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  1. Hello all! I am hoping to get some help/advice for my Hot Spot spa that's ~6 months old. I will cut to the chase early, and then do the explaining at the end as the more experienced may not even need to read my story before making suggestions. My spa has a white, soft coating on the entire shell. It was solid at one point, and would wipe away with just a finger swipe. So I used a towel to wipe the entire shell down. It didn't all go away, so you can now see where some remains. Is this scale/calcium buildup? I am curious to know what exactly it is, so I can then research on my own. I have been told by support of the chemical company (Leisure Time) that they don't think it's scale/calcium buildup, so I have no idea how to research resolutions (assuming they are correct). My #1 problem currently is the buildup on the shell. Alongside the buildup, is foam when the jets are on. I'm not too concerned about it, and think I need to avoid worrying about it until I resolve the underlying issue. But here are some photos, literally less than a minute after turning the jets on. The Beginning When I purchased the spa, I was given Silk Balance and Spa Guard Enhanced Shock to maintain the spa. I was told to just put a capful of the shock in, along with a measured amount of the Silk Balance, once/week. I started to get quite a bit of foam after a couple of weeks, and I wanted to go more of a natural route so I drained and refilled. The Experiment I read about people using Essential Oils to maintain their spa, and everything on the internet is true, so I gave it a shot. It actually worked and I had no issues for a couple of months. But I started to get very small amounts of what I presume to be mold on the underside of my cover, as well as around the controls on the edge of the spa. It made me really nervous, so I decided to switch back to a chemical solution. Leisure Time Free I don't have any skin issues with Chlorine/Bromine, but I saw the Leisure Time Free sanitizing system and thought I would give it a shot. To make sure I did a good cleaning, I used Jet Clean in my old water as recommended by Leisure Time. I drained the tub, refilled with fresh water, drained the tub, then refilled a second time with fresh water. Following Leisure Time's protocol, I first balanced the pH/TA. From the faucet, my pH was high. This took me 3-4 days because the product bottles had me using teaspoon measurements to lower the pH, and it wasn't moving anywhere. So I finally got to the point where I bumped up the amount of Leisure Time Spa Down I was putting in, and got the pH balanced correctly. I then added pH Balance by Leisure Time, which is supposed to help keep pH from fluctuating. I then added Leisure Time Control, Boost and Free, all products of the Free sanitizing system. The Control and Boost is added based off the size of your spa. The Free is added and measured via test strips. Cloudy The following day I went to check on the spa and the water was extremely cloudy. I couldn't see an inch down into it. So I looked up suggestions on their website and after re-testing the water, saw I needed to bump pH up slightly with Spa Up. I then added another round of Boost, as their site suggests it will clear up cloudy water. It almost cleared up instantly, so I was in business. Orange Sticky Goo After running the spa for an hour or so, I noticed the waterline started to collect orange, sticky specs. When you touch it with your fingers, it's very sticky. So much so that if you use a paper towel to wipe it up, the paper towel will stick/tear when you swipe it across the spa shell. After doing research, I found reviews on Amazon that state the "Control" product of this system causes this sticky goo, so its usage is to be minimized. I used a solution of 50/50 vinegar/water to get the goo cleaned up. The following day, more goo was there. Any time the jets run, the goo collects above the water on the shell. I was literally cleaning up the goo every day, with it somewhat being minimized. I kept telling myself it's probably just because I used the Jet Clean, so "gunk" is being flushed out the system. (And remember, my spa is only 6 months old or so, and I bought it brand new.) White Film on Shell / Foam Fast forward a couple of days later, when I noticed that if I swiped my finger on the shell under the water line, you could see my finger swipe mark. There was a white chalky/film layer on the entire shell. I hadn't noticed it because I had yet to get in the tub, and it was uniform everywhere so I couldn't tell it existed. It wiped up easily with a towel, so I got in the tub with a towel and wiped the entire shell. Gunk/goo still continued to build up, and foam has been introduced as a new issue (see pics above). Additionally, although I wiped the whole surface of the shell, it appears the white film/chalky layer is still present in a lot of areas, perhaps where it was thicker and I didn't wipe long enough with the towel to get it off. Assuming Calcium Build Up Because the pH was high out of the faucet when I filled the tub, I assumed calcium had fallen out of the water and coated the shell. So during research, I found that you can lower the pH to 7 or so, and the water should absorb the calcium back in on its own. So I lowered the pH and ran the tub a couple of times per day, for a couple days, with no change in the chalky/film layer on the shell. It wasn't disappearing. Leisure Time Support After calling Leisure Time Support, they suggested I purchase another one of their products, Spa Defender to help prevent scaling. So I did as an apparent die-hard Leisure Time fan, and it hasn't done anything to remedy the situation. Support also had me raise my CH as it was around ~100-120, thinking that may help. It hasn't. Next Steps I'm curious what my next steps should be. Should I get in the water and scrub the shell? The film does come off with scrubbing. Or should I try something else? My main concern is that I see it on the shell, so it's obviously coating the equipment, heating element, piping, etc. Do I get AhhSome and see if that will clear it out? Do I drain the tub and scrub with some sort of cleaner while it's empty to help remove whatever is on the shell? I'm thinking of going the Nitro Water Maintenance route, but I want to be sure I set myself up for the most success prior to emptying/refilling the tub. Theories / Questions Could this all stem from out-of-date product? The local place I bought most of the products, the bottles were dusty and had been shelved for quite a while it appeared. Is the Leisure Time Free system just not something that's easy to work with? Did I really spend $100s on all of these Leisure Time products, only to throw them away? Thank you to all who read my troubles, and to those who are so gracious to attempt to help me. Your time is greatly appreciated!
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