Recommended To Not Use Chlorine In Hot Tub On A Daily Basis?

[Scythanith]

Hello,

We have a new J-470 with CD ozone and the ProClear Mineral Spa Sanitizer . We are new hot tub owners, going on 3 weeks, but have maintained Saltwater Reef tanks for years so have some understanding of water chemistry. We were sold Lawrason's SpaLife line of chemicals with our tub. Our jacuzzi rep told us not to use Chlor (lithium sanitizer) after bathing, and that we do not have to maintain at least 1 ppm of F.C. in the system at all times. She said we need to use the Shock (non-chlorine shock) after bathing, and only need to use Chlor after an increased bather load. Not only has she told us this, but 4 other employees at the store had told Wendy this while getting our water tested.

I may have read things on this forum incorrectly but isn't this backwards? Don't you always want to maintain some chlorine in the water?

At first I assumed they were wrong and we used Chlor everyday to try and maintain our F.C. levels between 3-5 ppm. We would use the Shock once a week, always following the instructions.

We were planning on getting everything in check and then switching over to the bleach method but are worried about warranty issues if the store says we weren't doing what they told us to.

Help...

Thanks,

Scott

[simonc]

Hello,

We have a new J-470 with CD ozone and the ProClear Mineral Spa Sanitizer . We are new hot tub owners, going on 3 weeks, but have maintained Saltwater Reef tanks for years so have some understanding of water chemistry. We were sold Lawrason's SpaLife line of chemicals with our tub. Our jacuzzi rep told us not to use Chlor (lithium sanitizer) after bathing, and that we do not have to maintain at least 1 ppm of F.C. in the system at all times. She said we need to use the Shock (non-chlorine shock) after bathing, and only need to use Chlor after an increased bather load. Not only has she told us this, but 4 other employees at the store had told Wendy this while getting our water tested.

I may have read things on this forum incorrectly but isn't this backwards? Don't you always want to maintain some chlorine in the water?

At first I assumed they were wrong and we used Chlor everyday to try and maintain our F.C. levels between 3-5 ppm. We would use the Shock once a week, always following the instructions.

We were planning on getting everything in check and then switching over to the bleach method but are worried about warranty issues if the store says we weren't doing what they told us to.

Help...

Thanks,

Scott

Scott -

I think you are making the right decision to switch over to the diclor then bleach method. I have used it successfully in my Jacuzzi brand tub for about a year now. I know nothing about "ProClear Mineral Spa Sanitizer" so I can't comment on it. I assume you are going to use bleach INSTEAD OF ProClear???

If your major concern is warranty, call Jacuzzi and find out what the manufacturer says about adding chlorine on a daily basis. It could be that the dealer is just trying to sell you more expensive chemicals. I would be surprised if Jacuzzi tells you that you don't need to maintain at least 1ppm of free chlorine your tub. Ask if they have any warranty restrictions on the use of chlorine in the tub. Ask if they have any published recommendations for water maintenance.

Let us know what they say ...

- Simon

[waterbear]

The Proclear is a rebranded Zodiac Nature2 "Mineral" sanitizer (read silver and zinc). For info you can search the forum for Nature2. IMHO, they are not worth the money.

[Scythanith]

I have contacted jacuzzi and will let you know what they say!

I mean if the ProClear mineral system does what they say it does then great! Silver is commonly used in anti-bacterial applications. I'll gladly pay $35 bucks every couple months to have my tub use less chlorine. Plus, with all the silver in the tank I won't have to worry about Vampires attacking me in the tub!

Cheers,

Scott

[chem geek]

The silver ions alone are not sufficient to kill bacteria fast enough to pass EPA DIS/TSS-12, but when silver ion is used in conjunction with MPS then this does kill bacteria quickly at hot spa temperatures. Metal ions not only kill bacteria much more slowly than chlorine (10-40 times more slowly) but are mostly ineffective against viruses at the levels used in pool/spa water. So if you truly want to use a mostly chlorine-free system, then Nature2 plus MPS in their "low chlorine recipe" which only uses chlorine "as needed" would be sanitary, but much more expensive than the Dichlor-than-bleach method.

[Scythanith]

The silver ions alone are not sufficient to kill bacteria fast enough to pass EPA DIS/TSS-12, but when silver ion is used in conjunction with MPS then this does kill bacteria quickly at hot spa temperatures. Metal ions not only kill bacteria much more slowly than chlorine (10-40 times more slowly) but are mostly ineffective against viruses at the levels used in pool/spa water. So if you truly want to use a mostly chlorine-free system, then Nature2 plus MPS in their "low chlorine recipe" which only uses chlorine "as needed" would be sanitary, but much more expensive than the Dichlor-than-bleach method.

Thanks for the info. I am fine with using chlorine, and planned from the start on using the Dichlor to bleach method but then the hot tub store rep said NOT to use chlorine on a usual basis so that is what spawned the question in the first place.

Cheers,

Scott

[Theojt]

The silver ions alone are not sufficient to kill bacteria fast enough to pass EPA DIS/TSS-12, but when silver ion is used in conjunction with MPS then this does kill bacteria quickly at hot spa temperatures. Metal ions not only kill bacteria much more slowly than chlorine (10-40 times more slowly) but are mostly ineffective against viruses at the levels used in pool/spa water. So if you truly want to use a mostly chlorine-free system, then Nature2 plus MPS in their "low chlorine recipe" which only uses chlorine "as needed" would be sanitary, but much more expensive than the Dichlor-than-bleach method.

Thanks for the info. I am fine with using chlorine, and planned from the start on using the Dichlor to bleach method but then the hot tub store rep said NOT to use chlorine on a usual basis so that is what spawned the question in the first place.

Cheers,

Scott

I was curious about this position from your retailer so I downloaded the Jacuzzi 2010 manual. Page 1 is the front cover. Page 2 states very clearly that the FC level must be between 2-4ppm (like most spas).