Ahhsome was clean...

[dunginhawk]

So I have the utmost faith in this stuff because its gotten some MAJOR gunk out of my lines in the past... However this time (running now) its 20 minutes in with NO gunk, at all... Like nothing...
Its about 4.5 months of use (fairly light during summer and fall) but still, I would have expected something.
Should I trust that everything worked right, and just chalk it up to a fairly clean tub to start?
I ran a very high FC level for that time too. Mostly 10-20 (yes, cya to match).
Could the high FC have done a stellar job of keeping it extra clean>?
Just a little surprised it had nothing in it

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Sounds like the ahh-some got everything out the first time around. 4.5 months of light use with proper sanitation will not allow biofilm growth. Your tub is all good!

 

[dunginhawk]

Well that makes me a happy camper Thanks

 

[Newdude]

I didn’t know the stuff existed until recently. It took 2cycles to loosen up enough to work. After that it spewed gunk out for about 10 cycles because I had 7 years of crud to get out. Yours is safe to assume it was just already clean at the start.

 

[dunginhawk]

Yeah i do it every clean out.. Which is now 5 times (its only a year old). First few times was pretty gunky... this time... very very little..

 

[Newdude]

Supposedly they come nasty from the manufacturer. It makes sense, they test it and then empty the tub but the lines sit half full festering for however long it takes to end up at your house. Sometimes even a year or more of it’s a ‘leftover’ when you are buying. Now that you know it’s clean you can easily go 6 months between doses.

 

[Oly]

I transitioned my spa away from years of biquanide use and it took half a dozen treatments to clean it. I still use the product prior to every drain and refill but with a much less drastic results now.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Biofilms will only form in the plumbing when the water is stagnant and when bacteria are present. If the tub is purged and proper sanitation is maintained, the chances of bacterial biofilm formation are pretty low. Films can also form from oils and sloughed off skin cells in human sweat and any external source of contamination from hair products or body lotions. Those films can form in the plumbing and then become a home to bacteria. Therefore it's advisable to purge once or twice per year and keep your filters clean. As long as you do that, the tub will remain very sanitary.

Ahh-some is also great at cleaning out washing machine tubs. I use it my washer on the "Affresh Clean Cycle" every other time the clean-machine reminder light goes off. I recently had the machine serviced and they pulled the inner clothes tub out. The guy said he'd never seen a tub that clean before as the outer wall of the clothes tub usually builds up a thick layer of soap-scum on it. Even the outer plastic tub was free of debris. The pump well had a small amount of water in it but the o-ring was visible and clean. The guy said he usually scoops out two fingers worth of gunk from the pump well. I told him about Ahh-some and he thought I was kind of nuts using a hot-tub cleaner inside the washing machine but he also said he couldn't argue with the results.

 

[Ahhsomeguy]

JoyfulNoise has always been a valued contributor to this forum. We certainly appreciate your helpful postings.
Just to clear up a small issue that was previously mentioned, Biofilms can still develop and thrive even in continuously moving water with sanitizer present. Within the plumbing of most closed loop vessels or appliances, there are usually areas where attachment can and will occur. Once this happens, it can usually continue on it's path to grow and expand. This is why we strongly recommend that hot tubs plumbing and jets are purged twice annually. It is true that on the initial Ahh-Some flush there can be a heavy discharge of detritus gunk and grime.
Successive purges may not produce as heavy a discharge but it is important to continue this maintenance protocol to ensure that your soaking environment is a healthy one. Color of the biofilm also can change after the initial purge. Initially, the discharge is usually brownish yellow and successive purges will be lighter and almost a tint of greenishness to it. This is typical.
Yes, Ahh-Some can be used in your washing machine and dishwasher. We do manufacture a different formulation for these appliances that has different cleaning agents than the hot tub product. However, as JoyfulNoise has said, it works great. We have many commercial laundries , hospitals and hotels that use our products. If you think hot tub plumbing can be gunked up, you want to see what happens in washing machines and to a lesser extent, dishwashers. Rather than tell everyone what happens in washers and dishwashers I recommend that you Google biofilm in washing machines and dishwashers. You'll be amazed at what you'll read. We think that clothes, towels, dishes and utensils are clean after the wash. Think again! Thanks again Joyful for bringing the appliance thing up.
Your postings will surely benefit all readers.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Personally, I find food/“garbage” disposals attached to sinks to be extremely gross. I replaced one a few years back the grinding chamber was disgusting with thick black slimy masses adhering to the inner wall (I think it moved on its own too ?). And I typically use “disposal cleaners” a few times per month (oxiclean and lemishine brands). The problem is you can’t get the interior volume to fill up long enough for the chemicals to do anything useful. The only way is to disassemble the drain pipe and block it so that you can fill the disposal chamber. Either that or drop out the disposal and take it apart. Either way, it’s a major kitchen sink project. I don’t throw much down the drain (I compost food waste) but my mother in law is of the generation that throws everything down the drain, including pans full of bacon grease ?‍ I had to sit her down and show her the British sewer “fat-berge” video to get her to at least quit throwing grease down the drain....that and threatening her with the plumbers bill when they have to bust up the foundation to replace a clogged up drain line ?

