Does Aqua Clarity weekly dose damage headrests?

Davekro · Mar 4, 2024

@Ahhsomeguy ,

Here's my question, then below is my tub's info.
I did not use Aqua Clarity to do my purge, I used the AHHsome! packet. But today, finally mixing up my Aqua Clarity to give my tub it's first 'Weekly' maintenance dose of Aqua Clarity, I THOUGHT I read the dose for doing a purge as 3 oz/ ~~200 gallons~~* and the dose for the weekly maintenance is 1 oz, 200 gallons. * My misreading the purge dose as 3 oz/ 200 gallons. prompted this question. Now, just now re-reading the instructions and seeing the dose for doing a purge is actually 3 oz/ 100 gallons, my concern is 50% less ;o). I've gone this far, so I will ask if having 17% of the 'purge amount' running in the tub full-time has any significant ill effect on headrest degradation over and above just the normal amount of degradation over time (years) that just regular Bromine or Chlorine sanitization causes? Initially thinking the maintenance dose (from my inattentive reading) was 1/3 as strong as the purge dose, made me fear for my headrest's quicker degradation. Oye!

A second unrelated question. Now that I have bought some spare filters and will be swapping in a fresh cleaned filter, at least weekly*, and I have not purchased a 'filter cleaner' product as yet, I want to ask Aqua Clarity is as good a filter cleaning product as any specifically designed for that purpose. *I will change/swap the filter evry 1-2 days after my delinquent first AC 'weekly' dose today. I have not looked into 'filter cleaning products' yet. Maybe there are even products around the house that work as good as overnight or longer soaks to clean filters, I don't know. Not positive, but I think I have read that some people put their filters in their dishwasher and report good results from that. :roll:

I did recently buy a Filter Flosser hose spray tool $29.95, for easier rinsing of filters. It works much better than the plain spray nozzle.

Tub and maintenance Info:
I started my brand-new Bullfrog A6L (310–335 gals) the first week of Feb. 2024. As recommended prior to doing the purge, removed all the headrests, so as not to damage them with the strong purge chemicals. Then I did a thorough AHHsome! (packet) purge. Ran jets on high 30-mins., cleaned green gunk from shell and surface. Ran jets on high again (no additional product added) and got a tiny bit more green gunk, cleaned that out, drained, vacuumed all water out, rinsed sides and sprayed in all jets, drained and vacuumed again. Then filled the tub w/310 gals of water, took two days to drop the TA from 370 ≈70 ppm, then did my bromine bank, shock, etc.

Now 3 weeks later, I am finally just getting around to mixing my Aqua Clarity into it's 1 gal container and gave my tub its first 'weekly' treatment. I had just finished ready an AHHsome! discussion that referred to using 2 oz for a four hundred gallon tub (1 oz. /200 gals). Dooooh! I had 2 oz. stuck in my head and added that to my ≈ 335 currently in the tub. Ooops. Not a big deal, as it is only a slightly high dose, but I was pleased to see that after 10 mins of circulating (both jets on low) for ≈ 10 mins (no foam to speak of on surface), then I rand both pumps on high for ≈ 5 mins. There was still no foam to speak of remaining after the bubbling calmed down after pumps were turned off.

Ahhsomeguy · Mar 4, 2024

Aqua Clarity will not affect your headrests. Using AC on a weekly basis will usually be all you will need for keeping the filters in good shape. Be sure to remove and hose them off every week or two. I would not worry about a filter cleaner right now. AC will be your 24/7 security guard to arrest biofilms. Once in a while you may see some coagulated brownish floaters, especially after just adding the AC. Simply wipe them away once they attach to the shell. Biofilms WILL NOT adhere to plumbing nooks and crannies when AC is in the water even at such a low concentration you will be using. You will need generally NOTHING else other than your choice of a sanitizer and periodic pH and TA adjustments. You can go a very long time before you'll have to purge again as there will be practically nothing to purge. I recommend to drain the tub at least annually so water will tolerate more total dissolved solids. As you add water weekly to compensate for evaporation. splash outs and water loss when leaving the hot tub, that will be enough make up water to keep the TDS levels in check. In a month you'll be giving other newbies help. Enjoy your hot tub experience Sir.

