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Hot tub specs: 1 1/2 year old Clarity Spas Balance 7, 390 gallons of water measured with a flow/gallon meter at end of hose along with a carbon pre-filter attached. Currently converted to Salt water using a ContolOmatic Smarter Spa SWG. We have been using this system off and on for the last year with Morton Professional Pool salt in between testing other sanitizing systems. We use a SWG in our 4500 gallon above ground pool and the wife has NO issues with rashes. Water Chemistry measured with a Taylor K2006 test kit. Water Temp: 100 pH: usually runs between 7.8 & 8ppm with the SWG system with little to no drift keeping the Alk at 60 ppm Alk: 60ppm. If I raise the Alk then the pH wants to drift higher at a quicker rate. CH: 100 Salinity: 1600ppm CYA: 0 Cl: 2ppm, we turn on the SWG boost button either while in tub or right after we get out. (Have tested this trying both ways) There is NO bacteria in hot tub water! I have changed the water at least 10 times in the last year and a half since getting the tub brand new and have been using Ahhsome Spa purge each water change. There is NO scum or scuzz of any color in the foam. Foam shows bright white after each purge and I purge the tub for at least 30-60 minutes along with raising the chlorine level to 20ppm before draining, refilling and running a thorough rinse cycle, draining again, wiping interior of tub and cover with vinegar water before the final fill. There is no way there is any type of bacteria (Pseudomonas aeruginosa). Which, btw, does not present or look the same as the rash that she develops in various places on her body. We have tried EVERY sanitizer system...liquid sodium hypochlorite (HTH brand liquid chlorine 10%), Bromine, Nature 2 with low level sodium hypo, the frog system both chlorine AND Bromine, standard floater with bromine tabs and sodium bromide bank with no luck. I have done EVERY step to the letter of what has been listed in this forum as far as the different methods of utilizing bromine and chlorine systems. I have tried using the ozonator and unplugging it with different refills with NO difference as to her developing a rash. I use standard baking soda and muriatic acid to maintain the pH and Alk. My tub is as simple as I can get it as far as what's in the water...Arm & Hammer baking soda, muriatic acid, and salt (this refill) which is the same as what we use in our pool. On the occasions that I have shocked the tub it has been with liquid sodium hypochlorite waiting for the chlorine levels to drop back down to 2-3 ppm before getting into the tub. Filter gets cleaned and rotated out every 2 weeks. We ALWAYS shower before getting into tub and when it's just the two of us we do not wear bathing suits. We do not use MPS non chlorine shock as we KNOW that she is allergic/sensitive to that. No one else (which has been maybe 4 people over the course of the last 1 1/2 years) that has been in our tub has had any problems with rash or skin issues. I'm in it WAY more than her and have NEVER had or have a rash. On this last purge and refill (2/13/2024) I intentionally did nothing to the water after refilling as far as Alk and pH (I kept it as it is straight out of the tap because she never breaks out from showering in it this way). Those readings were pH 10+, Alk 40ppm which is what our city water is straight out of the tap which was confirmed with the Taylor test kit and what is listed on our city water department website. I let the SWG get the Cl up to 2ppm with out adding any liquid sodium hypo to jump start it and the ozonator turned off. Basically the ONLY thing I added to the water after the fill was 9 cups of salt which I know from experience brings the salinity level to 1600ppm and this was confirmed by the Taylor salinity test. From the time of re-fill to us getting in the tub for the first time on this fill was roughly 36 hours. We sat in the tub for an hour the following evening on 2/14. The water felt silky smooth and Wife was perfectly fine the next morning with NO rash anywhere! I left the tub as it was, only checking on the Alk, pH and CL which were the exact same the next time we got into the tub for an hour on 2/16 (last night) pH 10+, Alk 40ppm and Cl 2ppm. This morning she has several spots of rash that came up after being in the tub last night. Yes she has tried showering after being in the hot tub and that has NEVER made a difference as to whether or not she breaks out. I/we are at a total loss at this point. It seems she is fine or has very minimal rash the first 1 to 3 times of use after a purge and fill no matter what sanitizer system we have tried. After the first few days to weeks after a purge/refill she starts to develop the rash and it progressively gets worse after each use the further past the fill date we get. I have tried keeping the sanitizer at various levels in what is considered the "RECOMMENDED" levels for each system we have tried to no avail. We use a SWG system in our above ground 4500 gallon pool every summer and she has been fine with that up until last summer when half way thru the season I added pure boric acid to both the pool and hot tub for water clarity and pH drift. She started developing an even worse rash and it took some detective work to figure out that was the culprit. So we quit using boric acid in both the pool and hot tub. MY QUESTIONS ARE: Could something (chemical) from what the inside of the cover or piping is made of be "leaching" into the water over time? Is there something else that I can use to flush the tub to make sure it has no chemical residues left over in the pipes that could possibly be causing her skin issues? If it is a case of her not being able to soak in hot water (aquagenic urticaria, which presents differently than the rash she is experiencing) then wouldn't that occur from the very first time being in the tub and not several soaks (days or weeks) into a fresh fill? What does muriatic acid turn into after added to the water to bring the pH down? What does the baking soda turn into after added to the water for bringing the Alk up?

