Relax. It’s not as confusing as it may seem. And once you get a handle on the what, when, and how of spa chemicals, taking care of your hot tub will be easy.

Want to learn more about how to keep your hot tub water balanced and sanitized? Then you should check out The Hot Tub Handbook and Video Course to help you save hundreds on chemicals and less time on hot tub maintenance all year long.

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Do I Really Need to Use Hot Tub Chemicals?

Yes. Yes, you do. This isn’t like a bathtub that you fill, use, and immediately drain. The same water stays in your hot tub for weeks, sometimes months. Without chemicals to keep it sanitized, it would quickly turn into an incubation chamber for numerous organisms you definitely would not want to soak in.

If you were thinking you could just vacuum the tub once in a while, keep leaves and other debris out of the water, and that would be enough, you’re setting yourself up for a lot of cleanup work, potential equipment failure, and possibly even hot tub–related illness.

The key to preventing all of those things is using the right spa chemicals. We have a complete guide on what hot tub chemicals to buy here. Or keep reading to learn more about using each chemical.

Hot Tub Chemistry: The First Step

You have three main questions about balancing your hot tub water. The first is, “What chemicals do I need for my hot tub?” The second one is, “How much of those chemicals do I use?” The only way to get the answers to both of those questions is to test the hot tub water, and there’s a lot to get through before you even consider the third question about how to add them.

The only way you’ll know which chemicals you need to add, and how much of each one is needed to balance the hot tub chemistry is to test your water. Be sure to keep test strips or, for more accuracy, a liquid test kit stocked and on hand at all times.

You can also take a water sample to a local pool and spa store and ask them to test it for you.

Once you have the baseline readings, you can start measuring and adding the right amounts of the necessary hot tub chemicals.

Our Top Pick

Complete Liquid Test Kit for Pools and Hot Tubs

A simple but effective liquid test kit for chlorine pools and hot tubs.

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Sanitizer

You could say this is the most important of all the spa chemicals you’ll use. After all, it’s what keeps your hot tub, well, sanitized.

The first thing to decide is which sanitizer you want to use, and you have a handful to choose from:

• Chlorine
• Bromine
• Biguanide
• Minerals
• Salt System

Each one has its pros and cons, so take the time to learn about them before making your choice.

Chlorine

Being the most common sanitizer, chlorine has a few advantages over the others:

• It’s cost-effective.
• It’s easy to add and manage.
• It’s an aggressive bacteria and algae killer.

The same way you may use bleach to kill bacteria, fungus, and viruses in your bathroom, chlorine does all that for your hot tub water.

One drawback to chlorine can be the smell it gives off. Except it’s not the chlorine that smells. Chlorine kills contaminants by oxidizing, breaking down into its chemicals components. As this chemical reaction occurs, the oxidation gives off waste products called chloramines. They’re what causes that “chlorine smell.”

If you can smell “chlorine,” it probably means you actually don’t have enough chlorine in your water because it’s been used up.

Test your water, and if the level is below where it should be, shock your hot tub to bring it back up quickly, get rid of the chloramines, and put the chlorine back to work killing contaminants.

Proper Chlorine Level: 1 part per million (ppm) to 3 ppm

Our Top Pick

SpaGuard Chlorinating Concentrate

Easy to add chlorine to your hot tub with granules (powder) and a cap that's perfect for measuring the amounts you add.

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Bromine

Probably the second-most common sanitizer, bromine has one distinctive advantage over chlorine—it doesn’t oxidize, which means it doesn’t give off chloramines. Instead, bromine ionizes contaminants, breaking them apart at the molecular level.

The process produces a different waste product—bromamines. While they don’t smell and aren’t as noxious as chloramines, they still reduce the sanitizer’s effectiveness, and you don’t want them hovering around your hot tub. Keeping your bromine level steady will prevent this.

Bromine also has a few other advantages over chlorine:

• It has a lower pH than chlorine, making it a little easier to keep the water balanced.
• It lasts longer.
• It’s gentler on your skin.

Bromine does have a couple of drawbacks, though. While it lasts longer than chlorine, it also works more slowly, which means contaminants are in the water longer before they’re destroyed.

It’s also unstabilized, which means if you use it in an uncovered, outdoor hot tub, it’ll burn off pretty quickly under the sun. Unlike chlorine, which can be stabilized by cyanuric acid, bromine doesn’t have a stabilizing partner chemical. We think it’s best for indoor hot tubs, or at least ones that are outside but not in direct sunlight.

Proper Bromine Level: 3 ppm to 5 ppm

Biguanide

A non-chlorine sanitizer, biguanide (sold under brand names such as BaquaSpa) kills bacteria just as well as chlorine and bromine do. It has a few other advantages as well:

• It’s doesn’t need to be used as frequently as chlorine or bromine.
• It’s odorless at every stage.
• It makes the water feel smoother to you and your hot tub guests.

On the downside, biguanide usually costs more than chlorine and bromine. It’s also been known to cause deterioration in some spa parts like rubber gaskets and certain plastics. Check with your hot tub manufacturer before using it.

Proper Biguanide Level: 30 ppm to 50 ppm

Minerals

Silver is a known bactericide, and copper is a known algaecide. For these reasons, a hot tub mineral sanitizer uses one or both of them as active ingredients. Its biggest pro is also a bit of a con.

Using a mineral sanitizer means you can use less chlorine, which means the water won’t be as harsh on your skin. But you’ll notice we said less chlorine, not no chlorine. Minerals alone aren’t enough to properly sanitize water, so you must supplement with chlorine to get the full sanitizing effect.

Minerals are also on the less expensive side but remember you’ll be using two spa chemicals for sanitation rather than just one. That said, because you use so little chlorine, you also won’t have a problem with chloramines or the smell they produce.

Minerals are also super easy to manage. There’s no measuring out chemicals to add them to the water, and then waiting for them to disperse. They come in an automatically dosing “stick,” which you simply add to your filter and replace every three to four months. Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions.

Proper Mineral Level: 0.5 ppm of chlorine or 1.0 ppm of bromine

Zodiac Nature2 Hot Tub Mineral Sanitizer

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Salt Systems

You’ve heard of salt water pools, right? Well, you could have a salt water hot tub, too, if you wanted one. All it takes is a device called a salt chlorine generator.

You see, salt water hot tubs still use chlorine as a sanitizer. The generator converts the salt into chlorine, so instead of buying chlorine, you buy salt, which is a lot less expensive. The water will also be a lot softer and gentler on your eyes, hair, and skin.

To measure both salinity and chlorine, use test strips made for salt water.

Proper Salt Level: 2,000 ppm to 3,000 ppm, with 2,500 being ideal

Proper Chlorine Level: 1 ppm to 3 ppm (just like a chlorine spa)

Shock

Even if you’re keeping your sanitizer levels exactly where they need to be, your hot tub can benefit from a weekly shock (or more often, depending on bather load). But what makes this one of the most important hot tub chemicals around is its ability to give your hot tub some super sanitizing when it needs it.

Seeing algae starting to bloom in your spa? Did you wake up to a cloudy hot tub? Shock to the rescue! It’s not the only thing you’ll need to do, but it’s one of the more effective methods to quickly clear things up.

Chlorine Hot Tubs

You can use:

• Chlorine shock
• More chlorine
• Non-chlorine shock

Bromine Hot Tubs

You can use:

• Chlorine shock
• More bromine
• Non-chlorine shock

Mineral Hot Tubs

Because mineral systems use so little chlorine, we recommend using a non-chlorine shock to keep the chlorine levels low.

Biguanide Hot Tubs

If you’ve gone the alternative route, and are using biguanide as your sanitizer, be aware that those chemical systems have their own shock designed specifically for the brand you use.