Mdragger88 · Mar 5, 2024

To add to this-
PSA- do not put your filters in the dishwasher.
The advice is to use a little dishwasher detergent (powder) & soak them in a bucket of water with it if you think they require it then rinse them well afterwards.
I personally just rinse them & throw them in the tub when purging with Ahhsome, then rinse after & periodically between purges. I also use aqua clarity but I did the same thing before I started using that.
For a small tub its easy to over do the aqua clarity & this can lead to bubbles/foaming. It really doesn’t take much to get the job done so go easy on it. If you do happen to overdose - don’t worry, the bubbly effects will fade- just skip the next dose & be sure to use less the next time. Each tub & situation can be a little different. The cleaner the tub the less you need to use as it has less grime to break down so more foaming may result of the surfactants.
I use a scant 1/2 oz of aqua clarity in my approx 200 gallon tub every week. I keep a small bottle of it near my tub & just use the cap to measure. Much easier to handle & not over pour. The big bottle stays in the house.
Basically if you’re having foaming/bubbles at the prescribed dose just use a little less. You can always add more but it’s hard to put the toothpaste back in the tube if you know what I mean.
The same goes for other chems in a small tub. There’s not alot of margin for error. Until you know exactly how each thing will affect your parameters be light handed. Test & dose again if needed until you get things dialed in. Adjust your volume in
PoolMath accordingly if you need to. For example: My tub manufacturer says 250 gallons but I use 200 gallons in poolmath and my doses test spot on. It took a few acid doses/tests to determine this.

phonedave · Mar 6, 2024

I have an A6 as well.

First off, Bullfrog headrests wrinkle and the clips break if you so much as look at them sideways. I am seriously considering getting a 3D printer just so I can print new clips. When you add bleach, keep your cover open for 10 min or so, so it can air out. That is the best advice I can give for prolonging the life of your headrests.

As for chemical and filters.

I have two sets of filters. I change my water roughly every 3 months. (I could go longer, but it gives me piece of mind, and after 2-3 times it became a very quick process, the longest part is the time it takes to fill the tub, and the time it takes to heat back up)

When I change the water I purge the tub with AhhSome, and I remove the filters from the housing and let them float around in the tub. Then I pull everything (headrests, jet packs, filter cages, etc) and wash them, and the shell and refill.

I used bleach, MA, DiChlor (for CYA) and Calcium to add hardness (otherwise I get foaming with the AquaClarity).

Once a week I use a scant 1oz dose of AquaClarity (it is enough for me, and if I use too much I get foam). I also pull the filters and rinse them off. I also remove the headrests and wipe down the inside (and look for broken clips) and I pop the jet packs, tilt them forward, and wipe down behind them.

Halfway through a water change cycle (ie 6 weeks) I swap in new filters. I take the old filters and clean them in a water / oxy clean solution. I have the drum style filters. I think Bullfrog switched to flat ones now. With my old style drum filters, the ones for an A6 stack perfectly inside a 5 gallon bucket. I put them in the bucket, add about 1/4 cup of OxyClean, fill it with warm water, put the lid on, and let it soak 24 hours. I then rinse them and let them air dry. When they are dry I store them in the shed in the bucket with the lid on until I need to swap them back in.

Ahhsomeguy · Mar 6, 2024

Phonedave: You have it mastered!

Davekro · Mar 11, 2024

phonedave said:
I have an A6 as well.

First off, Bullfrog headrests wrinkle and the clips break if you so much as look at them sideways. I am seriously considering getting a 3D printer just so I can print new clips. When you add bleach, keep your cover open for 10 min or so, so it can air out. That is the best advice I can give for prolonging the life of your headrests.

As for chemical and filters.