Here's the back story: New Caldera hot tub mid-november. Was sold Clear Choice enzymes and told it was all we needed to add to water. Water was instantly cloudy and smelly so we switched to chlorine. Water would still tend to get cloudy occasionally. By January, I was starting to notice small rashes on areas of my body. By end of January, I was covered in a rash. It was determined by doctors that is was a contact or irritant dermatitis. I managed to get it cleared up about 80% by not using the tub. Went back in, rash came back. My husband and daughter also had breakouts of the rash. Out of frustration, I finally had the tub drained, disinfected and the lines cleaned 1 week ago and started using the Frog @ease system. Water is clear and pristine and everything checks out perfectly on the test strips, but after using the tub twice, the rash is back again. I am considering trying bromine as maybe we are reacting to the chlorine but it's beyond frustrating not being able to use the tub or know what to do next. I'd appreciate any suggestions! We are new hot tub owners.

This has been an ongoing problem since December. I will try to lay it out chronologically. The rash is worst at my under arms on both my arms and chest, but I also get it on my belly. Long story short: Tub got nasty Was cold so brought water back to clear until dumping Purged 3 times and dumped with 50 ppm sanitizer still rash Ran mulitple days keeping sanitizer at 20-30 ppm to try and help knock out any colonies(did not use tub at this time) Purged 2 times with the second purge sitting overnight, sanitizer at 30 ppm. Drain and fill, same problem. Hot tub is a bromine tub, Target numbers are PH <7.8, TA 50, Bromine 8ppm. Tested with taylor reagent. Sodium bromide to build reserve, 1" bromine floaters to help maintain. Only use muriatic acid when lowering ph/ta. Baking soda to raise if ever needed. Bleach when shocking. Mid December we had a gathering and the hot tub took a beating for about 4-5 hours of use. I only added extra sanitizer towards the end. I am sure it was 0 for quite a while. Life took over and I forgot to give the tub any attention for about a week. It was a murky foul smelling mess. It was also 0 degrees outside and was going to be like that for a while. I figured I will try to bring it back(knowing that as soon as I could I was going to dump it). I started shocking with bleach, maybe 20 ppm bromine or so. I also changed the filters(I have two sets). Over the next few days I brought it back clear. It looked perfect, levels were good, I decided I would try soaking in it. That night I had a rash under my arm pits on my arms and chest side. This caused me to stop using the tub until I could change the water. Jump forwards 2 weeks and it's just warm enough for a drain and fill. I bumped the sanitizer up to 50 ppm and ran 1 Tbs of Ahh-Some through the tub. It was the same as I've seen in the past, some yellow slime on the walls but nothing drastic. I had enough to do it two more times, I did not drain the tub, just re added when the bubbles would die down(about 30 minutes). Not much stuff at all came out on the last ahhsome. I then drained the tub but since it was still below freezing I didnt vacuum out the jets or wipe down. I refilled the tub, balanced the water out to my goal numbers above using only sodium bromide, bleach, muriatic acid. Used the hot tub with 8 ppm bromine, got the rash again. Funny thing, other people had used it and had not gotten any rashes from it. My wife had used it twice. In between I ran the sanitizer up to 30 and let it coast down to 20 for 3 days(knowing this is hard on the tub). Just in case I had some colonies somewhere that were depleting the sanitizer when the pumps werent running. We didnt use the tub at these levels. I decided there must still be stuff hiding in there. I bought more ahhsome and treated. First Tbs application, some muck came out but not much. I then bumped sanitizer up to 30 and added a second application. I ran the jets long enough to get it to disperse and shut tub off. I came out ever hour or so and ran it for a few minutes. At bed time I let it sit off overnight. I ran it the next evening to stir up anything(did not see anything) and drained tub. This time I vacuumed out the water and wiped the tub down. Filters were also swapped to my other set. Tub was refilled and water was balance with same procedure. I STILL get a rash, but the family has no rash. Last night the sanitizer was a little high, I read 10 PPM. I decided it would be fine and would drop fast since we didnt shower or or anything before. When we got out of the tub sanitizer was still 3 PPM. My sanitizer demand is pretty low to me. The floater sits at 3-4 on the number thing. I am using the same chemicals I have been using for over a year. Any idea what might be going on? I know I need to see a doctor about it for real medical advice but nothing has changed with my tub and I feel like I've adequately purged it.