Regardless of which sanitizer you use, your hot tub water’s alkalinity and pH will need to be balanced for the sanitizer to do its job.

Alkalinity

When balancing your hot tub chemistry, you’ll need to adjust alkalinity before trying to balance the pH level. Alkalinity acts as a pH buffer, keeping it from drastically changing.

It can be a delicate operation to get alkalinity levels just right, and if your water’s alkalinity gets too low—less than 100 ppm—it can also bring the pH level down, and the water will become acidic.

For this reason, you absolutely must keep an alkalinity increaser in your spa chemical storage cabinet.

But what if the alkalinity gets too high? Well, there’s actually no such spa chemical as alkalinity decreaser. To lower it, you’ll use a pH decreaser, which will lower both. This dependency and interaction is part of the difficulty in getting these two levels right. Click here for more information on lowering hot tub alkalinity.

Proper Level For Alkalinity: 100 ppm to 150 ppm

SpaGuard Hot Tub Total Alkalinity Increaser - 2 lbs.

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pH

Once you have the alkalinity where it needs to be, turn your attention to the hot tub pH level.

Too-high pH is one of the main causes of cloudy hot tub water. If the level goes above 7.6, and you start to see problems, try using a pH decreaser to brings things back down to normal.

If it’s too low, break out the pH increaser, remembering that it will also raise the alkalinity, and you’ll have to test and possibly adjust that level again.

If both the pH and alkalinity levels are low, just adding alkalinity increaser will raise both, but make sure to adjust the pH if the alkalinity doesn’t bring it up to the correct level.

If both the pH and alkalinity levels are too high, use pH decreaser to drop them back to the right level.

While you’re adjusting alkalinity and pH, you may need to test the water numerous times to get everything right, so keep a supply of test strips on hand.

Important: Low pH and alkalinity can damage your hot tub because of the acidity of the water. High pH and alkalinity can cause scaling, which can also damage the equipment. The heater is at risk both ways. Acid due to low pH will eat away at the heater element, and high pH will deposit scale around the element, making it work harder to heat your hot tub.

Proper Level For pH: 7.4 to 7.6

SpaGuard Hot Tub pH Decreaser - 22 oz.

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Calcium Hardness

This is a measure of how hard the water in your hot tub is. If you live somewhere with hard water, you know how you get calcium deposits on faucets and showerheads and causes all kinds of problems? Well, it’s actually sort of the opposite in your hot tub.

You want the calcium hardness in your hot tub to be a little on the higher side. If it’s too soft, it can eat away at your hot tub shell, pipes, and other parts, slowly breaking them down over time. It’ll basically just wreak all kinds of havoc in the water. Sort of like what Mysterio did in Venice.

But what if the calcium hardness level somehow gets too high? That can make it difficult for the other hot tub chemicals you’re using to dissolve properly in the water, so it’s definitely a problem. It can also lead to cloudy water and scaling on your hot tub and its components, just like what happens to your shower head.

In this case, the best solution is to drain your hot tub, scrub it, and start over with fresh water.

To keep the calcium hardness steady and your hot tub healthy, keep a bottle of calcium hardness increaser with the rest of your hot tub supplies.

Proper Calcium Hardness Level: 175 ppm to 250 ppm

SpaGuard Hot Tub Calcium Hardness Increaser - 12 oz.

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Hot Tub Enzymes

These naturally occurring substances help break down organic contaminants like skin cells, body oils, leaves, twigs, insects, all kinds of other nasties that can end up in your hot tub. If left too long, those contaminants will break down, and you’ll have to deal with a wicked case of hot tub scum.

Whether you use hot tub enzymes or not is really up to you. They’re not really necessary as long as you keep your sanitizer level balanced, and you drain, clean, and refill your hot tub on a regular basis, which is at least quarterly.

Water Clarifier

Heck, if we’re talking about keeping the water clean, why even worry about all those other hot tub chemicals?! Why not just use water clarifier?! Because it’s not a maintenance item—it’s a temporary measure.

Water clarifier treats the symptom, not the cause of cloudy water, so it’ll clear things up for a little while. But if you don’t address the actual problem, it’ll go right back to the way it was once the clarifier wears off.

So why have it? Well, say you’re planning a hot tub get-together, or maybe a romantic evening with your sweetie, and the water’s looking less than inviting. Instead of spending a lot of time on testing and balancing, you can just pour in some clarifier, and then deal with the root issue later.

But remember, it’s always preferable to keep your water clear and balanced. Water clarifier is a last and temporary resort.

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Hot Tub Water Care Kit

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How To Add Hot Tub Chemicals

The third question you’ll ask is: “How do I add all these chemicals to my hot tub?” It’s easier than you think. You just need to follow a few simple steps.

Keep Your Hot Tub Running

You want the spa chemicals to mix into the water, and the hot tub jets will do this for you.

Do Not Cover Your Hot Tub

You might’ve heard this is a good idea to keep the chemicals from evaporating. Sure, that’s true on an everyday basis. But right after you add chemicals, they need to off-gas, which means the chemicals break down, and a portion of them is released into the air.

You know that new-car smell? Yeah, that’s actually all the new fabric and plastics off-gassing, so don’t enjoy it too much.

Anyway, off-gassing is normal, and you want those chemical gases to dissipate, so don’t trap them under your hot tub cover.

If your hot tub is outside, the gases will just dissipate into the air. But if your hot tub is indoors, it’s a good idea to open a window, or turn on a ventilation fan, or both, so those gases don’t hang around the room where you’ll have to breathe them in.

Turn Off the Air Valves

Speaking of off-gassing, you also don’t want this to happen too quickly. You need some of the chemicals to remain in the water to do their jobs. Too much air in the water, and too much of the chemicals will off-gas. So if your hot tub has air valves that increase jet pressure, turn them off.

Test the Water

Now, before you add any hot tub chemicals, you need to know what the water needs, and how much. To get this information, test the water using test strips or a liquid test kit.

Remember, the three main levels to be concerned about are alkalinity, pH, and sanitizer. If your alkalinity and pH are out of whack, the sanitizer can’t do its job.

Follow the Instructions

Refer to the manufacturer’s instructions on every chemical’s packaging to figure out how much of the chemical you need to either raise or lower the specific factor it’s going to address.

Measure Twice, Pour Once

Once you’ve determined which spa chemicals you need to add and how much, measure them out. You don’t want to just pour chemicals into your water straight from the container. Remember, the goal here is balanced water, not a chemical crapshoot.

Add the Hot Tub Chemicals

Finally, just pour the measured chemicals straight into the hot tub water, and walk away. The jets will mix everything up. Leave it for at least 15 minutes, then you can cover your hot tub to prevent evaporation.

Before you get into the hot tub, test the water again to make sure the levels are where they need to be. If they’re not, repeat this process until they are.

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Test Strips for Pools and Hot Tubs

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Only You Can Prevent a Dirty Hot Tub

Aside from keeping your water balanced and having the right spa chemicals on hand to clear your water when necessary, you can do a few other things to keep your hot tub clear.

Keep Your Hot Tub Clean

Duh. Seems like common sense, right? But hey, we all get lazy from time to time, or we procrastinate. We’re human. But this is one area where slacking can get you into more trouble than just not-so-clear water.

Use a good hot tub cleaner on a regular basis to keep things sanitary, and your water sparkling.

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Hot Tub Weekly Cleanse: Water Conditioner & Clarifier

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Shower Before Every Soak

This should also be common sense, but an alarming number of people will just jump right into a hot tub (or pool) without a shower (or at the very least a quick rinse-off) because they figure the sanitizer will just take care of everything.

Sure, that’s what sanitizer is for. But it only does so much. Put too much burden on it, and it becomes a lot less effective. Do your part and help your sanitizer out by showering before you soak. This is even more important when you’re a guest in someone else’s hot tub. Or when someone’s a guest in yours.