 

[Rattus Suffocatus]

Matt's comment on the disposal is interesting. I wonder if you do that major sink project if you could put a PVC valve below the disposal and above the trap just to block it off for cleaning with ahhsome or something else? Interesting idea... How much of the hot tub cleaner do you use in a dishwasher or a clothes washer? It would be great if I could (slightly) misuse the product for these other uses. I need to do my tub and this upcoming weekend is when I am planning to do that. Only about 3 months overdue for a water change, but the tub hasn't gotten a lot of use in those last three months unfortunately. I hope to change that, though in the coming months. During construction of the pool every time I opened it up I had dirt get into it. I am so glad that is over.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

I use a quarter teaspoon

Maddie

 

[JoyfulNoise]

I have a top loading high capacity high efficiency washer (that’s life with 4 kids and 3 adults). The tub completely fills (twice) during a Clean cycle and I estimate it’s probably 30-40 gallons of water. So I use about 1 teaspoon which is overkill I’m sure. I’ve gone as high as 1-1/2 teaspoons but that was a bit too foamy. I also add a little bleach to the bleach compartment so the machine sees chlorine along with the biofilm remover. When it’s done, I leave the lid open to let it air dry. My machine always smells clean. I once opened the lid on a machine at a hotel that offered “free access” to a washer and dryer and I nearly vomited from the odor inside that machine. Suffice it to say, my luggage went home with dirty clothes on that trip.

 

[Rattus Suffocatus]

Okay.. That's basically the setup I have. I have four kids and two adults (I don't count my 18 yo as an adult yet, and soon I won't count a 18 yo and a 19 yo in that category), and three dogs (don't ask) and three cats (really don't ask) and two birds. (The rabbit died...), so almost exactly the same situation.

I'll have to do that over the Christmas break. I'd like to do it for the dishwasher as well.

Thank you for the approximate dosage. I normally would just use "a lot" but Ahh-some isn't inexpensive. And noting that the foaming could be excessive, I am glad I asked.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

I only used 1/4 teaspoon in my dishwasher and it took several rinse cycles to get all the foam out (but then again, my dishwasher is junk and I’m praying for it to die so I can get a new one...). If you’re going to use it in the dishwasher you may want to get the product that was mentioned as being specially formulated for appliances OR dilute 1/4 teaspoon in a pint of clean distilled water and use that diluted solution as a cleaning agent (maybe start with 1/2 cup of the diluted solution).

 

[Newdude]

Do you just add it in or does it have to go in the soap reservoirs ? I planned on doing both the washer and dishwasher but ended up using the whole can on the hot tub and haven’t gotten around to ordering more. I’m sure it will work wonders. I clean the grease trap thingy on the washer once a year and usually get about a baseball of sewage like sludge out of it. I can only image everywhere I can’t get to.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Do you just add it in or does it have to go in the soap reservoirs ? I planned on doing both the washer and dishwasher but ended up using the whole can on the hot tub and haven’t gotten around to ordering more. I’m sure it will work wonders. I clean the grease trap thingy on the washer once a year and usually get about a baseball of sewage like sludge out of it. I can only image everywhere I can’t get to.

