Hot Tub Newbie

[hrggat]

Hi all! So we got a new hot tub about a month ago knowing basically nothing about water chemistry. The dealer sold us a start up pack with a "super easy to use chemical system" that no one has problems with . The system is called Clear Choice and upon receiving it and having nothing but problems, we have since come to realize that this is not a chemical system, nor does it actually sanitize the water. We gave it a chance for 3 weeks but have had cloudy water, then smelly water, then green water from metal oxidizing. The dealer did help a little at first with suggestions but now he doesn't call us back and the company who sells it hasn't responded. So basically, after reading this forum, we now realize we should've researched in the first place and never bought the start up pack!! Anyways, live and learn and now we need to start over. I'm trying to get a list of what all we need to start over with the chlorine method in the sticky.

Things in my cart so far:
Ahh-Some
Taylor T100 test kit

We are going to drain/purge the tub when the Ahh-Some arrives. We have well water that is softened and is otherwise full of iron, so we will fill it with a pre-filter from the softened water. We do have metals in the water despite these methods so do I need to buy something to put in the tub with the fill that will take the metal out to keep water from getting green?

We do already have a calcium increaser as well as Ph up and down that came in the start up kit.

I'm a little confused about what exactly I need to buy for the chlorine method? Where do I get the dry acid, Dichlor, and free chlorine? Do I need to get the Borates?

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer us!!

 

[Texas Splash]

Welcome to TFP! Glad to see you are taking action on your own to fix the water. You have the right idea:
1 - Ahh-Some purge
2 - Balance water using a TF-100 test kit and the link below
3- Enjoy your tub!

If you have any questions along the way let us know.

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

If you have a question about any information within this Sticky, please start a new thread for yourself where you will receive very quick responses to your specific questions. Thank you! Introduction There are two main things to consider when maintaining your hot tub water, Water Balance and...

www.troublefreepool.com

Pool Care Basics Archives

Your one-stop shop for all things TFP to include: ABCs of Water Chemistry, Recommended Chemicals/Levels, Test Kits, Troubleshooting, and much more!

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[Mdragger88]

Welcome to the hot tub club
Follow the directions mentioned above in the how to use chlorine article & as far as acid goes muriatic acid is best as it doesn’t contain sulfates which aren’t great for your tub. It can be found at Home Depot, lowes, etc. When using PoolMath to calculate dosing you just need to specify the strength you are using.
I buy my dichlor @ Walmart (spa selections 99%) it about $10. I am on my 3rd year with a spa & i am still on my 2nd container. Be aware if it’s acidic effects & take them into consideration. Poolmath effects of adding is help
Bleach - it can be household bleach so long as it’s “unadulterated” (no splashless, scented, or ones with fabric conditioners like cloromax) or you can seek out dedicated pool chlorine also available @ big box stores in the pool section.
Borates- this is the last step after you get ta in the 50/60 range & adjust ph. Its only needed if you’re dealing with frequent ph rise (which can happen alot in a small body of water full of jets) some people find just lowering their ta is enough.
Many here buy granular boric acid from duda diesel. It’s an easy all in one step that doesn’t affect other parameters. I have also used powdered boric acid due to availability but extra work is involved getting it to mix in as it wants to float & clump up.
You may want to have a little baking soda on hand as well incase you accidentally lower ta too much as u figure things out - it’s .50 cents in the baking aisle

 

[hrggat]

Welcome to the hot tub club
Follow the directions mentioned above in the how to use chlorine article & as far as acid goes muriatic acid is best as it doesn’t contain sulfates which aren’t great for your tub. It can be found at Home Depot, lowes, etc. When using PoolMath to calculate dosing you just need to specify the strength you are using.
I buy my dichlor @ Walmart (spa selections 99%) it about $10. I am on my 3rd year with a spa & i am still on my 2nd container. Be aware if it’s acidic effects & take them into consideration. Poolmath effects of adding is help
Bleach - it can be household bleach so long as it’s “unadulterated” (no splashless, scented, or ones with fabric conditioners like cloromax) or you can seek out dedicated pool chlorine also available @ big box stores in the pool section.
Borates- this is the last step after you get ta in the 50/60 range & adjust ph. Its only needed if you’re dealing with frequent ph rise (which can happen alot in a small body of water full of jets) some people find just lowering their ta is enough.
Many here buy granular boric acid from duda diesel. It’s an easy all in one step that doesn’t affect other parameters. I have also used powdered boric acid due to availability but extra work is involved getting it to mix in as it wants to float & clump up.
You may want to have a little baking soda on hand as well incase you accidentally lower ta too much as u figure things out - it’s .50 cents in the baking aisle