Need another reason? We have two words for you: gluteal fold. We’re gonna let the Water Quality and Health Council explain that one.

Keep Your Filter Clean

The filtration system in your hot tub has a tough job. It’s there to remove everything from small bits of debris to bacteria (depending on the type of filter you have) from the water to keep you safe and healthy.

But if you’re not cleaning it regularly, you’re making it a lot more difficult for the filter to do its job. It can’t grab all the debris and gunk if it’s already full of debris and gunk. Do your filter, your hot tub, and yourself a favor by cleaning it regularly.

Our Top Pick

Hot Tub Filter Cleaner

Spray Filter Cleanse on your hot tub filters, rinse with water, and your filters will look brand new in less than 20 minutes! Hot Tub Filter Cleanse is a powerful, fast-acting spray cleaner that removes body oils, lotions, and other organic materials from your hot tub filter cartridges.

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Change Your Filter When Necessary

Even if you clean it regularly, your hot tub filter will still need to be replaced eventually. Keep an eye on its condition when you remove it for cleanings and replace it when cleaning isn’t enough to get it clean anymore.

Use Hot Tub Sponges or Tennis Balls

Remember those organic substances we talked about floating on top of the water, creating a nasty ring of scum in your spa shell? Tossing a couple of hot tub sponges or a few tennis balls into the water will help keep that film at bay. The sponges or the tennis balls’ fuzzy exterior will soak up some of the oil and other things that can cloud your water.

Just remember, they won’t work forever. While you can wash them and keep using them for a while, just like anything else, they’ll eventually need to be replaced.

Keep Your Hot Tub Covered

Whether your spa is outside and exposed to leaves and bugs, or inside and exposed to dust and maybe a too-curious dog, using a hot tub cover will help keep things out that can dirty your water.

This also means less work and fewer chemicals, which translates to less money spent on maintaining your hot tub. If you don’t have a cover, get one.

Drain and Clean Your Spa on a Regular Basis

So you’re already cleaning your hot tub regularly. That’s great! But you know you can’t just keep the same water in there forever, right? Think about that for a minute. Do you really want to?

At least quarterly, drain and clean your hot tub. This is also the perfect time to use a line flush product to get rid of any biofilm that may be lurking in your plumbing. Give it a good scrubbing, refill it with clean, fresh water, and off you go again.

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You Passed Hot Tub Chemistry 101!

Keeping your water clear isn’t always about using spa chemicals. A big part of it is simply taking good care of your investment. Hot tubs are not cheap. The better you maintain yours, the longer it will last, and the more you’ll be able to enjoy it.

And you’ll be better able to maintain it if you have the right hot tub chemicals and equipment available. So don’t skimp. Get what you need, and use it. Your hot tub will repay you by always being ready when you want to relax.

Happy Soaking!

The post Hot Tub Chemistry 101: What, When, and How to Add Spa Chemicals appeared first on Swim University®.

Before you resign yourself to brittle hair, dry skin, and having to wear a breathing mask in your spa with, consider trying a hot tub mineral sanitizer. But before you just throw out the chlorine, get a complete understanding of what a spa mineral sanitizer is, how it works, and how it can benefit both you and your hot tub.

What is a Hot Tub Mineral Sanitizer?

When you think of minerals, what comes to mind? Calcium, sodium, potassium, Flintstone vitamins? What about silver and copper? They’re minerals too, and they’re what make spa mineral sanitizers work.

Silver has been used as an antibacterial since Roman times, and copper has been shown to fight algae. In fact, it’s the active ingredient in a lot of the algaecides sold for pools and spas.

Hot tub mineral systems put silver and copper to work to keep your spa clean and free of bacteria and algae. Some also include limestone. This mineral absorbs the acid from chlorine, which helps maintain a neutral pH level.

But should you choose a mineral sanitizer over chlorine or bromine?

Frog @Ease SmartChlor Floating Hot Tub Mineral and Chlorine Sanitizing System

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Hot Tub Mineral Sanitizer Benefits

Before you just go with chlorine because it’s what you know, consider what hot tub minerals have to offer.

You’ll Use Less Chlorine

Using a mineral sanitizer means you can use less chlorine, which means the water won’t be as harsh on your skin. And because you’ll need so little chlorine, you also won’t have a problem with chloramines, or the nasty smell they produce.

They’re Less Expensive

Hot tub minerals don’t cost as much as chlorine, bromine, or other sanitizers. Also, you only have to change out a mineral cartridge every few months, provided your hot tub doesn’t get a lot of heavy use.

They’re Easy to Manage

With a spa mineral sanitizer, there’s no measuring out chemicals to add them to the water, and then waiting for them to disperse before you can use your hot tub again.

Zodiac Nature2 Hot Tub Mineral Sanitizer

Reduce the amount of chlorine (0.5ppm) you use in your hot tub by adding this mineral sanitizer to your filter system and let the power of minerals sanitize your water.

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Hot Tub Mineral Sanitizer Drawbacks

We can’t think of any reasons not to use spa minerals, but we do think you should be aware that they do have a couple of downsides.

Watch Out For Stains!

Remember, copper is one of the active ingredients in mineral sanitizers. It’s also a common cause of staining in hot tubs. And if you already have high copper content in your water source, adding more copper to the mix is just asking for a stained spa shell.

If this is a concern, you can use a metal sequestrant to keep the copper from settling on any surfaces so it can be filtered out of the water.

Important: If you do use a metal sequestrant, do so sparingly. Remember, copper is often one of the active ingredients in mineral sanitizers. Too much sequestrant can possibly make the mineral sanitizer less effective.

You Still Need Chlorine or Bromine

Minerals alone aren’t enough to properly sanitize water. You need to supplement spa minerals with chlorine or bromine to fully clean the water, and more importantly, to kill bacteria and viruses.

Our Top Pick

SpaGuard Chlorinating Concentrate

Easy to add chlorine to your hot tub with granules (powder) and a cap that's perfect for measuring the amounts you add.

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Are You Really Spending Less?

While minerals may be less expensive than chlorine, you do still need chlorine or bromine, so you’re actually paying for two sanitizing chemicals. Depending on how often you use your hot tub, and how well balanced you keep the water, the cost for both chemicals may be less than or possibly even the same as using chlorine alone.

Once you’ve weighed the pros and cons, if you decide a hot tub mineral sanitizer is the way to go, it’s an easy process to get started.

Spa Mineral Sanitizer Types

One clear advantage hot tub minerals have over chlorine granules and bromine tablets is that there’s no measuring, and no gloves needed to handle them. They’re available in three forms.

Filter Sticks

This is the easiest type to use. You simply insert a “stick” into the filter. As water passes through the filter, it also passes through the stick, releasing minerals into the water that makes its way back into your hot tub.

Frog Filter Mate

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Inline System

This type of spa mineral sanitizer is made by Frog, and is a little more complex because your hot tub has to have an inline system pre-installed. It’s a compartment into which you slide the part that holds the cartridges.

If your hot tub doesn’t already have this compartment, you can use the filter stick or the floating dispenser and get the same sanitizing and benefits.

If you’re thinking about buying a hot tub, and you want the inline system, you’ll need to get your spa from Marquis Spas, Caldera Spas, Artesian Spas or Hot Springs Spas. They all have the in-line system installed on select models. Be sure to ask about this before you make your purchase.

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Floating Dispensers

The second-easiest option, all you have to do is connect a mineral cartridge and either a chlorine or bromine cartridge to a floating dispenser, and then let it float in your spa. The minerals are released at a constant rate to keep the water clean. One cool benefit—you’ll know it’s time to replace one or both of the cartridges when the dispenser turns on its side.

Whatever type you choose, be sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions.

