cj7ole Posted June 15, 2017 Report Share Posted June 15, 2017 Bought a Hot Springs Classic new in 1992. Only repair was to replace the circulating pump once. That is until 5 years ago when I opened it up in the spring (after winterizing) and found a 24" long crack in the shell from the bottom up to one of the pockets for the back massagers. Got the repair kit from Watkins, tipped it up on it's side and dug out the foam in the cracked area and proceeded to epoxy/fiberglass the exterior of the crack and filled the crack from the interior with the MEK melted pellets. Drilled a small hole at the end of the crack. It has always leaked since the repair, about an inch a week. It is on a deck raised eight feet, so I always know if it is leaking. Filled it again this spring and now it was almost gushing water, about 8 inches in a day. Did some careful measurements with a caliper and it slowed down, finally was dropping at the rate of 2.5" per day. Same rate with the pump on as with it off, so it was not in the plumbing. Way too much to make it usable. So I bit the bullet and tipped it up again and dug out the foam I has replaced after the first repair. A small area of my repair has delaminated near the back massager pocket where the bottom takes some sharp angles. Guessing a tiny leak froze during the winter and pushed the fiberglass layers of the repair apart. The surprise? Carpenter ants has burrowed into the foam, making a nest and munching on small areas of the wood base that had not gotten quite enough preservative. I took a wire wheel cup on my angle grinder to clear the foam and loose fiberglass from the edges of the repair. This time I am going to fill the sharp angles with epoxy repair putty before setting another layer (or two) of fiberglass in a thick layer of epoxy. It is a pain working around the wood base slats, but this time I am making sure there is no foam left near the edges and I end up with fully soaked layers of fiberglass. And this time i am not re-foaming the repair area. Any words of wisdom before I start the repair? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj7ole Posted June 15, 2017 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2017 More pics (BTW the 0.75 meg limit on pics sucks, I have more to load but am maxed out).: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj7ole Posted June 19, 2017 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2017 Got it done and filled. Had to go to West Marine to get the epoxy and hardener, already had the matting. I had some unused MarineTex that I filled the gaps and sharp angles with first. I added just enough foam to bridge the footwell and the slats for support. I am now down to 7 drips per minute on my below-deck catch apron. Disappointed but that I can live with. I would post pics, but my limit is used up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj7ole Posted June 26, 2017 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 Had the grandkids and their dad in the tub yesterday, 5 total to the point of overflowing. Somehow several feet of the interior ceramic tile ring at the waterline came loose, the one with the tiles embedded in white silicone grout. Fortunately it held together and didn't rip the silicone bond. So I emptied the tub last night and re-glued a total of at least six feet. This happened once before and the local HotSprings repair guys said to just use tile and tub white silicone to re-glue it. I did and it held. This time I did a bit of research and read that even the tile and tub silicone isn't rated for continuous underwater use. Interesting that the exterior ceramic tile ring has held up to the weather for 25 years without delaminating, so I am thinking that there is something to that. Looking around, the only over-the-counter stuff I could find that didn't state it was not for underwater use was Gorilla Glue non-foaming urethane construction adhesive. I probably could have done better if I had a West Marine nearby. I cleaned the joint area with lacquer thinner, then glued about 18" at a time and taped it until I could lay down another 18" of glue in a zig-zag pattern. It was very tacky, so it held in place very well after seating it with very firm pressure. An hour later I removed all of the tape and it seemed to be firmly glued in place. Filling the tub now to below the tile line and turning the heat on. Will give it 24 hours before I completely fill it. Seems so far that the glue was a good choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj7ole Posted August 21, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 21, 2020 Well the glue on the mosaic didn't hold so now I have about 8 feet dangling in the tub. Talking to myself here, doesn't anybody read these? Still wondering the best glue to use. Guess I will try some 3M 5200 polyurethane marine sealant, quick cure version. I will say that after 28 years I am still able to use the tub. Any other brand make that claim? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ratchett Posted August 21, 2020 Report Share Posted August 21, 2020 4 hours ago, cj7ole said: Talking to myself here, doesn't anybody read these? I'm here now reading, thanks for documenting. I have a strange interest in seeing how tubs age over time and what components wear out 😊 4 hours ago, cj7ole said: I will say that after 28 years I am still able to use the tub. Any other brand make that claim? That's extremely impressive. I believe @Cusser is also rocking an old tub but I don't think THAT old. I do have a neighbor who has a Hotspring from 1989 still going strong (or at least was up until his divorce a few years ago when the ex took the tub, no clue if it's still running 😄 ). I also did come across an old 1995 Hotspring Prodigy in my local classifieds in supposedly working condition but it wasn't filled with water in the photos so who knows if it also leaked. Really cool to see an OG Motomassager jet. If I'm not mistaken that technology was patented in 1991, Your tub was probably one of the first few hundred ever manufactured with that revolutionary jet technology. They still use Motomassagers in the newest Hotspring Highlife tubs (although much fancier dual-jet ones). Does your Motomassager jet still move up and down?? Have you ever had to replace it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj7ole Posted August 21, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 21, 2020 Thanks for replying. Yes they still work, I seldom use them unless I have tweaked my back. I prefer to sit quietly alone in the tub with no jets running just contemplating my belly button. When the kids/grandkids come over they get them all running. Can't get my wife in anymore (I just don't feel like getting wet). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cusser Posted August 21, 2020 Report Share Posted August 21, 2020 3 hours ago, ratchett said: I believe @Cusser is also rocking an old tub but I don't think THAT old. Yes, my spa is a 1988 CalSpa. As to the tile repair, have you tried a marine epoxy? I bought some already, but I haven't tried it yet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDspaguy Posted August 21, 2020 Report Share Posted August 21, 2020 I would use epoxy. The key to any adhesive repair is surface prep. The key to surface prep is sandpaper. Just saying... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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