Thank you so much for the details on where to get this stuff! So you would suggest getting the muriatic acid vs. the Spa Down stuff that came with our kit to lower pH? Is that stuff good for anything or basically not? We also have Spa Up but it looks like we would use baking soda instead?

Also, any suggestions on what to use for taking the metals out of the water when filling? I read an article from SpaDepot that recommended some metal sequesterant stuff to put in when filling. Will the stuff that takes the metals out impact anything in the instructions for the dichlor/bleach method?

Thank you!

 

[Mdragger88]

If u already own the ph down - dry acid just use it up & then after that get muriatic acid. Not sure what’s in “spa up” so always check the ingredients. The actual ingredient names are listed in poolmath. It may be soda ash (super washing soda) or baking soda - both of which are cheaper to buy as household versions but using up the fancy stuff 1st won’t hurt anything.

Recommended Pool Chemicals

Which should I buy? TFP's recommended pool chemicals are cheap, easy, and won't unbalance your pool water.

www.troublefreepool.com

I am lucky to not have to deal with metals.
Many here have had luck with the polyfill method first allowing them to use less sequestrant overall or completely avoid it.
You really won’t know the severity until u chlorinate properly.

If you’ve got iron in your fill water, use Polyfill to remove it

EDIT: Found out this method only works if your iron is oxidized already, meaning it’s got a dull or bright green tint to the water, or a nasty brown tint. If you know you have iron in your fill water, but it isn’t oxidized yet, bring your pool to shock level and it’ll turn the telltale green...

www.troublefreepool.com

Sequestrant - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[hrggat]

Welcome to TFP! Glad to see you are taking action on your own to fix the water. You have the right idea:
1 - Ahh-Some purge
2 - Balance water using a TF-100 test kit and the link below
3- Enjoy your tub!

If you have any questions along the way let us know.

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

If you have a question about any information within this Sticky, please start a new thread for yourself where you will receive very quick responses to your specific questions. Thank you! Introduction There are two main things to consider when maintaining your hot tub water, Water Balance and...

www.troublefreepool.com

Pool Care Basics Archives

Your one-stop shop for all things TFP to include: ABCs of Water Chemistry, Recommended Chemicals/Levels, Test Kits, Troubleshooting, and much more!

www.troublefreepool.com

Ok, I have questions now!!!

So all the supplies finally got here and we did the Ahh-Some purge this morning. Got a ton of nastiness out and drained. Didn't repeat b/c we have well water and I didn't want to risk running the well dry, but it seemed liked the nasties were mostly gone after running the jets for 60 min so hopefully we got it all.

The tub is filling back up now. Once it's filled, do I have to wait until it comes up to temperature to start balancing the water? I already know we need to add calcium because it tested at 0 out of the water softener, but can we start adjusting TA and pH while it's still colder water?

 

[Texas Splash]

No waiting. Go ahead and balance.

 

[hrggat]

No waiting. Go ahead and balance.

Thanks for the quick reply!! I'm already excited because the water is so clear I can barely tell where the line is as it is filling up. I wish I would've found this forum while we waited 4 months for the hot tub to come, would've saved a lot of stress .

 

[hrggat]

No waiting. Go ahead and balance.

Finally full, had to give the well a break so it took awhile. The muriatic acid we got is the brand Klean Strip Green and we found on the SDS sheet it was 30%. Do we need to dilute it first before putting it in. Or just pour in the advised amount?

 

[Texas Splash]

Do we need to dilute it first before putting it in. Or just pour in the advised amount?

You can pour acid directly in the water per the required dosage. Just pour slowly with good circulation and be careful of the fumes.