Frog Serene Floating Sanitizing System plus 2-Pack Bromine Cartridges

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How to Use Hot Tub Minerals

If you’re converting to minerals from any sanitizer other than chlorine or bromine, you may want to completely drain and clean your hot tub before adding minerals.

If you’ve been using chlorine, just let the level drop to at least 0.5 parts per million (ppm) before you begin. For bromine, let it drop to at least 1 ppm.

Test Water Hardness

Starting From Empty: Test the hardness of your water source. You can do this with test strips or a liquid test kit. If it’s over 250 ppm, use a hose filter when filling the spa. This is a good idea anyway to remove and reduce some impurities, such as copper.

Our Top Pick

Test Strips for Pools and Hot Tubs

Tests for 7 important chemistries in seconds: Total Hardness, Total Chlorine, Total Bromine, Free Chlorine, pH, Total Alkalinity, and Cyanuric Acid.

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Starting From Full: Test the water in the hot tub, and make sure the calcium hardness level isn’t over 250 ppm. If it is, drain some of the water from the spa, then refill with fresh water, using a hose filter. Repeat as necessary until the calcium hardness level is in the correct range.

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Hose Filter with Flexible Hose Protector

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Test for Metals

Starting From Empty: Test your water source for metal content. Kits or strips that test for metal are usually geared toward drinking water, so your best bet is to take the sample to your local hot tub store and have them test it for you.

Note: If you like, you can also ask them to test for calcium hardness and get both of those results at the same time. If the metal levels—especially copper—are high, add a metal sequestrant to the water after you fill the hot tub.

Starting From Full: Exact same procedure as above, except you’ll take the water sample from the hot tub and not the spigot.

Hot Tub Metal Remover

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01/27/2023 04:20 am GMT

Balance the Water

Starting From Empty: Just like you would balance your hot tub any other time, you’ll go in this order: alkalinity, pH, calcium hardness. You want all of those factors to be in the following ranges:

Total Alkalinity: 125 ppm – 150 ppm
pH: 7.4 – 7.6, with 7.5 being ideal
calcium hardness: 175 ppm – 250 ppm

Starting From Full: No difference.

Add the Minerals

Once the water is balanced, you’ll add the spa minerals to the filter, in-line system, or floating dispenser. Regardless of which type of hot tub mineral sanitizer system you’ve decided to use, the cartridge or stick will need to be changed every three to four months, or whenever you drain, clean, and refill your spa.

Also note that some brands such as Jacuzzi and Sundance Spas produce mineral sanitizers specifically for their hot tubs.

Add the Supplemental Sanitizer

Whether you’ve decided to use chlorine or bromine, add a small amount at a time, testing in between, to reach the correct level:

Chlorine: 0.5 ppm
Bromine: 1.0 ppm

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How to Shock a Mineral Hot Tub

The frequency with which you shock your hot tub won’t really change no matter what kind of sanitizer you use. Once a week, at least. More often if you have a high bather load, or a problem like cloudy water. But what kind of shock you use may change.

On start up, use chlorine shock to kill bacteria and clear the water. After that, you may want to use non-chlorine shock.

You’ll be keeping the chorine level low while you’re using spa minerals, and chlorine shock can raise that level above the 0.5 ppm mark you’re aiming for. Granted, it will dissipate, but if you don’t want to have to wait too long between shocking and using your hot tub, opt for non-chlorine shock.

You can still use chlorine shock on occasion. Just remember to check the water afterward, and rebalance as necessary.

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Ready to Kick Chlorine to the Curb?

A clean hot tub, softer water, and less money spent on shampoo that removes chlorine. Sounds like a hot tub mineral sanitizer may be the way to go if those things are important to you.

Just remember, regardless of the kind of sanitizer you choose for your spa, be vigilant about keeping the water balanced, and you’ll avoid a lot of potential problems. All that’s left to do is enjoy your hot tub the way it was meant to be.

Happy Soaking!

The post The Complete Guide to Hot Tub Mineral Sanitizers appeared first on Swim University®.

First, the pH is too low, so you figure out how to raise the pH in your hot tub. But it goes too high, so you have to get a handle on how to lower the pH in your hot tub. You’re starting to feel like Goldilocks in a nightmarish fairytale where there’s no just right. Only all wrong.

Never fear. You can get your water chemistry under control before the big bad wolf—actually, cloudiness and scale deposits—huffs and puffs and blows your hot tub down. Or something.

Want to learn more about how to keep your hot tub balanced and sanitized? Then you should check out The Hot Tub Handbook and Video Course to help you save hundreds on chemicals and less time on hot tub maintenance all year long.

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What’s Important About Hot Tub pH?

You might remember acids and bases from high school chemistry. When a solution (that’s a chemical mixed with water) contains extra hydrogen ions, it’s acidic. When the solution has fewer hydrogen ions than plain water, it’s basic.

On the general pH scale, seven is perfectly neutral water. Lower numbers are more acidic, and higher numbers are more basic.

When you test your hot tub water with test strips or a liquid test kit, they’ll show how acidic or basic your hot tub water is. Ideally, pH levels in your spa should measure between 7.4 and 7.6.

If your spa’s pH measures outside that range, you could be in for some unhealthy and potentially damaging water symptoms in your spa.

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Low pH in Your Hot Tub

Any pH level below 7.4 could spell trouble. The lower the pH level, the more acidic your hot tub water is. Highly acidic water makes it more difficult for your sanitizer to work effectively, leaving bathers in your hot tub exposed to potentially harmful contaminants.

This increases your chances of being exposed to bacteria, such as pseudomonas aeruginosa (the cause of hot tub folliculitis) or legionella (which causes Legionnaires’ Disease), among others. Low pH in your hot tub may also cause corrosion in spa components, which can be expensive to replace.

High pH in Your Hot Tub

When your pH levels climb beyond 7.6, your spa water can be described as basic. What this means for you is poorly sanitized water, carrying the same risks as any other cause of ineffective sanitizing.

Basic spa water is also prone to forming scale and drinking pumpkin spice lattes year-round. Kidding—it’s not that kind of basic. But it really will cause flaky scale to build up on your spa surfaces.

The scale is due in part to high calcium hardness caused by the high pH. Cloudy water is another symptom of a high pH level in your spa.

What Does Total Alkalinity Mean?

You came here to learn how to balance the pH in your hot tub, so what’s this about total alkalinity? Well, the term technically refers to the ability of a solution to neutralize acids—or buffer them.

In your hot tub, the importance of measuring total alkalinity (TA) is only slightly different. TA acts as a buffer for the pH level in your water, keeping the pH level stable while allowing you to adjust TA without throwing the rest of your hot tub chemistry into chaos.

Total alkalinity is so important to your water balance, the first step in your water care process will always be measuring and adjusting TA before any other chemicals. The ideal range for TA is 100 parts per million (ppm) to 150 ppm.

To adjust alkalinity, add alkalinity increaser in small doses, one at a time. Allow each dose to circulate before testing again. Only after your TA is in the optimal range should you move on to adjusting pH. Achieving the right TA may actually get your pH in the target range.

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Balancing Your Hot Tub’s pH

When you have acidic water (low pH), you’ll add alkaline chemicals to increase the pH. When you have basic water (high pH), you’ll add acids to lower the pH. So you’ll get your TA perfect and then add some other stuff to fix your pH, right? Not exactly.

Using certain types of pH increaser or pH decreaser will likely also affect TA. This is why getting these two levels balanced can be tricky, but not impossible.

How to Raise the pH in Your Hot Tub

Most pH increasers contain the active ingredient sodium carbonate. You might recognize this chemical by its more common name—soda ash.

