It’s time to make amends with an old friend. Admit it: You’ve probably ignored your backyard spa in recent months, opting to spend the hottest summer on record in the swimming pool. As autumn comes around, well, you can’t deny the relaxing benefits of a good soak. If you haven’t experienced it for yourself, come around to our showcase to see what you’re missing! So how do you get everything back for the coming season? Here’s a quick rundown, beginning with cleaning the plumbing:
Turn off power and start draining the spa
BEFORE DRAINING- add a jet cleaner to clear pipes of organics, oils, dirt, and minerals to prevent buildup that can restrict water flow and damage equipment. Circulate water with the filter removed as recommend on the manufactures label. As always, we stock every product you need to clean and maintain your spa!
Turn off power and start draining the spa
Whiling draining grab your surface cleaner and brush (we recommend using the Scrub-Glove) and climb into the hot tub. What better time to give the walls and waterline a thorough scrub down? Cleaning this way will prevent the cleaner from getting into freshwater added to the spa later in this process. As a bonus, products purchased from us can be used to clean your patio furniture and swimming pool as well!
Check out the spa’s mechanics. Look for signs of a leak in the piping and around the spa pumps.
Change the filter cartridge and scrub the skimmer basket. Alternatively, give your old filter a deep cleanse with our powerful overnight degreaser. Spa cartridge filters should never be allowed to dry while dirty. If yours has wholly dried before cleaning it is time for it to replace with a new filter.
Fill the spa with fresh water—a 300-gallon hot tub should take about 30 minutes. REMEMBER: always fill the spa through the filter basket with the filter removed. Filling this way will prevent airlocks. If upon starting the spa you have a DRY or FLO error code, you most likely have an airlock. However, we are always a phone call away to help talk you through technical questions!
Once the tub is filled half-way up the skimmer, turn off the hose and replace filter cartridge.
Test the different features including the jets, lights, waterfalls to ensure proper functioning.
Set the desired water temperature. Typically, a spa heats 5-6 degrees per hour depending on incoming water temperature and the size of the spa. Expect your tub to be up to temperature in 8-12 hours Everything great to this point then your tub trips the breaker? Don't panic, during this time your spa heater is being used more than ever and sometimes fails under pressure. If this happens to you, give us a call and one of our certified technicians will help repair your spa's heater!
Add new floating, solar blanket. Including a solar blanket on your spa will add life to your spa cover as well as prevent water absorption and bacteria growth caused by the dissipation of spa water. No one likes heaving open a water-logged cover to relax in his or her spa!
Inspect your spa cover making sure yours is still secure and without cracks. Spray the lid off with a garden hose and clean with a UV protectant and conditioner, this will prevent fading and repel water, dust, and dirt from attaching to your cover.
Finally, balance and shock the water. Test all water parameters or better yet bring us in a sample to test for you! We recommend leaving the spa lid off for at least 15 minutes after shocking or adding any chemical to prevent damage to your cover.
Did you neglect your spa this summer and don't want to do the cleanup? Don't worry, call us today to set up a time for a member of our staff to do the chore for you. Alternatively, call to chat more about proper summer spa care. Newer spas offer economy mode settings, chemical automatic, and setting the spa's water temperature to a lower setting in the summer months are just a few things you can do to prevent a contaminated petri dish come Fall!
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