First Time Spa Owner (Bullfrog X8 Premier)

[OSUTeege]

Hello friends! Spent about 2 hours on the forum so far and am feeling really good about this. So much experience and expertise!

Initial gatherings
1) Forget about the Frog products right away - both the minerals and the sanitizer. Instead I am going to follow the Chlorine sticky from the spa forum.
2) Ordered the K-2006 test kit already. I will be testing my tap water ahead of install so I get a feeling for balancing.
3) This is a brand new unit and will be considering an ahhsome purge immediately - don't much like lingering water from factory testing. My wife will want instant gratification (we ordered this thing in April) so this will be an extra step she will not like.
4) I am curious of any QAQC concerns popping up in units manufactured during this current COVID supply chain environment. I read stories from the RV industry about inferior product being sent out due to increased demand and workforce shortages...just wondering what this forum has heard.
5) I think the unit has an Ozone system - I say think because I didn't know any better to ask the question when we reserved the thing and the invoice is quite vague when lists out all of the inclusions. Read the Ozone wiki page here and get a sense of indifference to flat out unnecessary. Another thread I found mentioned ozone could be beneficial in a high load spa situation (which is what we expect to be). It appears I should not look at the ozone as a standalone sanitizer method so I will be sure to stay on top of testing and dosing as needed to maintain proper parameters. Any suggestions hear would be helpful, especially Bullfrog owners with this system.
6) The unit also has a continuous low amp "filtration" pump - sales guy said this is a 3rd smaller pump with lower power draw (energy savings?). Seems like a good thing...any thoughts to the good or bad regarding this?

 

[BrittanyV]

Hey OSU! - we just started up our new spa in June and followed the di-chlor to bleach method from the start. Our spa is from Marquis, it is similar size (450 gal) and it also came with the Frog system as well as ozone.
We have never installed the Frog cartridges and the water has been pretty easy to manage. But you do have to pay regular attention - like test at least every other day and likely add chlorine (as well as add chlorine after every use). We did an Ahhsome purge before startup and got some gunk out of the pipes, but not a big amount. We did another purge after the first water change a couple of weeks ago, this time with even less gunk.

I would have the following chems on hand: Dichlor, liquid chlorine, muratic acid, and baking soda. If you have a hard water issue, I cant help you there.

Good luck and enjoy the spa!

 

[Newdude]

Hey Teege and Welcome !!! 1, 2 and 3 are spot on. Well DONE !!

4 has plagued us all. There has been both an influx of duds shipped for all devices/parts, and also parts manufactured with inferior parts or materials. At full purchase price of course. Overall the odds are still in your favor. Have some well wishes.

5). Ozone can be beneficial in hot tubs. We are against its use and all the manufacturers lies on outdoor residential pools. Most of the questions you see getting shot down involve outdoor pools.

You need to regularly treat the hot tub with chlorine and the Ozone will help after the fact. A big factor in not needing it for outdoor pools is because there is no need for further oxidation of the ickies. (Providing properly balanced water). The hot tub spends most of its life covered and the Ozone will help there.

The Ozone will also consume FC while the tub isn’t in use, so you’ll need to keep a closer eye on your levels until you are one with your tub.

I’d also like to point out the mentality you need to properly sanitize. People are disgusting, even fresh from the shower. Residual soaps/shampoos/laundry detergents etc will be mixed in the tub. Dead skin is exfoliated. Sweat body oils and fluids are swished around. You will basically be making people soup. 4 folks in a 500 gallon hot tub are like 100 folks in a small 12.5k pool. And those folks aren’t sweating in 104 degree water. So yeah, You are gonna need TONS of sanitizing and it’s OK and a good thing. Long gone are the days of addding 1/4 cup of bleach once a week. It’s more like 1/4 cup, per person, per 30 mins.

6). No idea but sure sounds good in theory. Could also be more parts that might break. Hang tight for more thoughts.