You may be thinking, that sounds an awful lot like sodium bicarbonate—baking soda. You’re right. They’re closely related, and baking soda will also raise the pH in your hot tub. But it’s not nearly as effective as soda ash. So when you’re considering how to raise the pH in your hot tub, choose soda ash over baking soda, and you’ll save yourself a lot of time and trouble.

Sodium bicarbonate is actually much better for raising TA, especially if you don’t want to affect the pH level too much.

It’s important to note that soda ash can also dramatically increase total alkalinity. So if your hot tub pH is low, but the total alkalinity is normal or high, sodium carbonate may increase the alkalinity beyond the recommended maximum level.

Also note that soda ash can make your hot tub water cloudy, so if you use it to lower pH levels, you may have to address a cloudy hot tub afterward.

How to Lower the pH in Your Hot Tub

Typically, the active ingredient in pH decreaser, sodium bisulfate, will also lower TA, sometimes so significantly you’ll need to bump your TA back up a little afterward.

Sodium bisulfate also helps stabilize pH, so if you do need to tweak your TA, it’s less likely to become an endless pH rollercoaster ride.

Muriatic acid is an alternative way to decrease both pH and alkalinity. Because it’s an extremely caustic chemical, you must use safety glasses, chemical-resistant gloves and a whole lotta caution when working with it. Here’s more information on lowering hot tub alkalinity.

To be even safer, you can use a muriatic acid replacement product that’s not as caustic. You’ll still need to wear the safety gear, though.

It’s not the best idea to just pour muriatic acid directly into your spa. You’ll need to dilute it, add it to your spa, then aerate it by running the jets. Finally, leave your spa to circulate overnight before retesting the water.

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Start pHresh

The truth is, you shouldn’t have to chase around low and high pH in your hot tub. If you find yourself doing so, the easiest option is probably to drain your spa and start over.

The day before you drain, add some line flush, and run the hot tub to clean out the plumbing and remove anything that could be affecting your water chemistry. After draining, clean the interior of your spa.

If you’re like most hot tub owners, you use your hose and outdoor spigot to fill your hot tub. Even if your water is from a municipal source, it could still have high chlorine content or contain problematic amounts of metal causing hard water.

Both issues can complicate your quest for balanced water chemistry. You can take two simple precautions to limit problems caused from a poor water source.

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Use a Hose Filter

What’s the best way to keep metals and other contaminants out of your hot tub? Don’t let them in there in the first place. By using a hose filter when you fill or add water to your hot tub, you end up with, not perfect, but much cleaner water than if you just filled it directly from the spigot.

A hose filter can easily be attached to your hose, and it’ll make your fill water so clean you could drink it. Not that you’d want to. Hose filters are usually used for RV water lines to make sure potable water sources are truly clean enough to drink from the RV tap. Most versions have hose connectors, so you can screw them in place by hand without any tools at all.

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Use Metal Sequestrant

Even with a hose filter, some stuff is going to get through. No filter is absolutely 100% effective. If your water source has high levels of dissolved metals like iron and copper, add a dose of metal sequestrant whenever you refill or add any fresh water to your hot tub.

Metal sequestrant doesn’t take metals out of your water. Instead, it bonds with them and keeps them suspended in the water so the filter can more easily grab them. It also keeps them from settling on your hot tub’s surfaces and staining them.

While using sequestrant won’t directly affect your pH, it will help prevent buildup and staining that can occur when the water’s pH level is too low.

Remember to always test the water before adding any chemicals, then test again after each adjustment. You’ll need to use special test strips made to measure metals. Then give additives enough time to circulate before testing or adding anything else.

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01/27/2023 02:54 am GMT

Back To The Basics

Keeping your lines, filter, and water clean will prevent most chemistry problems, as well as the effects poor water chemistry can have on your hot tub and your health. Remember to change the water completely at least every three or four months so you’re not fighting to balance dirty water.

Stick to a hot tub water care plan that works for you and your spa, and you’ll head off most water problems before they even begin.

Happy Soaking!

The post How to Balance Hot Tub pH appeared first on Swim University®.

But why is your alkalinity high in the first place? Let’s start there and solve the problem from the beginning.

What is Alkalinity?

What’s the difference between pH and alkalinity? First, we have to understand that pH is the measurement of how acidic or basic your hot tub water is. Here’s an image to illustrate the pH scale.

Our goal is to keep the pH balanced between 7.4 and 7.6. Not too acidic and not too basic.

Alkalinity, on the other hand, is the capacity of water to resist acidification (thanks Wikipedia!). But we like to think of alkalinity as pH’s bodyguard.

Hot tub pH is volatile. Any little thing that interacts with your water can drastically change the pH. But when you have the right amount of alkalinity, this will take the hit before drastically affecting your pH.

So without alkalinity, the pH reading would be all over the place. Alkalinity and pH are related, but they are not the same.

Unlike pH, alkalinity is measured in parts per million or ppm for short. Most resources tell you to keep it between 80-120 ppm. However, we recommend keeping your hot tub alkalinity between 100-150 ppm to give yourself more room. We have an article all about hot tub water chemistry if you’re interested in learning more.

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What Causes High Alkalinity in a Hot Tub?

To be fair, high alkalinity is not a common issue in hot tubs. Mainly because most owners drain and clean their hot tub every 3-4 months to keep things from building up.

That said, there are a few main causes of high alkalinity in a hot tub:

1. Too Many Chemicals: You could be adding too many chemicals to your hot tub which can increase your Total Dissolved Solids or TDS. Drain and clean your hot tub every 3-4 months to avoid this issue.
2. Sweat, Lotions, and Other Gross Body Stuff: YOU or your family and friends could be raising the pH with all your body lotions, sunblocks, perfumes, hair gel, etc. Shower before you soak!
3. Your Water Source: You may live in an area where your local water supplier has a high alkalinity reading. Ask your township or county or local water district for a water reading. Most places will provide one.
4. Human Error: You could have accidentally had a heavy hand in adding alkalinity increaser or baking soda. Whoops!

What Happens if Alkalinity is Too High in Hot Tub?

The main thing that can happen is it renders your sanitizer (chlorine, bromine, etc.) useless. And that can cause your water to turn green and bacteria to grow making the hot tub unsafe to soak in. Secondly, it can cause a scale build-up which will make your hot tut work twice as hard to heat up.

All of this puts hot tub soakers at risk for skin issues like hot tub folliculitis. Plus, it puts you (the hot tub owner) at risk for empty wallet syndrome by replacing heaters and adding more sanitizing chemicals.

How Do I Lower The Alkalinity in My Hot Tub?

The easiest way to lower alkalinity in your hot tub is by adding a pH Decreaser (sodium bisulfate). I know this is confusing because pH and alkalinity are not the same. But it works!

Before you add pH Decreaser to your hot tub, you need to know how much water your hot tub holds. Then, you can follow these steps:

1. Test the hot tub water. Use a liquid test kit (recommended) or a test strip to find out the current alkalinity reading in your hot tub and if you even need to lower it.
2. Add pH Decreaser (sodium bisulfate). For example, if your hot tub has 1,000 gallons of water, use about 3 ounces (85 grams) to lower the alkalinity by 10 ppm. Sprinkle (or “broadcast”) the powder around the surface of your hot tub while it’s running to help it mix in.
3. Retest the water. After 24 hours, test the water again and readjust if needed.

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What Should Be Adjusted First Alkalinity or pH?

Alkalinity Increaser or baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) will also increase pH. If both readings are low, start with increasing alkalinity first. Then, test the water again. If the pH is still low, but the alkalinity is good, then just add pH increaser or soda ash (sodium carbonate).

It depends on what your current readings are. So it’s important to always test your hot tub water before adding any chemicals to make adjustments. Here’s some more information on balancing pH in a hot tub.

