Sundance spa headrests dissolving?

[mxfan]

Purchased a new Sundance spa two years ago and have relied on the forum for water balance. Noticed that all 3 of the headrests are being affected by the chemicals or is it normal for them to go bad after just a couple of years? Whenever I add bleach I leave the spa uncovered for 5-10 minutes to ‘vent’. Water balance overall has been consistent and I add bleach every 2-3 days depending on use and what my Taylor test kit numbers show. Any feedback would be appreciated.

 

[ajw22]

I don't think the headrest problem has anything to do with your water balance.

Have you contacted Sundance about it?

@RDspaguy thoughts?

 

[mxfan]

I don't think the headrest problem has anything to do with your water balance.

Have you contacted Sundance about it?

@RDspaguy thoughts?

I haven’t contacted them yet. About eight months ago the chrome internal grab handles had some rust on them and they came out and replaced them under warranty but didn’t like the fact of how I was sanitizing the hot tub at that point.
I will try them and see what they say.
Thanks

 

[RDspaguy]

Looks like a combination of chemistry and material. I notice the damage is only on the darker material. Rusted stainless steel is much more alarming, and DEFINITELY inducates a chemistry issue.
Deteriorated pillows are pretty common on all brands, but so are chemistry issues in my experience.
I assume you have an ozonator (standard in a Sundance) and are trying to maintain a chlorine residual in your water? Using dichlor/bleach method? Shocking with mps?

 

[mxfan]

Looks like a combination of chemistry and material. I notice the damage is only on the darker material. Rusted stainless steel is much more alarming, and DEFINITELY inducates a chemistry issue.
Deteriorated pillows are pretty common on all brands, but so are chemistry issues in my experience.
I assume you have an ozonator (standard in a Sundance) and are trying to maintain a chlorine residual in your water? Using dichlor/bleach method? Shocking with mps?

We have the ‘Cameo’ spa which has the ClearRay UV system but I just looked through the owners manual and no mention of an ozonator.
The tech also highly recommended the ‘mineral cartridge’ but not sure I really believe in it.
I have neglected to ‘shock’ the hot tub so that may be a factor with the issues I’ve had.
I use the Dichlor startup method and then switch to bleach when cya gets to 30ppm.
Does the ClearRay do what an ozonator would do in getting the fc levels down after shocking?
Also is the ‘mineral cartridge’ helpful or is it not necessary?
I do ad bleach after each use and check the fc level every few days to maintain 3-5 ppm
Thank you!

 

[RDspaguy]

Cya is sunscreen for chlorine, and will slow the chlorine burn-off from uv. However, chlorine will still "gas off" when combining with organic contaminants, which can become trapped under the cover. Can you see a distinct color difference between the middle of the cover and the edge where it sits on the shell? That is an indication of gasses trapped under the cover. It will also bleach out your valve handles and other exposed plastics.
I have seen a few instances of rusted or pitted stainless steel, and in every case there was high sanitizer (both chlorine and bromine spas) and low ph. And I was nearly choked on fumes when I opened the cover. But the water looked great. Are you staying on top of your ph? Testing once a week and dumping in chems to correct ph is not good maintenance. Your ph is bad most of the time in that case.
I am a fan of mineral purifiers. Much like algaecide, the silver and copper interfere with the reproductive cycle (cell division) of single-celled organisms. So they slow the spread and growth of contaminants, giving your sanitizer more time to deal with them with less overall reduction in sanitizer residual. This allows you to keep lower residuals in the water, and produce fewer chloramines so need less shock. It does not eliminate the need for sanitizers. Neither does uv, or ozone, or a combination of the three.

 

[BMK]

My previous spa was a Sundance Cameo. Though I had some issues with it, I never had any problems with headrests or hardware.
When you add bleach or chems, are you adding it through the filter compartment with the jets going or are you pouring it right into the tub?

 

[mxfan]

Cya is sunscreen for chlorine, and will slow the chlorine burn-off from uv. However, chlorine will still "gas off" when combining with organic contaminants, which can become trapped under the cover. Can you see a distinct color difference between the middle of the cover and the edge where it sits on the shell? That is an indication of gasses trapped under the cover. It will also bleach out your valve handles and other exposed plastics.
I have seen a few instances of rusted or pitted stainless steel, and in every case there was high sanitizer (both chlorine and bromine spas) and low ph. And I was nearly choked on fumes when I opened the cover. But the water looked great. Are you staying on top of your ph? Testing once a week and dumping in chems to correct ph is not good maintenance. Your ph is bad most of the time in that case.
I am a fan of mineral purifiers. Much like algaecide, the silver and copper interfere with the reproductive cycle (cell division) of single-celled organisms. So they slow the spread and growth of contaminants, giving your sanitizer more time to deal with them with less overall reduction in sanitizer residual. This allows you to keep lower residuals in the water, and produce fewer chloramines so need less shock. It does not eliminate the need for sanitizers. Neither does uv, or ozone, or a combination of the three.

Thank you for the info! I will take a look at the spa cover to see if there is any difference in color from the middle to the edge. I check the ph every time I check the fc, but seems like I need to do both more often.

 

[mxfan]

My previous spa was a Sundance Cameo. Though I had some issues with it, I never had any problems with headrests or hardware.
When you add bleach or chems, are you adding it through the filter compartment with the jets going or are you pouring it right into the tub?

I turn on the jets and then add bleach into the hot tub seating area. I leave on for 2-5 minutes then leave the cover off for another 5-10 minutes to air out.

 

[mxfan]

I don't think the headrest problem has anything to do with your water balance.

Have you contacted Sundance about it?

@RDspaguy thoughts?

I checked with my local Dealer who I purchased the hot tub from and they said that Sundance doesn't have any type of warranty on the pillows, not even a 30 day. I went ahead and purchased new pillows.

 

[RDspaguy]

They think alot of those pillows judging by the pricetag, huh? Still wondering how your cover looks...

 

[mxfan]

They think alot of those pillows judging by the pricetag, huh? Still wondering how your cover looks...

I knew I was forgetting something! I will look tonight. thanks!

 

[mxfan]

They think alot of those pillows judging by the pricetag, huh? Still wondering how your cover looks...

Here are a couple of pics of the cover for reference. Definitely different colors but the inner portion above the water is wet and the outer is dry so it’s hard for me to tell?

 

[Juiie-bell]

I have a Masterspa, only a year old, and I just replaced 2 off my pillows. 2 started flaking off horribly. I bought 4 replacements, 2 to store for later. Literally a year old.

 

[chesapeakebill]

I have a 2005 Sundance Optima. My first pillows lasted about 13 years. Even then, they were a little dirty but physically fine.

 

[RDspaguy]

Here are a couple of pics of the cover for reference. Definitely different colors but the inner portion above the water is wet and the outer is dry so it’s hard for me to tell?

That's bleached out. The same thing is damaging your pillows and handrail, I would think. Leave cover open longer after adding chlorine (30 minutes or more), use the mineral purifier and use less chlorine, get rid of tablet floater if you have one.