Does your washer have a specific "CLEAN" cycle (a lot of the newer models have this) ? With my CLEAN cycle, I simply add a teaspoon to the tub, set it to CLEAN and let 'er rip. The CLEAN cycle uses HOT water only and fills the tub completely up. It cycles and recirculates water through the various soap/softener/bleach compartments to make sure they are rinsed as well. If you don't have a specific CLEAN cycle, then just use a HOT standard wash cycle and add the Ahh-some to the tub directly. If the HOT cycle uses bleach, you can add half a normal dose of bleach to the bleach compartment so that the machine is cleaning itself with bleach + Ahh-some/

As for the washing machine, you can simply add the Ahh-some to the detergent compartment and run the machine on a normal HOT cycle. Just make sure the machine is totally empty with nothing but the racks in place.

 

[Newdude]

Good to know, thanks. The dishwasher is somewhat newer but still old enough to only have a single knob control. I will add some accordingly when i get some more ahh-some.

 

[jseyfert3]

Ahh-some is also great at cleaning out washing machine tubs. I use it my washer on the "Affresh Clean Cycle" every other time the clean-machine reminder light goes off. I recently had the machine serviced and they pulled the inner clothes tub out. The guy said he'd never seen a tub that clean before as the outer wall of the clothes tub usually builds up a thick layer of soap-scum on it. Even the outer plastic tub was free of debris. The pump well had a small amount of water in it but the o-ring was visible and clean. The guy said he usually scoops out two fingers worth of gunk from the pump well. I told him about Ahh-some and he thought I was kind of nuts using a hot-tub cleaner inside the washing machine but he also said he couldn't argue with the results.

Hmm, this and the dishwasher sound like great ideas.

I usually run our front loader "Affresh Clean Cycle" with bleach instead of Affresh (cause I can't stand scented things) as per the manufacture recommendation. That does okay on smells and such but almost certainly doesn't clean like Ahh-some (though I haven't yet used Ahh-some on anything).

If you think hot tub plumbing can be gunked up, you want to see what happens in washing machines and to a lesser extent, dishwashers. Rather than tell everyone what happens in washers and dishwashers I recommend that you Google biofilm in washing machines and dishwashers. You'll be amazed at what you'll read.

Don't do this before you eat...our last apartment we had an "old-fashioned" dishwasher with the dial. First off, these never run long enough with the new phosphate free detergents to actually clean dishes (hence why new dishwashers run 3-4 hours). It also didn't seem to be filling enough, as you could hear the pump sucking air. So this didn't help. To top it off we had hard water. We gave up trying to use it but not before I tried to clean it out. Removed the filter (ugg, why didn't dishwashers keep a grinder disposal instead of a filter) and it was GROSS under there. Like all the junk you see coming out in videos/pictures of Ahh-some hot tub purges but layered thick around the pump!

We gave up trying to use that dishwasher. Luckily our new house has both a better dishwasher (digital controlled long cycle type) plus soft water, so I'm looking forward to not handwashing dishes again after 3 years of handwashing. I'll have to do an Ahh-some purge of that alongside the Ahh-some purge of the hot tub that comes with the house before I use either.

 

[Rattus Suffocatus]

By the way, a really good way of fixing the phosphate free detergent issue if you live in a reasonable state (it's banned in unreasonable states, but I won't get into a political debate about it) is to go to the paint section of a hardware store or Home Depot and buy REAL Tri-Sodium Phosphate (usually in a red box). Add about a half teaspoon to whatever soap you use and ... voila! Especially if you have high mineral content in the water this makes a huge difference.

Most commercial dishwashing soaps still have TSP in them.. the deemed public health risk is worse in this case than a bit of fertilizer bloom. There are definitely places that this bloom could be an issue, but as long as your water is treated (i.e. sewer) or live several miles from a lake or river and are on a septic the chance of actually causing any damage doing this is minimal.