Final Tips to Control Hot Tub Alkalinity

Hopefully, that answered a lot of your questions about lowering hot tub alkalinity and how to prevent it from being so high in the first place. Here are a few more tips for dealing with both pH and alkalinity:

• After adding any chemicals to your hot tub, allow your water to circulate for at least 15 minutes before retesting. Or better yet, retest the next day for more accurate readings.
• You can keep Alkalinity between 80-120 ppm, but we recommend 100-150 ppm to give the alkalinity more room to come down before having to adjust again.
• For the most accurate water test, collect a water sample into a clean cup, and test it after it has cooled to room temperature. And use a liquid test kit because they’re more accurate than test strips.
• Never mix chemicals together. Add them one at a time and at least 15 minutes apart with the cover off.
• Change your spa water at least every 3 to 4 months. And more often is you use your hot tub a lot.

Happy Swimming!

The post How to Lower Alkalinity in a Hot Tub appeared first on Swim University®.

The majority of problems with hot tub water come about because it’s not balanced. Before you can add the right chemicals in the right amounts, you have to do some hot tub water testing to determine know what’s going on.

Hot Tub Water Testing is the First Step

Out of all the hot tub maintenance tasks you’ll perform over the life of your hot tub, spa water testing is the one thing you’ll do more often than anything else. At least, it should be.

The only way you’re going to know whether the water contains any contaminants or what the chemical levels are is to test the water. And that means hot tub test strips are your best buddies.

Accurate Spa Water Testing Tips

It’s not as difficult as you may think it is, especially when you have so many testing options available to you:

• Use spa test strips for quick and easy results.
• Use a liquid test kit for more comprehensive results
• Take a water sample to your local spa dealer or pool store for the most thorough and accurate results

No matter what testing method you use, the key is to make sure you correctly take the water sample.

How to Collect a Hot Tub Water Sample

What matters just as much as how you collect the sample is that you get it from the middle of your hot tub.

1. Use a clean cup or bottle (with a cap if you’re taking it to a store).
2. Hold it upside down so the opening faces the hot tub floor.
3. Insert the vessel into the water elbow-deep, and then turn it right side up to collect the water.

Important: Do not take the sample near any of the jets. Try to get as close to the middle of the hot tub as possible.

How to Use Spa Test Strips

It may seem counterintuitive, but test strips can sometimes actually be more accurate than liquid test kits because it can be difficult to match up the colors with the chemical drops. They’re also much easier to use.

In addition, hot tub test strips are usually less expensive than liquid testing kits, but you’ll probably end up going through them more quickly, so cost may not really be a factor in which one you choose.

To use spa test strips:

1. Collect a water sample.
2. Dip a strip into the water, and quickly pull it out; it doesn’t need to soak.
3. Hold it still for about 15 seconds. Don’t shake it!
4. Compare the strip to the guide on the package, matching up the colors on both.
5. Balance the water accordingly.

You’ll most often use regular hot tub test strips that check for things like pH, alkalinity, and chlorine. But if you also need to test for other components such as iron, copper, and salt, you can find specialty strips.

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How to Use a Liquid Test Kit

If you go with this option, make sure it includes phenol red and orthotolidine (OTO) to test pH and chlorine, respectively.

1. Collect a water sample; your test kits should come with a collector.
2. Add the recommended number of drops of phenol red to the water on the pH side.
3. Add the recommended number of drops of OTO to the water on the chlorine side.
4. Hold the collector up in front of a white background, and compare the colors of the water to the color scales on the collector. High pH is indicated by darker shades of red water, and high chlorine is indicated by darker shades of yellow.

You’re shooting for a pH level between 7.4 and 7.6, with 7.5 being ideal.

Important: If the levels are low, the colors will be faint and difficult to see. For better accuracy, be sure to hold the collector up against a white background. Just a sheet of paper will do.

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01/27/2023 07:26 pm GMT

Professional Water Testing

To take a water sample to a dealership for testing, collect the sample the same way you would if you were going to perform spa water testing at home. They may take walk-ins, but call ahead to make sure they’ll be able to help you.

When to Test Hot Tub Water

To make sure the water stays sanitized and that alkalinity and pH are always in balance, perform hot tub water testing at least once a week. If your spa gets a lot of use, it’s been rained on, test it more often. And of course, test it whenever you add chemicals.

We highly recommend you take a sample to a store once a month for a professional test, as well as when you open and close your hot tub.

If your hot tub isn’t properly balanced, you can follow our guides about balancing pH in a hot tub and how to lower alkalinity in a hot tub.

Keep Contaminants at Bay

If your water comes from a well, you may have higher levels of iron and copper in your hot tub. If you use city water, it may be hard, which means it contains higher levels of calcium and magnesium.

All of those factors can cause problems in your spa, including chemicals imbalances, hot tub stains, and other surface damage, meaning you’ll need to test the water more often.

Prevention costs a lot less than repairs.

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How to Test for Copper

If you have greenish or black stains on the shell or cloudy spa water, you may have a copper problem. It builds up in two ways.

First, the water you fill your hot tub with may contain copper. As the water evaporates from your spa, copper is left behind behind. As this continues, copper levels rise, leading to cloudy water and stains.

Because the spa has lost water to evaporation, you’ll add more, which means you add more copper, and then more water evaporates, and that leads to … yup, more copper in your hot tub.

Second, copper elements in your hot tub filter or plumbing may corrode due to a low pH level, and that corrosion will end up in the water. The longer you let it go, the worse it will get.

How to Test Your Hot Tub Water for Copper

Most spa test strips don’t test for metals. In addition to the ones you get for pH, chlorine, and other standard factors, you’ll need a set made especially for metal testing.

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01/27/2023 02:54 am GMT

How Often to Test for Copper

It’s essential to test the pH level weekly as that can lead to a copper issue. But as for copper itself, you should only have to test the water once a month.

How to Fix High Copper Levels

After testing your hot tub water, if you do find it contains a high level of copper, you have a couple of options to remedy it.

Metal Sequestrant

Usually a liquid you add to your hot tub water, a sequestrant binds with metals—specifically, iron, copper, and nickel—in the water to prevent them from oxidizing, or rusting, which is what causes stains. Once the metal particles are bound, they can be removed by the hot tub filter.

Be aware that a sequestrant does not remove metals from the water. And sequestrant breaks down over time, so you may need to add it on a regular basis if you have high metal levels in your water.

Learn what chemicals and minerals are present in the water where you live, and then follow the manufacturer’s instructions to ensure you use the sequestrant properly.

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01/27/2023 04:20 am GMT

Hose Filter

If your water source has high metal levels, a hose filter can keep at least some of them out when you fill your hot tub.

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Test for Iron

Another good reason to test the pH level weekly is that a low level can also cause iron levels to rise, if there’s iron present in the source water.

Again, if your water comes from a well, it may have high metal levels. The process of iron being deposited in the spa is the same as for copper. Only in this case, the water will be brown or rust-colored. Ew.

How to Test Your Hot Tub Water for Iron

Usually, the same strips or kit that test for copper will also test for iron. It just makes sense as both are metal elements.

The only difference will be that once you’ve filled the test tube with a sample of your hot tub water, you’ll add a special solution made to test for iron. Then compare the water color to the color coded chart included with the kit.

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01/27/2023 02:54 am GMT

How Often to Test for Iron

Once a month. But remember, test the pH level more often than that to keep iron from staining the spa shell.

How to Fix High Iron Levels

Again, because they’re both metal elements, you can fix an iron problem with the same methods used for copper: metal sequestrant, keep the pH level steady, and use a hose filter when filling your spa.

Test for Calcium

Depending on where you live, you may have to deal with hard water, which means your water source has high levels of calcium and magnesium. If you see evidence of it on your shower head, you probably also see hot tub scale from time to time.

