Newbie setting up old Spa that came with house

[TSpa]

Hello TFP!


I apologize ahead of time for the long first post. I have an old Spa that I have had winterized for the last 5 years when I bought my house. Now I would like to connect it up and give it a try this season. I have read a lot on this forum but certainly feel like I am drinking from a fire hose. Here is where I am at so far. Keep in mind I am going to try to setup a Bromine base (compared to daily requirements of Chlorine base). I do not have ozone.


Reconnected plumbing, filled Spa (town water) and ran an ahh-some purge. This proved that the pump and electronics still worked (although I have not turned on the heat yet). Cleaned out a good amount of gunk. Drained and filled Spa again only to realize I have a small leak at a PVC joint. Today I put some JB Weld on it and hope to fill the Spa back up in the next day or two to see if the leak has stopped. The previous home owner left behind the following chemicals:


Leisure Time Spa Down
Leisure Time Spa Up
Leisure Time Renew
Diamond Foam Away
hth PH Plus
hth PH Minus
hth Alkalinity plus
Aqua Pro PH down
Aquamate Tile and Vinyl Cleaner


From what I read I believe I need to purchase the following chemicals (understand any name brand will do):
Leisure Time BE1 Sodium Bromide (establish Bromide base after drain/fill)
Leisure Time 45430 Bromine Tabs (provides steady release of Bromine)
Leisure Time CB Calcium Booster (actually not sure if I need to worry about this for fiberglass Spa)


What I have already purchased:
Life Deluxe Floater for the Bromine tabs
Taylor K-2106 FAS-DPD Bromine Complete Test Kit


After reading through the forums I believe these are my next steps, please provide any advice or corrections needed:
1) Fill Spa with water and make sure leak has stopped then balance the water (TA, pH, CH?). I have chemicals to adjust TA and PH and will buy calcium booster if the TFP community advises to do so.
2) Add sodium bromide to establish bromide bank
3) Shock with oxidizer (chlorine/bleach or MPS). When sanitizing I think I need to get FC levels to measure at least 12 ppm (please correct if wrong). I have the Leisure Time Renew which is the non-Chlorine shock (MPS). I could use that or I could use the Clorox Bleach (8.25%) I have in the laundry room. Is there any reasons to choose one over the other? I would imagine that bleach would be more cost effective and its always on hand.
4) Since I am using the 3-step system I will add my floater with bromine tabs and adjust it to maintain a 4-6 ppm bromine level (is the Bromine level the same as the FC level?).


Is there anything that I am missing or should look out for? Is there a certain amount of time I need to wait in between my next steps? Can I do steps 1-3 while the water is cold (67 deg F) or should I bring it up to about 90 deg F before any of the steps?


Any advice and answers to my questions are greatly appreciated!!!


Thanks for your time and help!

 

[TSpa]

I purchased the sodium bromide and bromine tabs. I filled up the Spa and confirmed that the leak is gone thanks to the JB Weld!
PH =7.5
TA = 30 so I added 3.5oz of baking soda (have not re-measured pH or TA since adding, will shortly)

I have difficulty seeing certain colors but I believe my CH is very low to non-existing. I am on town water so there may not be much hardness. From reading through the TFP forums, it appears that in fiberglass or acrylic spas you don't need to worry at all about low or non existent CH. It appears that you only need to increase CH if you are having foaming issues. Based on that I will not add any calcium now (please advise if I should).

I added 1.1oz of sodium bromide to per the bottle to establish my base. Now I believe I am at the part where I need to shock with oxidizer (chlorine/bleach or MPS). I have Clorox 8.25% bleach and Leisure Time Renew non-Chlorine Shock (MSP). Can anyone give me some quick advice about the best approach?

Thanks!

 

[TSpa]

I added in the bromine tab floater then waited a while and attempted to measure Bromine levels using the Taylor K-2106. I did not detect any Bromine. I assume that may be because I have not added an oxidizer yet. I just now added 5oz of 8.25% bleach to raise the FC by 15 to start the shock.

How long should I wait before attempting to measure Bromine again?

Thanks.

 

[TSpa]

Just made new measurements today.
pH = 8.0 (plan to add 0.4 oz of dry acid to get pH down to 7.5)
TA = 110
CH = 40
Total Bromine = 11.25 (equates to FC of 5)

So after I add the dry acid to get pH a little lower, is it ready to start using or do I need to wait for Bromine to come down some more? If I should wait, how long will it take for Bromine to come down?

Thanks.

 

[heykerrdog]

How do I use Bromine in my spa (or pool)?)

They recommend 4-6 ppm Bromine. Personally, I'm liking a lower setting of 2.0 ppm Bromine in my spa.

The pool math calculator needs FC to do the math. You have to convert with 2.25 as you are aware.

Pool Math has FC, but I'm using Bromine. Converting with 2.25

If you add too much bleach and your bromine level runs too high, you can leave the lid off and let the sunlight knock down the level since chlorine doesn't like the sun.

My CH is always high 175-225 out of the tap. I don't bother with it.

If you find that you're always having to mess with pH and it's driving you mad, then research and go with the addition of borates. I simply went with granular boric acid from duda diesel and it made my life easier by stabilizing everything. Rarely have to touch pH after it's set.

And don't forget to determine the price of water from your water bill. I get 750 gallons for $1.80. Instead of all the chemical juggling, and pulling my hair out, I just drain and refill every 45-60 days. New water is always nice.

 

[TSpa]

heykerrdog, thanks for the response. I have been using the spa since October. It was a learning curve in the beginning but have got a good system down now. When I drain and fill I add bromide, the only chemicals I use is the bromine tabs for floater, 8.25% bleach to sanitize after soak, 20 baume muriatic acid, baking soda and borax. Water is always clean, clear, no smell, no foam and feels great. The K-2106 test kit has been great even though I have issues seeing certain colors!
When my bromine levels are too high (greater than 10ppm) I just let the sunlight hit it for a while to bring it down. Adding borates as you said certainly helped buffer the pH. I will always add borates after doing the drain and fill. I have borax on hand so that is what I have used.

The only downside is that since its on old spa with poor insulation, I have noticed that my electricity bill has increased by about $150 per month when compared to my bills for the last several years...ouch! That is a hard pill to swallow but the wife and kids enjoy it.