Any advice on best SWG for hot tub ?

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Matilda

Matilda

Active member
Dec 3, 2017
37
West Yorks/UK
Hi all,
I've been reading through a lot of the info in here and it's all been great advice so far. My tests are so much better since I got the Taylor kit as advised on here, so thank you so much for that. I'm enjoying doing them ! I feel like I'm starting to understand a little more about what's going on with my water balance and the whole dichlor/CYA relationship ( still trying to wrap my head around everything else )

We're considering adding a plug and play type SWG but wondering what the best one would be for the UK ?
I've read somewhere about 'oversizing' the cell ? Not sure if I've understood this correctly - would that mean buying a larger SWG than my tub would need ? We have a 330 gallon tub.
We we're wanting to go down the dichlor then bleach method but PH keeps drifting up high for some reason and I'm a bit worried about keeping the balance on that. We're using PH down ( theres a warning on a sticker on the tub under the filter lid that states our warranty will be invalid if we use muriatic acid) !?

These are our latest results:
Chlorine 4ppm
PH currently 7.6 but been having to add PH down for the last 3-4 days as it keeps creeping over 8 +++
CC'S - 0.5 they were 1.5 but shocked last week and they have been 0.5 since then.
TA 90 ( has steadily been 100 but has dropped a little today )
Calcium 100 (Our supply water tested at 90)
CYA - 45 (did a 3/4 drain last week as it was 90) I know it's up again !

I would be looking to get one from the UK preferably as bought the Taylor kit and then some more reagents from US and got stung heavily with a brokerage charge from UPS and customs and duty taxes that added another £70 :shock:


Any advice on a good one to get or any other drawbacks from using SWG or things we need to be aware of would be very much appreciated.
 
m,

I use one of these... Saltron mini... You basically just plug the power supply into the wall and throw the "cell" into the tub. Costs less than $200 US bucks.

There are a number of flags on the box and one of them looks pretty British to me, so I assume they are sold over there.

I've had it running for about 6 months and so far it has worked great. The only down side I have found is that it does not have an internal clock. So if you tell it to run for 8 hours, it starts at the time you set it. You cannot say.. come on at 8 pm and run for 8 hours. It is a minor issue and nothing that I worry about.

My Spa is only 200 US gallons, but it is rated for "up to" 2000 gallons.

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Thanks for posting,

Jim R.
 
Thank you Jim ! That's one I've actually been looking at :)
Does it cause the PH to rise a lot and do they automatically generate a certain amount of chlorine or is it gauged by the amount of salt added ?
Sorry if it's obvious, I really don't know that much about them other than you can avoid the CYA build up with them.
 
m,

This cell generates a set amount of chlorine per hour... you just adjust the run time for the amount of chlorine you want.

The amount of salt does not have anything to do with the amount of chlorine any cell produces as long as the salt level is between the min and max levels.

I have not noticed any more or less of an increase in my pH levels since switching over to the saltwater system. I still have to add about a half an ounce of Muriatic Acid once a week or so to keep it in check.

My pool is saltwater and it just seemed to be the way to go with the spa also..

You still need to have CYA in the water... at about 70 ppm or so.

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
m,

I am using the same basic set up I do with my pool.. Per this chart.. [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA] using the saltwater settings...

I went back and read the instructions that came with the Saltron and it says... "CYA - 50 to 80 ppm" and then "CYA used in outdoor spas only"..

Well, my spa is outside, but it has a thermal cover, so maybe it is not outdoors... :confused:

I need to go back and research what my CYA should be.. But so far, I have not noticed any issues with the water or anything else.

My Spa is very simple and has no additional sanitizers like Ozone or UV... Just the SWCG...

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
How do I use Chlorine in my Spa (or pool)?)

Read that. CYA won't raise if you use bleach. Using dichlor is just to get the CYA up to around 30, then you switch to bleach.

Your pH will keep creeping up until you get your TA down to around 50. It'll slow way down at that point. Using acid/aeration outlined in the above link to lower it. (pH down is dry acid, which can be used. Most use muriatic acid as it's cheaper. For hot tubs that amount needed would be too small for price difference though).
 
