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A few months ago, we had a power problem at our house. Lost the neutral feeding the house. I discovered that the 30 amp 2-pole GFCI breaker that feeds the heater on my Tiger River was tripped. I replaced the breaker....it tested bad. Since then, the breaker will trip at random. I can go for weeks until it trips. No logic as to when or why. I put a clamp meter on the heater and it is pulling @ 27 amps. That's a good number. What am I missing as to why this happens at random?

I picked up a 2004 Hot Spring Envoy that has sat a few years. After getting it moved, wired up a new 50amp gfci spa disconnect, I filled the spa and everything started up fine, all the jets worked and heater was going. The next morning it was warming up good, one jet pump quit working(you could hear a relay click), after it got to Temp(104), both pumps would not work, now when you press either jet button or the clean button, it throws the breaker. Any help you be great, thanks

My pool, built about 15 years ago, does not have GFCI protection. I bought a Siemens 125 Main Lug Load Center to install (Sold as a Spa Panel), as my existing panel is an older Westinghouse panel, and finding the proper GFCI breaker for it was daunting, and when I finally found one, is was crazy expensive, too. The Westinghouse box has two 20a breakers in it. One breaker is 110 volts. It is used for the light, a mechanical timer which controls a Pentair power supply for the salt-based chlorinator, and a small Orbit sprinkler timer with a single zone on it. The other breaker is 220 volts. It carries a second mechanical timer (now set to be on at all times) which "controls" a VS pool pump (that pump has max amp of 16 and it is programmable on its own). The timer previously controlled a 1.5 hp main pump and a 1 hp aux pump used for a Polaris. Those have both been disconnected and removed. So the new box is here, and my question is how best to proceed with its installation. I can: (a) Place the Siemens 50A GFCI panel in the circuit before the existing Westinghouse panel, or (b) Place it after the Westinghouse panel, or (c) Buy and install a new 20a 110v breaker (probably also GFCI) and install the Siemens panel in place of the Westinghouse panel (removing and discarding the Westinghouse panel). My inclination is to go with "(c)" because doing that will avoid adding yet one more panel to a wall which already has too many. There are two pool timer boxes, a main load center panel, a light transformer box, a sprinkler timer box, a junction box, and a chlorinator power supply box. (And yes, regardless of which option I choose, I plan to remove the non-functional mechanical timer box that's ahead of the pool pump. But that still leaves 6 boxes already on the wall, and adding the Siemens box would take it to 7.) So... is there any reason not to go with option "(c)", and if so, should the new breaker also be a GFCI type since it powers the pool light transformer - or would that be unnecessary since there is a DC transformer powering the light? THANKS for the help! Oh - should have mentioned... I have installed plenty of service disconnect boxes working in A/C installation, and I've installed new breakers and replaced breakers in existing panel boxes. And we've moved several times, so I've installed more than my share of replacement (and a few new) fans, outlets and switches. All to say, I am reasonably comfortable with wiring in general. But I don't know a great deal about pools, and have never replaced a breaker panel. So while I DO know enough to go upstream and kill the breaker which feeds the pool panel, and I have a meter to confirm the circuit is dead before I go to work, I don't know enough to know I'm not giving something up by removing the old panel. Again, thanks for any help! Lastly - I posted here rather than in pools simply because what I bought is a "Spa" panel. So I am fine if somebody tells me I need to move this to another forum. (Don't want to break any rules or irritate anybody!)

Hi. I’m baffled. The pool lights will not go on. The GFCI outlet connected to AquaLink RS doesn’t give electricity to either plug. I replaced it....same issues. Voltage tester showed power. But test button doesn’t work. There is a PX100 transformer. That’s mystery box to me. Any thoughts on what I can try? All the best. jim

Hi, I have a 2002 Clearwater Spas St Andrew, it has 2x 3HP Waterway pumps (2-speed, 3721221-1D) and a Balboa SUV M7 control board. Pump 1 acts as circulation pump on low speed. Pump 1 recently failed, which also popped one of the two 25A TD Fuses on the board. I replaced Pump 1 and the fuse with new units, but the pump will not come on in low-speed mode, which is what circulates the water through the heater, so the spa is still unusable. You hear the board relay click when the low-speed should come on, but nothing happens. It works fine in high speed mode. If I swap Red and Black, it will run in Low-speed (only). I tried swapping the new pump with pump 2, and the symptoms stay with the pump 1 position, not the physical pump. All other controls and display work correctly. I have verified the wiring from control board to Pump 1 is good. I suspect something on control board, like maybe a faulty relay, but I don't know how to test that so I'm at a bit of a loss at this point. I'm hesitant to drop another $300 on a new board without know for sure that's going to fix the issue, as I assume they are not returnable once installed. One other thing I noticed is my 50A GFCI 'Test' button is not tripping the breaker, but I did validate the input voltage at the control board is correct (Wh<>Bk 119V, Wh<>Rd 119V, Bk<>Rd 238V) Any suggestions appreciated, thanks.