Folks, I might need some really deep chemistry knowledge from you guys. I got a hot springs salt water spa this year, and used it without issue for 3 months about 4 times a week for 45 minutes at a time. We test our water with the Taylor tester kits and it's damn near perfectly balanced. Then, out of no where I started getting feverishly itchy rash mostly on my legs and back (usually never where my swimsuit touches), raised and blotchy. I got a skin biopsy, and it came back allergic contact dermititis. Not super helpful. I did patch testing, a few positives came back but nothing relating to what's in my hot tub. I cut out as many possible chemicals in my life (detergent, shampoo, makeup, etc) thinking it was something unrelated that worsens in the tub. I don't believe this is the case. It's 100% definitive at this point that it occurs within 5-24 hours after I use my spa. I've taken 3-4 weeks off no contact, and tried again. I'm the only one who has used it and has this reaction. We've decontaminated it and drained it out of precaution, but that didn't help. I've taken every chemical we use in the spa and figured out the ratio and added it to my bath tub one chemical per bath session to try and figure out which chemical is causing this. At this point, I've tested all of them listed below and not had a reaction. I tried to keep time in the water and temperature roughly the same. I even tried the hot tub with no jets, but still get the problem. I'm assuming there's a bunch of chemical reactions that occur in the hot tub that are not happening in my bath tub... Due to combinations etc. Can anyone please help me tease this apart?? I suffer aches and pains from Lyme disease and this tub had helped me so much, and I'm very sad I cannot use it very often now. I will be forever grateful. It's a 350 gallon tub, List of items we use: -Sodium bisulfate at refill as needed -Sodium carbonate at refill as needed -Liquid chlorine as needed when salt system is overloaded -MPS for shock once a week -Add CYA at time of fill -PH lock (leisure time PH balance) at time of fill -Metal gone at time of fill -Pure pool salt for chlorine generator 'Freshwater system' -We have an ozonator Thank you all so much in advance, Cassie

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2921763/ I got the rash from treating my Hot tub with potassium monopersulfate. .. also known as Shock... you can find some articles on the net... for some reason it is more common in men

I would like to continue this tread with a similar problem. I have a spa with an in clear salt system that converts to bromine. When we bought the spa six months ago, we were in it 24/7 and had no problems. After about 3 months my wife developed a rash that was very itchy. I however had none. Changed the water, all the levels were right, same problem. She took a month break and tried again, then it was better, but came again shortly after with regular bathing. Changed the water again, and tested without salt one time. No problems. Added salt and got the right bromine levels, same rash came back again. Now i was considering changing to clorine because even last week i started to get irritation aswell. I have ordered a product called spa marvel which apparently reduces the level of clorine / bromine needed. My first question is has anyone else experience from spa marvel and how it works? I am concerned if i change from salt to clorine that i will damage the inclear system but cant find any information on it. Does anyone have the inclear system and also has problems with bromine rashes? Should i use some kind of shock treatment to clean the system again? I have no experience of shock treatments so if someone can explain what this actually does i would be grateful too! 🙂