I have two sets of filters. I change my water roughly every 3 months. (I could go longer, but it gives me piece of mind, and after 2-3 times it became a very quick process, the longest part is the time it takes to fill the tub, and the time it takes to heat back up)

When I change the water I purge the tub with AhhSome, and I remove the filters from the housing and let them float around in the tub. Then I pull everything (headrests, jet packs, filter cages, etc) and wash them, and the shell and refill.

I used bleach, MA, DiChlor (for CYA) and Calcium to add hardness (otherwise I get foaming with the AquaClarity).

Once a week I use a scant 1oz dose of AquaClarity (it is enough for me, and if I use too much I get foam). I also pull the filters and rinse them off. I also remove the headrests and wipe down the inside (and look for broken clips) and I pop the jet packs, tilt them forward, and wipe down behind them.

Halfway through a water change cycle (ie 6 weeks) I swap in new filters. I take the old filters and clean them in a water / oxy clean solution. I have the drum style filters. I think Bullfrog switched to flat ones now. With my old style drum filters, the ones for an A6 stack perfectly inside a 5 gallon bucket. I put them in the bucket, add about 1/4 cup of OxyClean, fill it with warm water, put the lid on, and let it soak 24 hours. I then rinse them and let them air dry. When they are dry I store them in the shed in the bucket with the lid on until I need to swap them back in.

phonedave ,
Thanks for the rundown on your process. My 2023 A6L Select does not use the beleaguered breaking clips to mount the headrests. I think no 2023's do, but I'm not sure if the Standard head rests still do. What they call their premium head rest (Plus & Select trims) do not use those clips, thank goodness. When you purge with AHHsome, do you leave the JetPaks installed? When I did the purge of my new tub, I removed the (brand new) filter and headrests, but left the JetPaks in. After the first 30 min run of AHHsome. I scooped out as much foam as possible with a pool net, I took the four J'Paks out, wiped the green from around the waterline in front and back around the various pieces back there and around the shell. I put them back in and ran both pumps on high for a second 30 mins, for good measure. I got just a little more green film, which I assume was biofilm (is that true?).

I had a JetPak out today and I noticed that the black (rotomolded?) plastic chamber behind the J'Paks has vent slots at the top and drain two drain holes at the bottom. Upon that first look, it does not appear that the water in those black plastic chamber get any circulation, except when one is removed/moved. Now I will be sure to lift them up to drain them when I move them, or even drain the ones I don't move occasionally. I had heard reports that people complained that water did not circulate behind the J'Paks, but Bullfrog said they fixed that. I don't know how or when. I had assumed people just meant that the backs of the J'Paks and the shell behind them got grungy. Well, that would make sense if you just left the Paks in place, never removing them and cleaning behind them. Do you know what that problem was?

Yes, the 2023 models use the Bullfrog Simplicity filtration, which uses the flat filters. I bought extra filters, so I can just swap in anew/cleaned filter at least once per week. Mine fills up with lots of tiny black gnats. All those dead gnat bodies can't be good for the chemistry. ;o) Thanks for the reminder about Using Oxy-clean for the filters. I had reads about that in pre-hot tub research mode and forgotten all about it!

One quirk with my 2023 A6L that may be a feature or a bug... Occasionally I have noticed that all by itself both pumps will turn on high and the fountain also comes on! This has happened once when I was in using the tub, and a few times when I have been testing the water, adding chemicals or whatever. I have assumed it is an errant glitch and manually shut down the pumps, at least from high speed. I have not paid close enough attention if this has happened during the 8-9:30 am and or 8-9:30pm cleaning cycles or during a 'demand for heating' cycle. Have you ever experienced this behavior?
Maybe a weird question... have you noticed when the water is being heated, if the heated water is coming in from one or a few jets, or all jets?