 

[cranbiz]

My Artesian was delivered in May. I can't speak for what's being delivered now but mine has been trouble free and hasn't had any noticeable quality issues. Can't speak on long term quality with then now using the sure grip connections on the Jets but that was a change that Artesian was very public about.

All manufacturers are scrambling and making production changes due to shortages. Artesian has switched to Gecko Controls for the Garden Spa, South Seas and Tropic Seas Spas. The Artesian Elites and all Island Spas are still use Balboa controls.

 

[phonedave]

Hello friends! Spent about 2 hours on the forum so far and am feeling really good about this. So much experience and expertise!

Initial gatherings
1) Forget about the Frog products right away - both the minerals and the sanitizer. Instead I am going to follow the Chlorine sticky from the spa forum.
2) Ordered the K-2006 test kit already. I will be testing my tap water ahead of install so I get a feeling for balancing.
3) This is a brand new unit and will be considering an ahhsome purge immediately - don't much like lingering water from factory testing. My wife will want instant gratification (we ordered this thing in April) so this will be an extra step she will not like.
4) I am curious of any QAQC concerns popping up in units manufactured during this current COVID supply chain environment. I read stories from the RV industry about inferior product being sent out due to increased demand and workforce shortages...just wondering what this forum has heard.
5) I think the unit has an Ozone system - I say think because I didn't know any better to ask the question when we reserved the thing and the invoice is quite vague when lists out all of the inclusions. Read the Ozone wiki page here and get a sense of indifference to flat out unnecessary. Another thread I found mentioned ozone could be beneficial in a high load spa situation (which is what we expect to be). It appears I should not look at the ozone as a standalone sanitizer method so I will be sure to stay on top of testing and dosing as needed to maintain proper parameters. Any suggestions hear would be helpful, especially Bullfrog owners with this system.
6) The unit also has a continuous low amp "filtration" pump - sales guy said this is a 3rd smaller pump with lower power draw (energy savings?). Seems like a good thing...any thoughts to the good or bad regarding this?

I have a Bullfrog A6 which I ordered June 2020 and received April 2021.

1) Good move - I did use mine up, but I supplemented with bleach, and I did not like the fact that I could not measure CC with the Frog
2) That's a good idea too
3) You can purge with Ahhsome with the water cold, it works just fine. You may want to dissolve the gel in a bucket of hot water first, just because it dissolves easier, but it functions just fine in cold water. So depending on how long it takes to fill your tub, you are not looking at THAT much of a delay. If you really want to speed things up, get a sump pump. Using the built in drain is SLOW. I did a from the factory purge on mine, and I did get some material out of it. Not pounds of it, but enough that I was glad I did it.
4) I have had no problems with my tub - so that's one data point. I know prices have going up. According to my dealer, we paid up front for the tub (as was policy), Bullfrog was delayed in making it and prices went up, Bullfrog told the dealer "the price is more now", our dealer was like "the customers already paid in full, we cannot charge them more.", Bullfrog said they don't care who pays - either the dealer or the customers - but the tub now costs more.
5) You got a good answer on the Ozone. On one hand it eats your FC up faster, but it also helps because the tub is covered. It's a good thing in the tub. Note that the ozone is not generated if the tub is not on one of its automatic heat/filter cycles. In other words, if YOU start the jets it will not generate ozone. It's a safety thing so people are not in the tub when it's generating. I have an ozone system in mine
6) I did not add the circ pump, but I added a second jet pump. The 8 is a big tub, it comes with a second jet pump. The circ pump is nice, there is nothing bad about, except for the cost. If you do not have the circ pump, then it runs a full power jet pump (on low) for heat and filtration. So you save money on electricity, but it costs more up front.

 

[OSUTeege]

I would have the following chems on hand: Dichlor, liquid chlorine, muratic acid, and baking soda. If you have a hard water issue, I cant help you there.

Is all dichlor created equal? Or are there dichlors out there that have extra stuff in them that I should stay away from?