2001 Hot Springs Grandee in near perfect condition used daily. Again, tube is in excellent condition. Has been used daily since new. Have replaced normal stuff over years to include circ pump, main pump impellors, jets, etc... Recently main heater 30AMP GCFI has started tripping after hours or days. I cannot tell you exact circumstances that trip the GCFI. It seems always to happen when tub is open and jets are turned on (requiring heating mode). I have replaced IN ORDER : 30AMP GCFI , HEATING ELEMENT , HEATER PCB CONTROL BOARD This is a standard HOT SPRING setup so has subpanel with a 30AMP GCFI breaker for the heater and a 20AMP GCFI breaker for the tube pumps/control board. I have NOT used a meter to measure AMP draw of the heater yet. Just seems hard to believe new heater is bad. AND, of course, maybe new GCFI is bad also. ?!?! The tub acts normally when first turned on. Without running jets, the tub will heat up to EXAMPLE 102 within hours. But after several days heater GFI will be tripped. OR.... if you run tub jets with top open, GFI will trip. ALSO.... circulation pump appears normal and filters clean. I have the side "water-fall" option that lets you see the recirc pump water flow. Also, I do not get the HI-LIMIT flashing light and tub shut-down if recirc pump is low flow. QUESTION: I DO NOT FEEL the high heat flow out of the bottom vent of the tub like normal when you have jets running. Is the heater in these tubs ONE heat mode ? Off / ON. Or is there a HI / LOW mode? APPRECIATE THOUGHTS.

Hey there! I have a Hotsprings Vanguard. It has a 50 amp GFCI for the heater, and a 20 amp GFCI for the rest. On power up, the main board goes through self test, and the moment the power is applied to the relay board, the 20 amp GFCI trips. I've unplugged the heater, pumps, primary circ pump and salt system, but the 20 amp circuit still trips as soon as the relay board is energized. I've looked closely at the relay board, and see no burn marks or indications of a short or or arc. Any ideas on how to diagnose this further? Thanks! Jim

I have a pool light (no others) which will not turn on. The GFCI would trip immediately after I flip the switch on. My setup is this: I have a timer box with circuit breakers and one GFCI receptacle. The light and pool pump are not tied to the timer, only my chlorine generator is. The pump is not connected to the GFCI, only the light is. I turned off the circuit breaker that is dedicated to the light. I was going to plug a hair dryer into the circuit breaker and leave the light switch off to see if something other than the light would trip the GFCI. However, after turning the circuit breaker back on with the light switch off (several times), the GFCI acted like it had no power. The reset button would stay in and the test button would do nothing. I tried the hair dryer and it would not turn on. I measured the circuit breaker from the input to neutral and got 118 v when it was turned on. I cannot immediately measure at the GFCI due to its positioning. I will have to remove it. With this symptom, can the issue still be downstream of the GFCI or is it more likely that the GFCI is broken, especially since it initially would trip and the test button would work? Should I remove the load wires to test this?

My tub was running fine. I shut it down for a good spring cleaning purging it with ahhsome. I cleaned the tub and filled it, now when I try to turn the GFCI on it trips after about one second. Does anyone have an idea why it would be fine yesterday and today not reset on startup.

Hi, The GFCI is tripping right away when I turn on the breaker. I do hear a click coming from the control box when I flip the breaker ON. I have disconnected both pumps, the ozone and the heater but still get the same result. I have checked the GFCI breaker by disconnecting all load, flip the breaker ON, and the breaker stays on. Any ideas? Thanks, Kevin

I've done a searching and read a lot of posts. I think my problem may be a little different. I moved this spa to a friend's house in January. It had been working fine for me, but I moved. He already had wiring in place from another 110v Hot Springs Spa, one model larger. That spa had started leaking through the shell, but otherwise was working for years. We plugged the Prodigy in and it worked for several months. Then he drained it for a while and left it with just a foot or so of water. (Probably irrelevant, but part of the history.) When he decided to start it up again, the gfci off the main panel in his house immediately popped. Plugging in a light to the outside socket where the spa plugs in worked fine. The gfci on the spa power cord does not trip. Nor does the main breaker inside the panel for this circuit. Any thoughts before he calls a service tech? He also has a choice between a spa repair company and the original dealer. He wasn't satisfied with that dealer's service on his original Hot Springs Spa, but we don't have any experience with the independent one.

I have a Legacy Whirlpool Enterprise VS that I purchased in 2011. The tub is hooked up directly to a dedicated 50A GFCI breaker. About 5 seconds after power is supplied, the breaker trips. I have tried troubleshooting the source of the issue by isolating each component one at a time and powering up the tub in between each disconnect. No matter which component is connected, the breaker trips. Even when all of the components (including the heater) are disconnected from the circuit board, the breaker will trip. Each time power is supplied, a few seconds pass, and I can hear something click in the control board. Immediately following the click, the breaker on the house trips. I have tried replacing the breaker, and the same problem exists. When power is disconnected from the control board the breaker does NOT trip, which leads me to believe the problem is indeed within the hot tub itself. Do you have any suggestions? Thank you!!!

