Four Tips for Hot Tub Health

Your hot tub was an investment in your health and wellness. Get the most out of that investment and extend the life of your hot tub with these helpful tips.

Clean Your Filters

Hot tub filters help to ensure the overall performance and health of your Hot Spring Spa. They are the first line of defense against dirty spa water, trapping oils and particles. Everything caught by the filters remains there until they are cleaned. Neglecting regular filter maintenance and replacement could strain your hot tub pumps and heating system. Keeping your filters clean and replacing them when necessary is key to optimal hot tub health and long life.

Benefits of Clean Filters:

• Clearer water
• Increased jet output and power
• Less electricity usage
• More reliable circulation and heating
• Easy cleaning and maintenance

Remember to clean your filters with a solution every 30 days and replace them every 2-3 years (depending on use and visible wear). TRI-X filters should be replaced every 4-6 years. Check out our video on how to clean your filters here.

Keep the Water Balanced

Balancing your hot tub’s water chemistry is essential for maximizing the life and appearance of your hot tub. Unbalance water chemistry, whether it’s pH, calcium hardness, or total alkalinity can not only make soaking uncomfortable. It can also permanently damage the walls, equipment, and other surfaces around your hot tub.

pH
Water with pH levels that are too low can start to damage your hot tub lining and plumbing because of the acidity of the water. High levels can cause buildup and scaling that clogs things up and is hard to remove. The heater is at risk both ways. Acid due to low pH will eat away at the heater element, and high pH will deposit scale around the element, making it work harder to heat your hot tub.

Alkalinity
This acts as a stabilizer for your hot tub’s pH levels. Because pH levels are so unstable, you need your alkalinity to be balanced to keep your pH from bouncing all over the place every time a leaf falls in the water. This is important because of the damage out of balance pH levels can do to your hot tub, and because of the ineffectiveness of chlorine in such an environment.

Calcium Hardness
This is what makes your water feel hard or soft. When your calcium hardness level is too high, it can cause calcium buildup and scaling that can clog your filter and become difficult to remove. If it is too low, it will start to corrode the internal parts of your equipment, like spa heaters and pipes.

If you want to bring in a water sample to any of our showrooms, we would be happy to run a water test for you and answer any questions you may have.

Check Out the Hot Tub Cover

A quality hot tub cover offers many incredible benefits. Let’s focus on what a quality hot tub cover can do for the health of your spa.

Energy Efficiency
Covering the hot tub with a dry, clean, insulated cover will keep heat in the water where it belongs. An uncovered (or poorly covered) hot tub is going to use a lot of unnecessary energy trying to keep the water hot. You will save yourself money and avoid long heating times if you keep it covered.

Prevent Evaporation
When not covered, your hot tub is losing water through evaporation.  Covers are a minimal expense compared to what you’ll pay replenishing water and chemicals that evaporate. Hot tub covers dramatically reduce evaporation and water waste.

Maintain Water Chemistry
Hot tub covers limit how much organic material gets into your tub when it’s not in use (leaves, dirt, etc.), thus reducing the potential for mold and bacteria growth. This helps you to maintain proper water chemistry and use fewer chemicals. You’ll also save water because your hot tub won’t need as many drains and refills. Avoid such problems by keeping your hot tub covered when not in use.

Spa covers are designed to last for a long time. But like any object exposed to sunlight and weather over time, your hot tub cover will eventually show signs of wear. Inspect your spa cover every couple of months. Check the weight of your cover. If it has become super heavy, then it has most likely become waterlogged. You should also look over the cover vinyl for cracks, rips, or tears that may have occurred. Pay special attention to the seams: if they’re not closed properly, they may be letting heat out from your tub and making it harder for your hot tub to maintain temperatures.

Plan to replace your cover every 5 years.

Use It!

The simple act of using your hot tub is not only great for you; it’s really good for its overall health and maintenance. Just like you wouldn’t drive your car without regular maintenance (oil changes, tire pressure, etc.) you should never run your hot tub without water testing and cleaning the filters regularly.

If you are not using your hot tub regularly, how do you know its working properly? Should you notice that your water is becoming cloudy, a jet that isn’t quite as powerful as it used to be, or your cover is getting pretty heavy, don’t ignore it. Small issues can place added stress on other components, and before you know it, you may have to spend a lot of time or money on repairs. Keep an eye out and address problems as soon as they arise.

While nobody wants to spend more than they need to on their hot tub, the cost to repair or replace them far outweighs the cost of proper maintenance. A Hot Spring Spa is built to last, but following these tips will help you get the most from your investment.