You may also have the opposite problem—too little calcium in the water. This can cause corrosion on fixtures, surfaces, and equipment. Left too long, it can get to the point where repair isn’t possible, only expensive replacement.

The solution is to keep the calcium hardness level balanced.

How to Test Your Hot Tub Water for Calcium

For total hardness—the measurement of both calcium and magnesium salts—you’re better off using a professional grade hot tub water testing test kit rather than spa test strips.

Shoot for between 175 parts per million (ppm) and 250 ppm.

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How Often to Test for Calcium

Once you see scale forming, it’s too late for prevention and you’ll have to move into remedy mode. To keep that from happening, test for calcium hardness at least once a month.

But if your water source is either too soft or too hard, it’s a good idea to test more often, about once every two weeks. If your water has a serious calcium hardness issue, test once a week. You’ll be glad you did.

How to Fix High Calcium Levels

You have two options here.

Replace Some of the Water

If your water source isn’t hard, you can drain a couple of inches of water from your hot tub and replace it with softer water.

Use a Descaler

Follow the manufacturer’s instructions to ensure you use the proper amount.

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How to Fix Low Calcium Levels

Easy. Just use a calcium hardness increaser. Again, follow the manufacturer’s instructions.

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Test for Salt

If you have a salt water hot tub, the salt you add to your hot tub is converted to chlorine. But you still need to make sure you don’t have too much or too little salt in the water. Too much can cause the chlorinator to work too hard, while too little might mean the water isn’t properly chlorinated.

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How to Test Your Hot Tub Water for Salt

To go easy on the chlorinator and keep the water sanitized, you want the salt level to be between 2,000 ppm and 3,000 ppm, with 2,500 ppm being ideal. You’ll need specialty hot tub test strips to measure salt levels. You use these the same way you use standard spa test strips.

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How Often to Test for Salt

You can get away with testing the salt level just once a month because it’s not as difficult to balance as other factors like pH. But if your hot tub is outside and uncovered, make sure to test after it rains, or after the spa has seen a lot of use.

How to Fix a High Salt Level

Once salt dissolves into water, it stays there, so the only way to reduce a too-high salt level is to drain a little water from the spa, then add fresh water.

How to Fix a Low Salt Level

Ooh, this one’s a toughie. Yeah, it’s gonna take a while and a lot of work. You ready? You need to … add more salt. Yup, that’s it. Fixed.

After you add salt, give it some time to dissipate, then break out the hot tub test strips again. Just add a little at a time so you don’t accidentally raise the level too much.

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Always Be Testing

This is truly the easiest way to head off problems in your hot tub. Keep a supply of spa test strips on hand, and you’ll always know the status of the water you soak in, and you can address issues before they become headaches.

Happy Soaking!

The post Hot Tub Water Testing: The Complete Guide appeared first on Swim University®.

But we’re willing to bet how many gallons of water are in your hot tub is not one of those bits of data you have at the ready. Actually, have you ever known how many gallons are in your hot tub? Well, it’s high time you figured it out.

Why You Need to Know How Many Gallons of Water Are in Your Hot Tub

One word: chemicals. How can you possibly know how much chlorine—or any other chemical you use to care for your spa water—to add to your hot tub if you don’t know how much water is in the hot tub? You can’t.

Without that information, you’re either adding too little sanitizer and soaking in dirty water, or you’re adding too much, which means you’re bleaching out your swimsuit and drying out your skin.

Knowing how many gallons are in your hot tub is absolutely necessary to know how much of any chemical to add.

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How to Determine How Many Gallons Are in Your Hot Tub

The first step is to know the make and model of your hot tub. Got it? Good. You’re halfway there.

Consult The Manual

Well, duh. This is, of course, your first stop. The manual will tell you everything you need to know about your hot tub, including how many gallons of water it holds.

But you may not have the manual. Maybe you lost it, or maybe the hot tub came with the house you bought, and the owner didn’t leave the manual behind. If that’s the case, you’ll need to do a little research.

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Google It

Before you fire up the computer, you need a little information to help you in your search.

Remove the panel from your hot tub, the spot that gives you access to the inside of the spa. Inside, you should find a serial or model number.

Write down the numbers you see, or snap a photo with your phone or camera.

Next, do a search. Start by entering words like hot tub gallons, hot tub volume, or hot tub capacity. Then add the numbers you found inside the spa. You may have to try a few combinations, but if you’re lucky, you’ll find a website with your hot tub’s specs, or maybe even the manual, which you can save or print to have handy later.

If you come up empty, you still have options.

Call the Spa Dealership

If you bought your hot tub rather than inheriting it when you bought or rented your home, call up the store and ask them to help you. Someone in the store should definitely be able to recite that information off the top of their head.

If, by some odd chance, no one knows (or maybe they just don’t sell that make and model anymore), you have one option left.

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01/27/2023 03:04 am GMT

Call the Manufacturer

If all else fails, and you just can’t find the information anywhere, call the company that made your hot tub. You should be able to find their phone number on their website. Also ask them where you can find a copy of the manual so you have it handy for future questions.

While you have them on the phone, you may want to mention to them that this was your last resort, and the information needs to be readily available somewhere. Their customers can’t add the right amount of chemicals if they don’t know how much water is in the hot tub.

Now Your Hot Tub Will Be Juuust Right

No longer will you have to eyeball water care chemicals. By knowing how many gallons of water are in your hot tub, you can add the proper amount of chlorine and other chemicals, and gain the peace of mind to fully enjoy your soak.

Happy Soaking!

The post How Many Gallons of Water in a Hot Tub? appeared first on Swim University®.

So maybe you’d rather not use chlorine or bromine to sanitize your spa, but you also don’t want to soak in dirty water (ew), or even forgo the hot tub altogether. The good news is, you don’t have to if you switch to one of the handful of available alternatives.

Why Use an Alternative Hot Tub Sanitizer?

It could be that you’ve never really thought about using an alternative. Or you may not have been aware that chlorine and bromine weren’t the only options, despite experiencing some of the not-so-great aspects of traditional sanitizers.

Chemical Smell

A lot of chemicals just plain stink, including hot tub sanitizers. A lot of people aren’t bothered by the smell, but it affects everyone differently. If you find yourself holding your breath or your nose while adding sanitizer to your hot tub, you may want to look at other options.

Eye Irritant

Part of the reason salt water hot tubs are popular is because the softer salt water is easier on the eyes then chlorinated water is. True, you’re not swimming in your hot tub, so you’re probably not actually opening your eyes underwater. But hot tubs do splash, and it’s still possible to get water in your eyes, allowing the hot tub sanitizer irritate them.

Chemical Sensitivity

Ever thought you might be allergic to chlorine? Do you get out of your spa or pool, and look like you’ve been lounging on the surface of the sun? Well, it’s highly unlikely to actually be allergic to chlorine or another tradition hot tub sanitizer, but you may have a sensitivity to them.

The effect you see on your skin is more likely to be caused by contact dermatitis. It’s not serious, and it’s easily treated, but it sure is uncomfortable and unsightly until it clears up.

The Bleach Effect

Chlorine is absolutely safe to use as a hot tub sanitizer. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a few adverse effects.

For one thing, you may not suffer contact dermatitis, but soaking in a chlorinated hot tub can still dry out your skin, making it itchy and uncomfortable. It can also dry out your hair, and if it’s blond, you may start to notice your hair turning green.

Finally, you may notice your swimsuit starting to fade after a few soak sessions in the spa. Chlorine is essentially bleach, after all. Even the most expensive swimwear isn’t invulnerable to the bleaching effects of chlorinated water.

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Choose an Alternative Hot Tub Sanitizer

“Hmm …” you say. “I actually have noticed a change in my skin and hair since I started using my hot tub more. I just didn’t know I could do anything about it.” You can! All you need is an alternative hot tub sanitizer.