Don't these hot-tubs heat the water? Isn't using one of these pretty much like taking a bath (What did Kramer have to say about baths?)? Wouldn't it be easier/cheaper to just drain and refill every week or so? Just musing!
 
PoolGate said:
Don't these hot-tubs heat the water? Isn't using one of these pretty much like taking a bath (What did Kramer have to say about baths?)? Wouldn't it be easier/cheaper to just drain and refill every week or so? Just musing!
Click to expand...

Well, sure... assuming they were plumbed into regular water and sewer lines. But they're not, so its a bit more time consuming to change out the water.

What *did* Kramer say about baths anyway?? :)

Maddie :flower:
 

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PoolGate said:
Don't these hot-tubs heat the water? Isn't using one of these pretty much like taking a bath (What did Kramer have to say about baths?)? Wouldn't it be easier/cheaper to just drain and refill every week or so? Just musing!
Click to expand...

pg,

I started writing a response and then threw it away, as I'm not sure if you are just having fun and... :poke: ..at us or if you are serious???

I'd be glad to poke back or provide a reply, depending on what you want...... :p

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
Jimrahbe said:
pg,

I started writing a response and then threw it away, as I'm not sure if you are just having fun and... :poke: ..at us or if you are serious???

I'd be glad to poke back or provide a reply, depending on what you want...... :p

Thanks,

Jim R.
Click to expand...

Nah just musing. But if it was me I think I really would think about changing the water every few weeks it really is like a large bathtub. I have a jetted tub that holds around 150 gallons.
 
Pool gate, if you were running an outdoor hot tub at this time of year in your location you might begin to see where that would be a problem ;) I have a hard enough time keeping the snow off the lid!

A hot tub is more like a pool then a bathtub due to filtration and sanitation. So long as you never let your FC drop and don't overload TDS with oils, hair product, etc., you can get by in hard winter without a change. With that said, periodic water changes in the order of every few months are a good thing to my mind. I do a full change before Xmas and a partial here and there on mild days prior to spring water swap. But draining hot water in winter causes the deck to ice up, which can be a total pita.

Jim, re the saltron mini...I've been looking at it but my preferred hot tub repair guy (and therefore, hubby as well) swears salt is rough on old hot tubs. Is yours newer? How long have you had the saltron vs hot tub and has your pump behaved?

A few years back, my then- 15 yrs+ old 2 HP jacuzzi pump failed a while after I'd used moderate amounts of Epsom salt and repair guy blamed that on the Epsom, not the age.
 
sw,

I bought my 2008 Spa, used, about 6 months ago.. I added the salt system almost immediately.. So far no issues at all, but 6 months is not really long enough to make any decisions..

I personally don't believe in all the saltwater myths, but only time will tell in the case of my spa..

Thanks,

Jim R.

- - - Updated - - -

PoolGate said:
Nah just musing. But if it was me I think I really would think about changing the water every few weeks it really is like a large bathtub. I have a jetted tub that holds around 150 gallons.
Click to expand...

pg,

You have a 150 gallon indoor bathroom tub??? What heats the water?

Jim R.
 
Jimrahbe said:
sw,

I bought my 2008 Spa, used, about 6 months ago.. I added the salt system almost immediately.. So far no issues at all, but 6 months is not really long enough to make any decisions..

I personally don't believe in all the saltwater myths, but only time will tell in the case of my spa..

Thanks,

Jim R.

- - - Updated - - -



pg,

You have a 150 gallon indoor bathroom tub??? What heats the water?

Jim R.
Click to expand...

It is a large Kholer jetted "garden" tub. Not sure what the actual volume but I'd say it would hold the entire contents of my Aquarium easily. No builtin heater so what I usually do is fill it around 1/2 way with hot water and wait 30 minutes for the hot water to recover and then fill it the rest of the way. It is very seldomly used almost never by myself maybe once a year but I let my kids use it once in awhile.
 
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