We moved into a house recently that has a hot tub in the basement. This is our first time owning a hot tub and I had no idea what to do. The previous owner left some chemicals behind, so after a little research I bought some test strips (after a lot of research I realize this is a no no) and attempted to balance the water. We used the tub for about 6 weeks, water is clear, doesn't smell, filter has been rinsed and is very clean since it's indoors. The tub has a bromine floater and I've been shocking 1-2x/wk. All was well, although it was very difficult to tell with the test strips if the pH was correct (so maybe it was off?)...until last week when I got a nasty rash that just keeps spreading even though I haven't been in the hot tub since. I did notice not too long ago that there was some yucky stuff building up on the seam of inside of the cover so I just wiped it away with a Lysol wipe (bad idea?). So...I've read Nitro's decontamination method, figure that's the best place to start from here. Questions: 1. Do you leave the cover on or off while going through all the steps? 2. How often am I supposed to clean the inside of the cover? Can I just use regular cleaning products, or what do you recommend? How often should this be done? 3. I've read some posts that say 'brush the spa'? Is there a specific brush you need, or anything soft-ish will do? 4. I have a water softener. Some things I've read say to use the hard(er) water, pre-softener, to refill, others say a mix of softened and not. Thoughts? 5. Draining...because it's indoors, there is a hose connected underneath that goes into a drain. I have to assume this is going to my septic system. From what I've read, people who have this issue suggest cooling the water and draining it bit by bit over a week so it doesn't flood the septic. I assume this will begin a bacteria breeding process again and ruin my decontamination. Ideas? 6. Testing -- I have read here that the Taylor kits are the way to go. I can't find a 2006 bromine kit in Canada. Someone suggested a 2005 and doing some calculations. I found it on amazon for $158 which seems pretty steep given it isn't even what I need. Any other kits available in Canada that will do the job? I also have a saltwater pool and will need a kit for that, so if there is something that could do both that would be amazing! Sorry, a lot of questions. But I have read A LOT and still feel so lost. And I really don't want anyone else in my family to experience this nasty rash that I am dealing with. Thank you in advance!!

Hi & help? We just bought a new hot tub and my daughter has developed a case of hot tub rash. What should we do to prevent it? Thank you in advance for any advice you can share.

we have had a 2001 sundance altamar since spring I used bromine since we got it chem levels are correct the bromine gives my wife a rash if she stays out of tub rash goes away so we know its the tub she is the only one with maybe 20 different people being in it over the summer total so what else can I use? what do you guys recommend? we go in hot tubs when we travel and its never a problem pools have never bothered her

Hey everyone.....I cant seem to keep the chlorine down. I am using a chlorine puck every 6 days or so, and a cap of refresh once a week along with the aqua finesse. I shower right before i hit the tub for a soak, and im practically the only person in it. I am now starting to get skin irritation, kinda like a sun burn and a few follicles get inflamed and itchy. ( before my tub purchase, i have had dry skin problems with my enzyme, small dry skin patches) Im wondering is i should switch to bromine ? Cut down the refresh? I love my tub but last night i used it for the first time in a few weeks ( due to -30 weather) and got out and was scratching like crazy. Water is crystal clear , no foam or residue lines. One thing I noticed , is , the water does smell nice and clean, but when I get out and start to dry off, my arms have a sour smell, and then while my towel is wet it has the same smell. When the towel dries off , the smell goes away . Here are my tests taken half hour ago , any advice for me please?

So we recently got a hot tub, used, from some friends. I used spa marvel cleaner just as the instructions says for cleaning. Filled tub and added spa marvel treatment. Took sample to pool store and got readings... TA 80 PH 7.8 Bromine 0.6 I was told we were good to go. First my daughter, 10, got the rash. A week later me and my wife get the rash. I checked the water today, one week after testing at store, with an Aqua Chem tester with the drops and got readings.. PH 7.2 Bromine 0.0 I am using 1" bromine tablets, and cleaning filter, once a week for a 300 gal hot tub. Any help would be much appreciated. I am asking here because the pool store is closed for the holidays.

Hello all. For starters, I started reading this forum once I decided to get a hot tub and it has been endlessly helpful. Thanks for all of the information. I use my hot tub on average once a day. I have no issues until about 1 to 1.5 months after a water change . At that time, I get an itch rash under my arms and on the side of my torso. If I change the water(including a scrub down with a bleach solution), the issue goes away for 1-1.5 months again. My brother lives next door and uses the hot tub just as much. Two friends use the spa less frequently but sometimes 2-3 days in a row. No rash for any of them. I originally thought it was the non-chlorine shock but I have since stopped using it and now use bleach. My levels are as follow(tested with a Taylor K2106): CH: 290ppm TA: 40ppm Ph: 7.4-7.6 Bromine: 3-6ppm Ozonator Upon refill, I balance the Ph, CH, and add a packet of sodium bromide to establish the bank. I have a floater to maintain the bromine at 3-6ppm and shock with 1cup of bleach once a week. This maintains +10ppm for about 1 hour. One issue i see is that my TA is low. I have read that this can cause skin irritation. The problem with the TA is that when I raise the TA to 90ppm with baking soda, the Ph goes through the roof and ultimately I wind up adding Ph down. By the time I get my Ph down, the TA is back to 40ppm. So, I've stopped raising the TA as it just requires more chemicals (Ph down) to reduce it. Any ideas? Also, I have read a ton of posts asking similar questions and wound up with various viewpoints. Some say to disregard the TA as long as the Ph is good while others say that TA needs to be correct so I'm trying to sort out which is correct. Again, I can't thank you all enough for all of the information that I've been able to find on this site. Ryan

