Hi all,
I inherited a spa recently and am having difficulty with a few things.
First, I should say I started off with a spa with water. I don't really plan to use the spa until spring, but I want to keep the thing sanitized and balanced over the winter until I can drain and refill the thing without it being a huge pain in the butt. (Everything is already winterized here). I don't want to go into details for privacy reasons, but I trust that the previous owner took good care of the water before I became the owner. That said, I'm not sure when the last refill was. And I didn't start treating the water until about 3-4 weeks after inheriting the spa. Until then, it was at 100 degrees and covered, and unused for at least 4 weeks.
Following all the guidelines I could find, I first balanced total alkalinity and pH. Both were initially very low. I balanced to 120 for TA using baking soda, and then balanced pH using muriatic acid. The TA seems relatively stable but the pH seems to creep up every day despite adding muriatic acid to get it back to the ideal range every day.
Because the spa hadn't been sanitized in at least 3 weeks and was registering as having very low bromine levels, I took a day off of adding muriatic acid to adjust the pH and instead added bromine. (I didn't want to add muriatic acid the same day as adding bromine and shock due to the warnings about creating a toxic gas like mustard gas). The pH was reading at about 7.8 when I added the bromine.
Because I couldn't get my hands on any granular bromine until later this week, I crushed up 5-6 bromine tablets that were on hand and put that into the spa. I haven't added MPS yet, which is the shock I have on hand, because I can't tell whether the spa has an ozonator or not. The pH is reading high (approximately 8 now), although as mentioned above it was lower before adding the bromine.
My immediate concerns are:
1. I am getting some inconsistent feedback about the bromine levels. My Taylor TA test is starting blue and turning yellow, which I've read is an indicator that bromine levels are high. But my total bromine test is barely registering any bromine (0.0-0.5 ppm). Is there some explanation for this? Could my TA test somehow be blue and yellow even if I have very low bromine levels? The TA test was green and red before adding the bromine. Could my total bromine test be bad?
2. I am not sure whether to add MPS or not to shock, as I can't figure out if I have an ozonator. The spa brand is Sweetwater Spa, but I cannot find the model number. The thing is built into a deck with only the top showing, and I looked everywhere I could access under the deck but could not find a panel. Thus, to the extent there is a way to find the model number anywhere other than the top of the spa, I don't think I can find that without ripping my deck apart. Is there any way to figure out if I have an ozonator without the model number? And if I do have an ozonator, will adding MPS damage my spa?
3. My crushed bromine tablets are not dissolving in the bottom of my tub. Does this have to do with my pH creeping up or the lack of MPS? What should I do to help them dissolve?
4. I reduced the temp to 70 degrees to try to lower the chances of stuff growing in my spa over the winter. Is this ok, or could this be affecting the issues above?
Thanks so much for any advice you can give.
I inherited a spa recently and am having difficulty with a few things.
First, I should say I started off with a spa with water. I don't really plan to use the spa until spring, but I want to keep the thing sanitized and balanced over the winter until I can drain and refill the thing without it being a huge pain in the butt. (Everything is already winterized here). I don't want to go into details for privacy reasons, but I trust that the previous owner took good care of the water before I became the owner. That said, I'm not sure when the last refill was. And I didn't start treating the water until about 3-4 weeks after inheriting the spa. Until then, it was at 100 degrees and covered, and unused for at least 4 weeks.
Following all the guidelines I could find, I first balanced total alkalinity and pH. Both were initially very low. I balanced to 120 for TA using baking soda, and then balanced pH using muriatic acid. The TA seems relatively stable but the pH seems to creep up every day despite adding muriatic acid to get it back to the ideal range every day.
Because the spa hadn't been sanitized in at least 3 weeks and was registering as having very low bromine levels, I took a day off of adding muriatic acid to adjust the pH and instead added bromine. (I didn't want to add muriatic acid the same day as adding bromine and shock due to the warnings about creating a toxic gas like mustard gas). The pH was reading at about 7.8 when I added the bromine.
Because I couldn't get my hands on any granular bromine until later this week, I crushed up 5-6 bromine tablets that were on hand and put that into the spa. I haven't added MPS yet, which is the shock I have on hand, because I can't tell whether the spa has an ozonator or not. The pH is reading high (approximately 8 now), although as mentioned above it was lower before adding the bromine.
My immediate concerns are:
1. I am getting some inconsistent feedback about the bromine levels. My Taylor TA test is starting blue and turning yellow, which I've read is an indicator that bromine levels are high. But my total bromine test is barely registering any bromine (0.0-0.5 ppm). Is there some explanation for this? Could my TA test somehow be blue and yellow even if I have very low bromine levels? The TA test was green and red before adding the bromine. Could my total bromine test be bad?
2. I am not sure whether to add MPS or not to shock, as I can't figure out if I have an ozonator. The spa brand is Sweetwater Spa, but I cannot find the model number. The thing is built into a deck with only the top showing, and I looked everywhere I could access under the deck but could not find a panel. Thus, to the extent there is a way to find the model number anywhere other than the top of the spa, I don't think I can find that without ripping my deck apart. Is there any way to figure out if I have an ozonator without the model number? And if I do have an ozonator, will adding MPS damage my spa?
3. My crushed bromine tablets are not dissolving in the bottom of my tub. Does this have to do with my pH creeping up or the lack of MPS? What should I do to help them dissolve?
4. I reduced the temp to 70 degrees to try to lower the chances of stuff growing in my spa over the winter. Is this ok, or could this be affecting the issues above?
Thanks so much for any advice you can give.
@ the top of this sub forum.
) & it can get nasty/dangerous in a hurry. Especially if they are under sanitized for any period of time. A purge upon every fresh fill (every 4-6 months) is a must. Along with proper sanitation. You also aren’t sure what chems were even used in the tub - 2step or 3 step system? so a fresh start should simplify things.
since u mentioned kiddos do u have a locking cover (or a way to secure it)? If not please make that priority #1. 
to lock them.
my friend on the purge/refill - we knew u could do it!