Your signature mentions Ozone generator. Is that the Wellspring or Bullfrog EOS Ozone system?

phonedave · Mar 12, 2024

Davekro said:
phonedave ,
Thanks for the rundown on your process. My 2023 A6L Select does not use the beleaguered breaking clips to mount the headrests. I think no 2023's do, but I'm not sure if the Standard head rests still do. What they call their premium head rest (Plus & Select trims) do not use those clips, thank goodness.

When I bought mine, there was one level of trim. They have also changed the shape of the tub quite a bit.

The trim when I got mine was pretty much what is in the standard package except I have auxiliary controls as well.

Davekro said:
When you purge with AHHsome, do you leave the JetPaks installed? When I did the purge of my new tub, I removed the (brand new) filter and headrests, but left the JetPaks in. After the first 30 min run of AHHsome. I scooped out as much foam as possible with a pool net, I took the four J'Paks out, wiped the green from around the waterline in front and back around the various pieces back there and around the shell. I put them back in and ran both pumps on high for a second 30 mins, for good measure. I got just a little more green film, which I assume was biofilm (is that true?).

I leave mine in. Anything besides bright white foam is something you don't want in your tub, likely biofilm.

Davekro said:
I had a JetPak out today and I noticed that the black (rotomolded?) plastic chamber behind the J'Paks has vent slots at the top and drain two drain holes at the bottom. Upon that first look, it does not appear that the water in those black plastic chamber get any circulation, except when one is removed/moved. Now I will be sure to lift them up to drain them when I move them, or even drain the ones I don't move occasionally. I had heard reports that people complained that water did not circulate behind the J'Paks, but Bullfrog said they fixed that. I don't know how or when. I had assumed people just meant that the backs of the J'Paks and the shell behind them got grungy. Well, that would make sense if you just left the Paks in place, never removing them and cleaning behind them. Do you know what that problem was?

The black rotomolded part is the manifold. Water flows through the inside. As far as I am aware, the slots and holes is what provides circulation in and around the backs of the jetpacks. It is not some heavy jet scrubbing action, but is just gentle circulation to keep sanitizer levels up. Before they had those vents and drain holes, you could get stagnant water behind the jetpacks. I pop mine out once a week or so and wipe down behind them anyway.

Davekro said:
Yes, the 2023 models use the Bullfrog Simplicity filtration, which uses the flat filters. I bought extra filters, so I can just swap in anew/cleaned filter at least once per week. Mine fills up with lots of tiny black gnats. All those dead gnat bodies can't be good for the chemistry. ;o) Thanks for the reminder about Using Oxy-clean for the filters. I had reads about that in pre-hot tub research mode and forgotten all about it!

Simplicity filters are semi-disposable. Bullfrog recommends replacing them every 12 weeks or so, even if you clean them regularly. The old school coreless filters - 10-00282, Filter, Coreless Cartridge, A, R, X - are more sturdy and can last for a long time with careful cleaning.

Davekro said:
One quirk with my 2023 A6L that may be a feature or a bug... Occasionally I have noticed that all by itself both pumps will turn on high and the fountain also comes on! This has happened once when I was in using the tub, and a few times when I have been testing the water, adding chemicals or whatever. I have assumed it is an errant glitch and manually shut down the pumps, at least from high speed. I have not paid close enough attention if this has happened during the 8-9:30 am and or 8-9:30pm cleaning cycles or during a 'demand for heating' cycle. Have you ever experienced this behavior?
Maybe a weird question... have you noticed when the water is being heated, if the heated water is coming in from one or a few jets, or all jets?

I have two jet pumps and no circulation pump. Jet 2 never turns on by itself, high, low, or otherwise.

Jet 1 turns on by itself on low only, during either filtration or heating.

On my older trim level A6 my water feature is manual. It runs off of Jet 1, but there is a topside manual valve. If I don't turn the valve by hand, the fountain heads stay retracted. It would be pretty scary if mine came on by itself.

Davekro said:
Your signature mentions Ozone generator. Is that the Wellspring or Bullfrog EOS Ozone system?

I have the EOS system

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Does Aqua Clarity weekly dose damage headrests?

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