Do It Need To Drain It?

[JonnyH]

Our recent house purchase came with a hot tub (Coast Spa - Coast Luxury Series I think).

I know the house was vacant for most, if not all of last year (2011) so I'm not hugely surprised the first test has not run smoothly today.

To cut a long story short we have a hosepipe ban starting tomorrow, so I did some frantic research, spent hours acquiring an owners manual last night, cleaned it all out (including giving both filters a very thorough soak and scrub -and ordered an new set as well) and filling it up today.

I have a friend bringing water treatment tomorrow, but thought I'd have a quick check to see if it even powers up this evening.

I'd already made sure both gate valves were open but was a bit worried because there was some kind of white powdery substance covering what appears to be rust on a shaft that runs between the main pump motor thingy and what I assume is an impeller.

I turned the mains power on very briefly and there is a loudish humming noise and then it stops. So I'm guessing it is seized. I get the temp reading and three dots flashing which indicate "a problem has been detected" according to the manual.

It could be an air lock as I've only just read that filling via the skimmer / filter opening is recommended (whoops).

I can't see any bleeder valve, but then I'm also a major noob at this! I could take pictures but It is almost dark so perhaps tommorrow.

My real question was IF the impeller thingy is stuck as per this thread.. http://www.poolspaforum.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=24622

.. do I really need to empty my hot tub? As per midnight tonight I will get a £1000 fine for each offence (hosepipe ban in Buckinghamshire - Veola say no filling of Spa) to re-fill it. *gulp* Can I not just close the gate valves and work very quickly?

Advice would be much appreciated to my first thread.

Thanks

Jonathan

[PreservedSwine]

The three dots is likely an indicator of low flow.

The humming, and then silence- is what you would expect if the pump were frozen, and the thermal overload of the pump tripped. If it was an air lock- it would just keep humming.

The purpose of a gate valve is so you can isolate the components, and not have to drain it. If they're working properly, you won't lose any water other than what's in the plumbing. But beware- after years of non-use, gate valves can break.

[JonnyH]

Thank you for your reply, hopefully the gate valves will do their job.

I just hope the pump shaft can be loosened up, I could certainly do without having to replace it.

I'll have a go this weekend as we have a couple of extra days off for easter here in the UK.

I'll hopefully be posting back with some better news later.

Thanks again.

[JonnyH]

Better news: It was the rusted motor shaft that was causing the problem. I carefully cleaned all the rust away and applied general purpose grease after gently twisting back and forth with pliers until moving smoothly.

The only problem was a smallish plastic collar that broke in the process. I'd post a pic but not too sure how to here. Not sure just how important this might be? Probably just to keep dust at bay I guess so I'll have to keep an eye on it.

It's been running for about 5 hours and the temperature is gradually increasing.

Just got to replace the missing pillows now. The manufacturer's spares website isn't particularly great. Are pillows universal or propriatry?

Many thanks for the advice so far

Jon.

[DaveH24]

Hi

Sounds like you've been through the same process that I went through 6 months ago . I ended up draining to take the siezed pump out , as the gate valves didn't close properly , but I had filled it with rain water off the swimming pool so I wasn't bothered.

There is some debate as to wether spas are exempt from the hosepipe ban http://www.splashspas.co.uk/hosepipe-ban

but i'm in the north-west , and its raining so I haven't followed this up.

you haven't mentioned decontaminating the spa ,which is advised but that means a drain and refill.

have a look on the Hot water tub chemistry stickies for Nitro's decontamination

Dave

[JonnyH]

Thank you Dave, [ref: decontaminating the spa] this is something I am more than a little concerned about; there was obviously a small amount of water in the system that has been there for many months.

Cheers for the heads-up as I'm sure my family are looking forward to diving in but I would like it to be as safe as can be before that happens.

More research..

Better safe than sorry.

Thanks again,

Jonathan.

P.S.I haven't inspected Veola's website first hand, more word of mouth but the government website is VERY vague.

Is there any kind of decontamination treatment (however harsh) that does not require a refill? I can't afford a £1,000 fine (would rather not waste the water either)