Hi all,
I’m a relatively new owner, but have learned a lot from reading the forum here, and have had good success so far using the methods described here.
I have an unlined, wood (AK yellow cedar) soaking tub. No air jets, just high and low speed circulation from a Pentair two-speed pump. I’ve gotten past the initial heavy tannin-leaching phase, and have been running stably with pH 7.4, TA 90, CH 140, CYA 30, BOR 40, 104F. The tub came with a Cu/Ag ionizer; I run with about 0.5 ppm Cu to keep algae down, and find given all these conditions my CYA-stabilized FC hovers low around 0.2 ppm without bather load (good to avoid pulping the wood). I dose with bleach after each use, and very occasionally boost oxidize as well with some MPS I have on hand e.g. after a party. With the unlined tub, the name of the game is achieving all the necessary sanitization and oxidation with as low a sustained FC as is workable, in order to prolong the life of the wood. And so far so good — with careful attention, I have enjoyed consistently clean, clear water, and no bather health issues.
From what I have read here, it would seem prudent to try and stay on top of any biofilm issues, especially since I am running such a low equilibrium FC. Ahh-Some seems to be the product to use at a water change, but can it be used without aerating jets in an unlined wood tub? From what I’ve seen of the product and how it is used I’d be concerned that without aerating jets the loosened scum would not float to the top in a foam, and also wonder about being able to clean the scum from exposed wood rather than just wipe it off a smooth acrylic surface. Has anybody else here with an unlined wood tub tried this?
I am wondering if I could perhaps improvise some sort of stocking filters on my returns to capture and contain the scum. Any thoughts?
Thanks much!
—FritzM.
I’m a relatively new owner, but have learned a lot from reading the forum here, and have had good success so far using the methods described here.
I have an unlined, wood (AK yellow cedar) soaking tub. No air jets, just high and low speed circulation from a Pentair two-speed pump. I’ve gotten past the initial heavy tannin-leaching phase, and have been running stably with pH 7.4, TA 90, CH 140, CYA 30, BOR 40, 104F. The tub came with a Cu/Ag ionizer; I run with about 0.5 ppm Cu to keep algae down, and find given all these conditions my CYA-stabilized FC hovers low around 0.2 ppm without bather load (good to avoid pulping the wood). I dose with bleach after each use, and very occasionally boost oxidize as well with some MPS I have on hand e.g. after a party. With the unlined tub, the name of the game is achieving all the necessary sanitization and oxidation with as low a sustained FC as is workable, in order to prolong the life of the wood. And so far so good — with careful attention, I have enjoyed consistently clean, clear water, and no bather health issues.
From what I have read here, it would seem prudent to try and stay on top of any biofilm issues, especially since I am running such a low equilibrium FC. Ahh-Some seems to be the product to use at a water change, but can it be used without aerating jets in an unlined wood tub? From what I’ve seen of the product and how it is used I’d be concerned that without aerating jets the loosened scum would not float to the top in a foam, and also wonder about being able to clean the scum from exposed wood rather than just wipe it off a smooth acrylic surface. Has anybody else here with an unlined wood tub tried this?
I am wondering if I could perhaps improvise some sort of stocking filters on my returns to capture and contain the scum. Any thoughts?
Thanks much!
—FritzM.