Ultraviolet (UV)

Did you know sunlight can kill bacteria? It’s true. And it’s all because of the sun’s ultraviolet rays.

This power has been harnessed in ultraviolet hot tub sanitizers that kill bacteria and other contaminants with low-grade radiation. The downside is, this type of sanitizer does absolutely nothing to help keep the water clear.

You’ll still need to shock your hot tub, and you may even need to supplement with chlorine or bromine to keep the water clear and fully sanitized. You may not be able to completely stop using a traditional sanitizer, but you can at least reduce the amount.

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Ionizers

The use of silver as an antibacterial dates back to ancient Rome. Copper is known to also have antibacterial properties. Put them together, and you get a hot tub sanitizer called an ionizer.

This type of sanitizer works by releasing silver and copper ions into the water. They kill bacteria and other contaminants in the water, but like ultraviolet sanitizers, don’t prevent clouding.

They’re also not completely effective on their own. You’ll need to supplement with chlorine or bromine to completely sanitize your hot tub, but you won’t need to use as much of either chemical.

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Ozonators

Available in several sizes to accommodate a variety of spas, hot tub ozonators inject ozone into the water to sanitize it. Because they don’t use any chemical at all, ozonators can be an ideal alternative to traditional sanitizers.

Ozonators can be a little more expensive than other options, so going this route may mean making an investment in the health of your hot tub. You may also have to modify your hot tub to accommodate an ozonator.

But if you’re looking for clean water without chemicals, this alternative hot tub sanitizer may well be worth the work and expense.

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Biguanide

This alternative hot tub sanitizer has a few scientific names: polyhexamethylene biguanide, polyaminopropyl biguanide, and polyhexanide. You can see why it’s better known simply as biguanide, or sometimes just PHMB.

Often sold under the brand BaquaSpa (or Baquacil for pools), biguanide is well known for being gentle on the eyes and skin while still being an effective sanitizer. In fact, some contact lens solutions contain this chemical, often listed in the ingredients as PHMB.

While biguanide will effectively sanitize your hot tub, you will still need to shock it. To do this, you must use a non-chlorine or non-bromine based shock, never a chlorine-based shock.

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It’s Good to Have Options

Chlorine and bromine will probably always be the most popular sanitizers, but at least you know they’re not your only options. With a little due diligence, you can decide which alternative hot tub sanitizer is best for you and your spa.

Happy Soaking!

The post 4 Alternative Hot Tub Sanitizers appeared first on Swim University®.

Letting the calcium or hardness level in your spa get too high or too low can wreak havoc with your water chemistry, and can even damage your hot tub and its components. You need to learn how to keep it just right.

Why Is There Calcium in Your Hot Tub?

The answer is easy—because there’s water in your hot tub. Calcium is a naturally occurring element found in all types of water bodies, from creeks to rivers to oceans. It’s also in the water that comes out of our homes’ faucets because that water comes from rivers, streams, aquifers, and the ground.

Minerals like calcium and magnesium also exist in all those sources, and over time, dissolve into the water. This presence of minerals is what makes water “hard.” Depending on where you live, your water may be softer or harder than in other places. If you’re not sure how hard the water in your home is, you can get a kit to test it.

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Are Water Hardness and Calcium Hardness the Same Thing?

Another easy answer. We’re totally going to ace this one! Yes, calcium hardness and water hardness are the same thing. And now we’re going to throw another term in there: total hardness.

What is Total Hardness?

The amount of both calcium and magnesium dissolved in the water is called total hardness. Why is this important? Well, some water test strips and kits only measure total hardness, and not calcium hardness alone.

This isn’t really that big a deal. You could, if you really wanted to, do a bunch of math to determine exactly how much calcium and how much magnesium make up your hot tub water’s total hardness. But the truth is, you don’t need to. It’s enough to go by the total hardness to adjust calcium levels.

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Why is Water Hardness in a Hot Tub Important?

It seems pretty innocuous, doesn’t it? It’s just calcium. It’s found in milk and cheese and broccoli. It’s good for you! It’s not a caustic chemical like chlorine or muriatic acid. And yet, calcium can cause significant damage to your hot tub if it’s not managed properly.

Too Much Calcium in a Hot Tub

If you live in an area with hard water, you’re already familiar with scaling. You see it on your shower head, your faucets, your dishwasher, anywhere you use water in your home. If calcium levels get too high in your spa, you’ll end up with hot tub scale.

You’ll be able to see some of it on the jets, in the filter, and even some nooks and crannies in the shell. But what’s more dangerous is the scaling you don’t see.

Buildup on the pump’s impeller can cause it to seize up, and replacing the pump can be pricey. Worse yet, scaling inside your spa’s pipes can impede water flow.

Also, too-high calcium levels can wreak havoc with pH and alkalinity levels, throwing your entire hot tub chemistry out of whack.

Finally, high calcium levels can cause white flakes in your hot tub, or a cloudy hot tub. Again, you’ll have more trouble to get out of than just an incorrect calcium level.

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Too Little Calcium in a Hot Tub

If you let calcium levels get too low, you run the risk of equipment corrosion. This includes the jets, the heater’s heating element, and even parts of the shell itself.

Too-soft water can also result in hot tub foam, which means you’ll have two problems to fix.

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Juuust Right Calcium in a Hot Tub

We recommend a range between 175 parts per million (ppm) and 250 ppm. This number also applies to total hardness. As long as you’re in that range, you’re fine.

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How to Test for Calcium in a Hot Tub

You have three options:

Test Strips: This is the quickest and easiest hot tub water testing method. Just make sure you use strips that include total hardness.
Liquid Test Kit: A little fancier and slightly more labor-intensive than test strips, but sometimes more accurate. Again, ensure the kit tests for calcium or total hardness.
Hot Tub Supply Store: Any store that sells hot tubs and spa supplies should be able to perform a water test for you. We recommend having the water professionally tested at least twice a year.

We recommend testing for calcium—well, just testing your water in general—at least once a week. Test more often if you use the spa more often.

How to Lower Water Hardness in a Hot Tub

Did the test show a calcium level above 250 ppm? Yikes. Time to take action before you start to see any scaling.

If it’s just a little above the high end of the range, drain some of the water from your hot tub, add fresh water, and then add a scale control product to keep the calcium level where it should be. You can add scale control weekly, if necessary, but always follow the manufacturer’s instructions for use.

If the calcium level is way above 250 ppm, your best bet is to completely drain the hot tub and clean it. When you refill it, use a hose filter to keep at least some of the minerals out of the water. Then use a scale control product to help keep things balanced.

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Got high alkalinity too? You can also follow our guide on lowering your hot tub’s alkalinity.

How to Raise Calcium Hardness in a Hot Tub

Did you find the water in your spa is too soft? You need to raise the calcium level before your equipment begins to corrode.

Fortunately, the easiest way to raise calcium hardness in a hot tub is to—you guessed it—add calcium to the water. Actually, you want to add calcium chloride, which is the active ingredient in calcium hardness increaser made specifically for hot tubs.

Follow the manufacturer’s instructions to get the calcium level up where it needs to be.

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Dealing with Hard Water Isn’t That Hard!

By now, you should be a calcium hardness pro. Next time your neighbor asks you how to lower water hardness in a hot tub (or raise it), you’ll be able to answer with confidence. Then maybe they’ll let you borrow that sleek new riding mower they got last summer.

The main thing to remember is that a high or low level of calcium in a hot tub is fairly easy to correct. Just make sure you keep up with water testing and balancing, and you won’t have to worry about scale, foam, or cloudiness ruining your soak.

Happy Soaking!

The post How to Raise or Lower Water Hardness in a Hot Tub appeared first on Swim University®.