After one moth of tubbing in my new tub, I've broken out in a rash. So I've read everything that I could on the subject in this forum and others. The strange thing is that the rash only effects the upper part of my body. The parts of my body that are in contact with the surface of the water! I just don't get it! My water chemistry is perfect. Can anyone give me advice on what this could be and how to resolve it?!? Thanks everyone, I'd really appreciate it

My 2.5 year old son likes to go in the hot tub with us. (We lower it to 90 degrees before we put him in it...we know not to put him in while it's hot.) He's gone in twice this season, and both times he has had red spots on him that developed a few hours afterwards. They disappear within 24 hours. Similar to this: http://dermnetnz.org...lliculitis.html I read somewhere, it may be due to the tub being under sanitized, but after the first time, I checked the tub with a test strip and it said my bromine level was 5 ppm (that was the max on the strip, so it could have been higher) and my water was a little acidic. I lowered the bromine and added some ph boost. After yesterday's incident, I checked the water with a strip again and the bromine level was at 3 ppm and the ph was in check. Do you have any advice? Is it more likely that I have too much or too little bromine? My wife and I did not experience any red spots, but I assume a toddler has more sensitive skin.

Well as you can tell i the new newbie lol i have had a tub for about 8 years just baught a new one this past November works great no problems. But in the last month or so i have had a breakout of some kind of rash. Not sure if its related to the tub but i'm looking at all possibilities. Tub is at 103 all chems are where they should be. I have stayed out of the tub now for over a week which its kill'n me, since i use it 1 to 2 times a day for back and leg therapy. Not sure if i am bromine sensitive or not have used bromine before and no problems. since i have stayed out rash is going away. I am going to do a water change tomorrow seeing its been 4 months. Ane was thinking of using clor. or maybe salt?? which i need to look into, not many dealers or people around here to talk to. I did take a water sample in to N--co pools they said it was fine but had no advice on what to do So anyone have any suggestions on what i can do or not do would be great. Thanks in advance Dana from Lil RI

Pool store worker here, long time lurker, this issue has me stumped and figured bounce it off some brains in the interwebs. New spa customer with nature 2 stick in filter. Activated correctly with low dose of dichlor. Adding small amount of oxidizer (monopersulfate) few times weekly as maintenance. Both husband and wife break out in rashes. Watertest shows VERY HIGH Total Chlor/Brom levels and everything else in balance including low free chlor. (strips) With the low free chlor and the high total I was tempted to think that the rash could be caused by chloramines. Also from experiences, sometimes the total strip can light up do to oxidizers which in large amounts surely could irritate skin. No idea which it was or if it was something else. So, we did what any good store would do, especially with a rash situation, told them to drain, clean and refill. Gave them a new N2 cart and told them to add 1tbsp of dichlor as directed in the instructions. They brought in another sample today and it appears that the exact same thing is occurring. The pH and Alk were great as was the hardness. The Free Chlor was a 1.5 which is very strange for only 1 tablespoon after 24 hrs. The total Chlor was rocketing up. Obviously told not to get in but this has me perplexed. Thanks for any thoughts.

hi all, yesterday after swimming in pool i felt itching on my arms and legs now its like rashes and painful to, what is the reason for it?i have cleaned my pool a week ago!

hi , i baught a spa 3 month ago, at first it was ok but since a month i got the hot tub folliculite. i was treated. 2 weeks later i got the rash back, the doctor sais that i have folliculite but also an allergic reaction, we change the water from bromine to lithium. Still got the rash. I am very disapointed, is there any other ways of treating the water? i really need advise, i heard about ozonificator, would that be possible? please i need your advise.

is this possible? my readings are: FC: 4.5 pH: 7.8 TA: 110 CYA: 70 last week I turned the generator up to 80% as more people are using the pool and its hotter. thought turning it up from 70% to 80% would compensate for more usage of FC. but do you think the chlorine from the SWG coming out of the jets might be too high and passing in front of the jets could cause a red rash and burning eyes?

