This is my personal list of the top 10 dos and don’ts of hot tub care.
1. Always use the filter housing to fill the hot tub
This is how you avoid airlocks from around heaters and circulation pumps, thus reducing the risk of heater burn out.
2. Avoid swimming pool chemicals like plague
Swimming pool chemicals destroy rubber seals inside hot tubs. Replacing these rubber seals is very expensive, so you you want to avoid it at all costs. The reason why swimming pool chemicals are so corrosive is that they contain Cyanuric Acid to break down the algae in swimming pools. You should make your water last longer by using covers for hot tubs to keep debris out.
3. Perform a system flush every year
If you take care what chemicals you use, you’ll only need to flush your system once a year for everything to be fine. The main reason for doing so is that cleaning fluids are sometimes difficult to remove from the pipes. Nevertheless, the regular flushing of the system will reduce the biofilm that may become a ground of proliferation for germs and other potential harmful things.
4. Check inside your hot tub cabinet every six months
Service calls can cost you a small fortune. In order to save money, you can remove the sides of your hot tub yourself and check for leaks around heater unions and pump shafts. If you notice something that looks like a dried white powder, you should suspect leaks in that area.
5. Always switch the spa off when needing to do work or to change the filters
Take care when you put the filters back into their place, because you can hurt yourself. It happened to me to catch my fingers while I was trying to put the basket back into the skimmer. Even worse, you risk to get your long hair caught on the rotating shaft of the pump.
6. What would be an answer to the question how much should I expect to pay for my hot tub per week?
By installing a wireless electricity meter, which costs around 30 pounds, you’ll know exactly how much electricity your hot tub uses. Then you’ll be able to calculate the cost of enjoying this type of comfort at home.
7. Use a scale inhibitor to get rid of all scale, should you have such problems
By using a pre filter, you’ll reduce the amount of minerals that create scale. Prevention is the bets way to keep your operating costs at a minimum, so these pre filters will be well worth it.
8. Use only non chlorine shock
Non Chlorine shock is great to use either before or after a long bathing session. It is something different than clarify. It helps removing hard sweat and any other residue that can turn into hard grime after a while.
9. Vinyl Cleaner
A quality vinyl cleaner will allow you to take great care of the vinyl cover of your hot tub. These covers can cost a lot of money to replace, so it’s best to take proper care of them. Beware that new covers come with no UV protection on them, so they are more exposed to damage.
10. Ozone units are your friends
Consider using an Ozone unit to reduce the amount of sanitizer needed to keep your hot tub safe. Keep in mind that these ozone units need bulb or chip replacement every two years.