Hi, new member I am helping my brother with an install of a hot tub he got off craigslist. He was told it was in working order, but it has been disconnected over a year so no way of knowing for sure. Installed a new GFCI disconnect for the spa. It does not trip with no load. However when we connect that spa and power on the GFCI it trips. We have disconnected all blowers, sensors, heater from the main board. With only the main board connected as soon as power is applied the GFCI trips. A small popping noise can also be heard from the main board. We are thinking that there is a problem with the main board. Wanted to know if we should just get another main board, complete spa pack or get a spa tech to come take a look at it. Any ideas area appreciated. I'm a PC tech and he is a garage door tech so we both work with complex systems, but a spa is different from both. Thanks for any help you can provide.

I have a problem with my spa pump tripping the 50amp GFCI breaker. I have been through everything I can think of with this spa. It has 2 2 speed pumps, one which connected to the filter and heater (pump 1) and one that is attached only to some jets (pump 2). Both pumps are identical, new 2 speed 240V pumps. I have also recently replaced the heater, ozonator, and GFCI breaker. I have a Balboa MAS225 control board. Pump 1 runs on schedule because it is used to filter and heat, it comes on as soon as the hot tub is started up (breaker turned on). Pump 2 only comes on when you turn it on using the top control panel. Pump 1 will trip the breaker about 5-10 seconds after starting the spa. However, if I take the filter out and open the filter can, it will run with out tripping, so it seems that maybe it is pulling to much current. I have looked for any clogs and have determined all the pipes and tubes to be clear. A strange mystery is that if I turn on pump 2 as soon as the breaker is flipped on and the tub is starting up, the breaker won't trip. The second I turn off pump 2, pump 1 trips the breaker. If I unplug the pump 1 from the control panel, all is fine. If I switch the wiring for pump 1 and 2, pump 2 will come on automatically and run as if it were the filter/heater pump and won't trip the breaker. While it is running I can turn pump 1 will run just fine. I've even switched the pumps via plumbing, and it dosen't matter, the pump that is connect to the filter and heater will trip the breaker, unless the other pump is on, or unless I open up the filter canister (I also have a new filter). Does anyone have any clue what could be the problem? I already wasted $110 on a new GFCI that didn't solve the problem and I don't want to buy a new control board only to have that not fix the problem, and besides, I'd like to try to replace a control board component if possible. At this point it seems all that's left is the transformer or the control board. I also don't think its any relays as switching the wiring doesn't switch which pump is causing the problem. I'd appreciate any help, or even guesses. Thanks!

I have a 2007 Solana TX i got for free a month ago. It won't heat up, and to me it won't stay on long enough for it to get hot, yet the breaker doesn't trip, something isn't telling it to stay on. The ready light is constantly flashing. The manual says one of the sensors. So I replaced all sensors (Thermistor, high limit and pressure switch) still flashing ready. So I moved on to the heater. I replaced it and still nothing. So that only leaves the circuit board and the GFCI power cord. Well i tested the power cord GFCI and it trips, but it makes a quiet buzzing noise and can feel a vibration. When i hit reset it does nothing until I unplug it and plug it back in then it resets. Would that be a sign its bad?

Had some work done to the spa lately and not sure if I really trust the guy that worked on it 100%. At least his memory is bad. I have two panels in my garage...one for regular house...one for the 220 stuff including SPA, and the circuit breaker has a GFCI as part of it. THEN, I have another 'panel' thing near the hot tub with breakers for the hot tub, and another GFCI thing. How many of those do I need? Spa guy says the one in the spa panel needs replacing...says it may have been causing an issue with my spa's heater basically never turning off. First time he was here he looked at the one in the main panel and said I was all good. Now he says that other one needs to be replaced for fear of electrocution. Thanks in advance.

Let me first say that I am not attempting to do any electrical work myself, but my landlord sends his general maintenance guy to do the electric work on the pool. I'd like to be able to know if he's doing the work correctly. Our light went out a few months ago and a pool guy came out last week to replace it. He tried to check the GFCI but we don't have one. He wouldn't replace the light and recommended an electrician. The junction box is a few feet from the pool and is a box with a front cover (no GFCI). The light switch is in a breaker box that is dedicated to the pump and light. Do I just need a GFCI receptacle in the junction box, or is it not that simple? The house was built in the 60's. I don't know how old the pool is but it's possibly as old as the house. I am purchasing the house soon and want the work done correctly. Also, the front cover has not been on the junction box. Ii think it's been off for a few months and I'm wondering if water got in and behind the light. Would that cause the light to go out? I got a cover and fixed it yesterday. Thanks for any feedback....

We purchased a C45 caldera spa which is used. My husband ran all the electrical. We have the breaker box which is new. The gfci is popping on this box. The breaker in the house is fine. Not popping. We thought it was a bad breaker so we went back to Home Depot and got another breaker. He put the new breaker in and it is doing the same thing. We are having the electrician come out and check the spa later today. I hear that each motor should be checked separately, as well as the heater and other parts to try to figure out what may be wrong. The spa runs for a few minutes then the breaker pops. We had just a few jets on at first and it popped then we tried again with all the jets on and still the same problem. When we first went to look at the spa the seller turned on just a few jets. My husband said that the seller didn't have a gfci hooked into the spa and just ran it to his home breaker box. Any ideas??