Maintenance

Hopefully you have successfully taken delivery of your perfect hot tub from Better Living Outdoors

Filling your Spa

If you aren’t having a full installation please follow the below steps when filling your spa.

1. Remove your filter(s)
2. Place hose pipe into the filter housing and leave until the water level is at the required marker
3. Once the spa is full, remove the wrapper from the filter and replace into the spa.
4. Replace the filter housing.
5. Switch on the power to your hot tub.
6. Hot tub will now go into priming/purge mode. Press both Jet buttons. Leave spa to run until the temperature shows on your control panel.
7. You can now set the spa to your required settings.
8. Once your spa has reached 32 degrees you can then start to balance your water using your desired treatment method.

Hot Tub Maintenance

Chemical Treatment

Before we start on how to dose your spa, we would like to point out what NOT to do and that is to use any household cleaning products, such as laundry detergent, Dettol antibacterial sprays, car wash, dishwasher soaps etc. and definitely nothing that bubbles i.e bubble bath!!

There are a number of ways to balance your water chemistry and clean your hot tub filter! Below is a simplified checklist for what to do when dosing your spa…

Wellis Crystal

The first time you dose your water, whether it be brand new or you have just emptied and refilled your spa always double the dosage. Leave your spa for a minimum of 12 hours before use.

1. Shake well before use.
2. Add treatment dosage, use manual chart to get your specific dosage.
3. Fully open pumps for 2-5 minutes.
4. Place chlorine tablet into dispenser and position in the filter housing.
5. Repeat weekly.

In cases where the hot tub is used more than 3 times a week, ensure that you monitor the chlorine table. If this has dissolved before your scheduled weekly dosing please replace to ensure water chemistry stays balanced.

Chlorine/ Bromine

1. Use test strips to check the chemical and mineral levels in your spa. You should be checking and adjusting the chemical levels in your spa 1-2 times a week. Readings show Total Alkalinity, Chlorine/Bromine, pH, and sometimes total hardness. Put these strips in your spa for as little as 15 seconds and then view the results.
2. Add one chemical to your spa at a time. When adjusting hot tub chemical levels, add one chemical to the water, and then wait a full two hours before adding another chemical. This will allow the chemicals to disperse naturally and will help to maximize their effectiveness. Waiting also minimizes the risk of a chemical reactions between the additives that can cause problems.
   Keep your spa cover off for at least 15 minutes after you have added your chemicals.
   Keep your spa water running when you add the chemicals. This is important because you want the jets to mix the chemicals in the water well.
   Pre-mix your chemicals granules in an old jug and pour directly into the filter housing.
3. Check Total Alkalinity first. Depending on the test reading, add sodium bicarbonate (spa up) or an Alkalinity Builder as needed. Use your test strips- a well-balanced spa should be between 80-120 PPM in total alkalinity. If the total alkalinity goes above 120, you should add pH minus. Add these fast-dissolving spa products to your spa, and then recheck your alkalinity in a couple of hours. It is important to maintain your alkalinity first because it affects your pH.
4. Use chlorine or bromine to sanitise your hot tub. Make sure to use test strips to maintain the correct chemical levels.. Chlorine and bromine can be purchased in granular form or in 1-inch tablets.
   If you are using chlorine, put 2 tablespoons (29.6 ml) into a jug/container and dissolve the pour soloution into your spas filter housing every other day or as recommended as per the test strip readings so that the chlorine level stays between 1.5-3 PPM. DO NOT throw the granules straight into the spa, if the granules settle on your acrylic and do not dissolve this may cause damage to the acrylic. This damage will not be covered as a warranty claim.
   If you are using bromine, the read on the test strips should stay between 3.0-5.0.
   Buy a floater for bromine or chlorine tablets. You will load 4-6 tabs into the floater, and they will dissolve in your spa over time. Using the floater, you won’t have to add bromine or chlorine to your spa as often; however, continue using the test strips to check the chemical and mineral levels in your spa once a week.
   Do not over sanitize your spa with chlorine. Make sure you put the appropriate level of chlorine in your spa, but do not add more than the recommended amount, because it could damage the spa’s equipment and cover.
   Consider adding a mineral based purifier to reduce the amount of chlorine or bromine you have to use. Nature2 makes a product called Zodiac that reduces the amount of chlorine you have to use to maintain your spa.
5. Check for calcium hardness. The best way to keep the calcium hardness in your spa in check is to use soft water in your spa. If your spa has too much calcium hardness, it will cause scales to form in your spa. You can use a spa defender product to protect against these scales. On the other hand, if your spa does not have enough calcium hardness, the water will start to draw minerals from other sources, like the aluminium or iron in your equipment. In this case, use a calcium booster to balance the calcium hardness in your spa.
   Calcium hardness should stay between 100-250 PPM if the spa has an acrylic finish and 250-450 if the spa has a plaster finish.
6. Check the pH levels last. Add pH plus or pH minus as necessary. Your pH should stay between 7.2-7.8. If the pH is off, first work to stabilize the total alkalinity. Then make sure you have added the proper amounts of Chlorine/Bromine to your spa. And then if the pH is still off, add pH plus or minus to balance your spa pH level.
   Your pH levels may need to be adjusted if: the sanitiser you use is not working well, your spa has cloudy water, scales have developed on your filter, or the water is causing skin and eye irritations.
7. Shock your spa.  Use chlorine or bromine shock treatments, depending on which sanitizer you are using in your water, to shock your water once a week.

Filter Care

1. Rinse your hot tub filters with clean water every week.
2. Chemical RINSE your filters using a standard filter cleaner every 2-4 weeks.
3. Chemical SOAK your spa filters overnight every 4-6 weeks. (Rotate filters)

It is highly recommended to have two sets of filters to rotate between. This is a good idea and will extend the overall life of your filters.
If you have two sets of filters, leave one set to dry completely, while the other set of filters are working in the tub

Weekly…

Remove the filters from your hot tub and give them a good blast with water from your garden hose. Do this outside as it can get a little messy. Be sure to spread apart each pleat and rinse well between them to get any dirt, hair, or other debris out. This will help keep the debris from building up and the chemicals from eating away at your filter material. By doing this, you will allow your hot tub filters to work more efficiently and last longer. This only takes a few minutes and should be done at least once a week if you use your hot tub regularly

Every 2-4 weeks…

Use a filter cleaner spray. These are a degreasing agent and are quite effective. Generously spray down your hot tub filters and let them sit for about 15 minutes. Then, rinse them down with clean water.

Spray the filters down with the cleaner and let them sit for about 15 minutes. This will allow the chemical to sink and do its job. Then with clean water, rinse the filter thoroughly until all the soapy substance is gone.
Note: Make sure you rinse the filters really well. Filter cleaner sprays can cause a lot of foaming in your tub when you put the filters back in. To prevent this from happening ensure that you have thoroughly rinsed the filter.

Every 4-6 weeks…

Use a specified hot tub filter cleaner, DO NOT USE HOUSEHOLD CLEANING PRODUCTS dilute the chemical with water according to the directions on the bottle.
Make sure you use enough water to completely submerge one filter. If you have room, you can add more filters to the solution.
Let the filter rest in the solution overnight or 24 hours.
After soaking, be sure to rinse the filters very thoroughly with clean water. Again, you don’t want foamy hot tub water.

Remember!

A clogged filter can prevent your tub from heating up and might even burn out your circulation pump resulting in a costly repair because this is seen as a non-warranty Issue!