I have a Sundance Optima. A month ago I changed the water, put in a new Nature 2 cartridge and a new filter. I had the water checked. Then after two weeks (regular upkeep etc) I noticed a slight odor so I put in more Chlorine and shock. (Only two people use the tub so it is not as if it gets a lot of use.) Two days later I had a skin infection that required medical treatment. For 3 weeks I have dealt with a serious rash on my legs, chest, arms everywhere. Since then I have cleaned the filter and tub changed the water and switched to bromine. But, I realy do not want to try my Spa again unless I am sure this infection will not happen again. I am on a well, when I fill the tub I bypass the water softner (???) I filter the water thru 3 filters to .5 microns. I have to add 1/2 bottle of ph reducer. Any professional advise would be welcome. To date all the advice I have recieved is a load of rubbish that appears to involve a large and ongoing $$$ outlay and noone has slightest idea as to the outcome.

Hello, I have been a hot tub owner for two years now and love it for back & joint pain as well as a great form of relaxation! From time to time I develop a rash which has been determined by two doctors as a chemical rash... almost hive like and has been described as dermatitis flaking in appearance (not the dreaded bacterial infection... whew). This rash is most common in cooler / colder weather (Ontario Canada) but occasionally I do get it in the warmer months. I "think" I have a reaction to "Quick Clear" MPS oxy-shock and need some help on this topic please.... here are the details of our system and regime... Hot Tub: -Canspa Malibu, 345 gallons with ozonator Filters: -two Unicel 6CH-940 (rinsed weekly and alternated every 2-4 weeks with clean ones depending on tub use Chemical specs: (Omni brand) -Bromine: sanitizer tabs (floater) system 1-3 ppm -TA: 110ppm (always fighting raise the alk) -PH: 7.6 – 7.8 (always fighting to lower ph) -Calcium: 100- 200 (but pretty steady at 130ppm) -CYA: 20-30ppm Additional info: EcoOne products used: (chemicals added and adjusted as per EcoOne’s outline) -“Monthly” every 30 days -“Filter Boost” ½ cap into filter compartment when filters rinsed or changed -“Filter One” to cleaned filters (filters are rinsed then soaked between 4 hrs – overnight then rinsed and left to dry until required) Water: -100-103*F -filter cycles 20 hrs / day -crystal clear and no odors -changed every 2-4 months depending on usage Regime: -approx 1-2 tbs of “Quick Clear” (oxy-shock) is added after every soak -water is tested using dip strips every 1-2 days and adjusted as required -water tested using Taylor Test Kit (K-2005) weekly for greater accuracy and adjusted as required (usually 36-72g of Alk-up and 12-15g of PH-reducer are required) Final notes: -if water starts to get cloudy (this is rare) I test water and adjust as required (Alk-Up & PH Down) and use either 1 cap of Quick Clear and if that doesn’t work… 2 tbs of bromine concentrate and leave cover open with all 60 jets and bubblers at full tilt for an hr! -I initially thought that it may have been bacteria and raised the water level then super shocked (1-2 full caps of bromine… readings off the scale) and let pumps run for 1 hr then used Swirl-Away for 1 hr… drained, scrubbed, rinsed (and rinsed and rinsed and rinsed) blew out all the lines and refilled. -after a fresh fill I don’t get a rash but I find after Oxy-Shock has been introduced into the water (about 1-2 weeks… BAM… RASH CITY!) And it is only I who gets it… wife and the occasionally guests are fine. The rash is killer… wakes me up in the middle of the night and I’m scratchin’ like a flea infested dog! Any thoughts here folks?? Any assistance welcomed… thx!! Oh ya… I do rinse off before I go in the tub and shower & use Aveno moisturizer when I get out too!

