Lighter fluid all the way. I haven't seen it eat through anything I've ever used it on. It removes residue great.

Am I reading this correctly? Instead of Spa Shock I can just use a cup of plain old bleach to shock my 400 gallon bromine spa? I currently add very little to it, some metal out weekly, some water clarify weekly, some bromine in the floater weekly, and shock 3T weekly with Leisure brand spa shock.

Filled the spa in the end of May. Water is all fine. Levels good. No smell, cloudy etc. We do weekly maintence. 2 people in it probably 4 times per week. Do we need to refill the tub? Seems like if nothing is wrong we can keep going....

Filled the spa in the end of May. Water is all fine. Levels good. No smell, cloudy etc. We do weekly maintence. 2 people in it probably 4 times per week. Do we need to refill the tub? Seems like if nothing is wrong we can keep going....

You don't want to put salt water in your spa or pool. The answer is yes, it will be a problem.

Eh, well, you don't suck out that much water in a quick grit cleaning. I replace about an inch or so anyway every couple of weeks anyway.

We use a garden hose to syphon out any grit or debris along the bottom. Put one end in the spa, the other end attached to the hose spicket. Tun the water on so it runs into the spa, then turn it off, disconnect the hose from the spicket and keep that end below the water level of your spa. voila, suction! Takes little time or effort and is a powerful vaccum. You also can use it as long as you like (or until you suck all the water out!).

I ended up trying Spa Silken and won't do that again. First it raised my pH through the roof and I ended up spending more money to lower it back, and play games with the Total Alk. Then my tub got foamy (not ridiculously foamy, just more than before.) I will leave things be next time.

Ok that is pretty cool! But $$$$