I have been seeing many people question if their ozone is causing an itch or rash. On the newer tubs, 2000 and up, the ozone is surpressed/shut off if you touch any of your control buttons. It was a safty feature because ozone can cause burns, plus the ozone is not good to breath. Unless you have an older tub, the ozone should be shutting down while using the tub. Now if you go into the tub and just soak, and don't touch the buttons. The ozone will be on in tubs with circ pumps, and could be on in tubs with a dual duty pump if it is in a filter cycle. You should touch one of the buttons to shut it off. Older tubs it could be running aand not only cause burns, but can cause issues with breathing. Ozone does not stay in the water long enough after shutting off to cause any issues with skin. I hope this helps....

I have reviewed other topics relating to rashes on this formum prior to posting this. They contained a great deal of useful info, so my thanks to all that posted. I feel my situation is a bit different and I was wondering if there was anyone out there that could help me out. We got our hot tub in mid October. It has an ozinator and is sanitized with lithium. We used it for a few months, with numerous people in it and a few times as well as for long periods of time without incident. I purchased new filters (so we would have set to rotate) and swapped them in around mid November. The weather warmed up in December for a few days so I did a drain and fill replacing the water and the filters with the ones we purchased with the tub. Around the end of December after a few nights of usage I noticed a red bumpy rash on the inside of my arms. I didn't think much of it so I continued usage of the hot tub sometimes for two hours at a time up to the end of December. The rash spread and got itchy but not unbearable. We used the tub periodically through January but due to the cold weather probably only about once per week. Pretty much after each time I noticed the rash was back but nowhere near the extent that it was in late December. We had six people over in the first week of February and we were in the tub for a few hours. The next day I had red bumps on my sides, stomach and what appeared to be scabs (sorry for the graphic nature) on my skin. I even had some red bumps on the side of my face. I decided it was time to do a drain and a refill with a change of the filters and I did that the next week. My wife and I used the tub last night and this morning I woke extremely itchy around mid day today was when the rash peaked (bumps and scabbing). Currently it appears to be subsiding. A few things to note: - I am pretty good at ensuring the CL, PH and TA are within the proper range - I add Lithium to the water every few days and shock it once per week - The water has been crystal clear over the past few periods since I have cleaned it - I have been using a cartridge cleaner on the filters (SpaBoss) - I used an organic cleaner on the top (not on the inside) of the shell - The last time I drained and refilled the tub I did not flush the system The cartridge cleaner and the organic cleaner are the only variables in the pre/post rash usage. I clean the filers with a pressure attachement and then I clean out in between each pleat in the filter. I let the filters soak in the cartridge cleaner in line with the directions on the bottle and then rinse each pleat of the filter again. So my questions are (1) is the cartridge cleaner necessary? If it is is there another alternative I can try? (2) Is there anyone out there with a similar situation? (3) Any and I mean any suggestions (besides turing it into a 250 gallon bird bath)? Again sorry for being graphic and sorry for the long post I just wanted to get as much info in as possible. Please note this is our first hot tub and it was a great experience while it lasted. Thanks.

Ok,got hit with the rash problem few weeks ago,first stay on top of my tub,wont enter it without all the levels checking out using test strips and take sample to spa store twice a week and let them check to be on safe side.Now last few days expermented,when get in hot tub would keep legs up(rash was on lower part of legs)seem the rash was getting better.Well the last two days got in spa as normal and after immediately getting out of tub new rash and irratation on lower legs.I bought some bateria test strips also and checked for bacteria which came back negative.Had dr. appointment today showed him the rash,he said gets alot of that and said from hot tub,also said could be allergic reation to chemicals or bacteria,he gave me some cream and said stay out of hot tub for a while and recommend I try different sanitizer???Ive been using dichlor and mps with the other normal stuff,shock it once a week heavy,then add some dichlor after use and make sure have 3-5 ppm before entering with everything else in check.My tub has ozonator and Im wondering if it isnt causing the problem??I drain my tub every 8-10 wks. thanks for any help.Looking for advice,should i try bromline?Nature2?bluewater?? thanks

Greetings - I'm a newbie here & new at the whole spa thing. I purchased a brand new Hot Springs Vanguard spa about 6 months ago and I love it! Recently I have developed small patches of a rash after spending time in my tub. My tub is used by my wife, step daughter and myself only, and yet I am the only one with this problem (I do know that I have unusually sensitive skin). I have read other posts here and I am going to try the Tersaseptic soap but was wondering if there are any additional tactics I might try. I am using bromine as my sanitizer and test daily as well as follow the weekly routine as outlined by my supplier. Any insight or additional information will be greatly appreciated!