So, you’ve taken the plunge and invested in a hot tub!
Or maybe you’re seriously considering one and want to be prepared when you do.
Either way, now is the perfect time to discover what you should include in a well-rounded hot tub maintenance schedule.
How well you care for your hot tub will determine how long it lasts, the cost of any future service requirements, and how often unexpected maintenance needs occur.
A well-planned routine will maximize your hot tub’s life span, giving you years to enjoy the many health and lifestyle benefits that it can provide.
While many people think taking care of a hot tub is a lot of work and complex, the reality is that with a well-planned care schedule, it’s quite easy and doesn’t take nearly as much time as you may think!
In this article, we’ll walk you through all the most important things to include in your routine, and by the end, you’ll be an expert at caring for your hot tub!
What Supplies Will I Need for Hot Tub Maintenance?
To keep your hot tub clean, your water balanced, and your system running smoothly, you’ll want to include some basic items in your hot tub maintenance tool kit.
Finding the right supplies for your system is essential in maintaining it. If you’re unsure what would be best for your hot tub, contact our team of professionals, and they’ll be able to help you find exactly what you need.
Here are some of the basic items you’ll need to care for your hot tub:
- Water treatment products, such as chlorine, bromine, or salt
- Soft cleaning cloths
- Shell cleaner
- A spa vacuum & surface skimmer
- pH test strips & balancing treatments
5 Easy Steps For Hot Tub Maintenance
Once you have your supplies, you’re ready to begin your hot tub maintenance routine.
Some steps will need to be done more often than others, so as you create your hot tub maintenance schedule, make sure you take special note of each step’s recommended frequency.
Let’s get started!
1. Buy a Cover
Likely the easiest step of them all.
A hot tub cover is a one-time purchase that can last many years when properly taken care of.
Choose one that’s high-quality and well-fitting for your hot tub.
There are several types of hot tub covers on the market. You’ll want to choose one that’s built to withstand your climate.
For example, if you live somewhere that gets cold and experiences lots of snow or rain, consider purchasing a thick hot tub cover that’s peaked at the top. This style makes it easy for snow and rain to drain off, ensuring it doesn’t build up on your cover and cause any damage over time.
If you want a cover that removes the work of opening it each time you use it, consider investing in a Covana Hot Tub Cover, and make climbing into your spa for your personalized massage as easy as hitting a button and more luxurious than ever!
2. Circulate Your Hot Tub Water Daily
The water in your hot tub only gets cleaned as it moves through the filters.
If you allow your water to sit stagnant for too long, you may lift your cover and discover it smells off, has foam on the surface, or has become cloudy.
This happens when bacteria builds up in the water, causing your water to become unbalanced and dirty. This makes more work for you as you try to rebalance your water or shock it, delaying your ability to use it while your water treatment does its job.
When you let your system circulate your water for at least 20 minutes each day, your filters will pull any particles and bacteria out of the water, ensuring it will be clean and ready for you to relax the next time you choose to.
3. Monitor and Treat Your Water
Treating your water properly includes more than just adding your sanitizer, like chlorine.
Before you even start adding your sanitizers or shock treatments, you’ll need to balance your water’s pH and alkaline levels.
These levels are essential in maintaining your water balance, ensuring every soak is gentle and relaxing, all while your system continues to function flawlessly!
If either one of these falls out of balance, your water can begin causing damage to your plumbing, filters, jets, and even the surface of your hot tub. To avoid this, check your water’s pH and alkaline levels regularly, with a bare minimum of once a week.
These levels can fall out of balance for several reasons, such as an unnecessary amount of chemicals, a buildup of oils in the water like makeup, hair products, or body lotion, or simply the hardness of your communities water.
You can check your levels with pH strips or a digital meter.
Once you know your water levels, bringing them back into balance is easy!
Using pH or alkaline increasers and decreasers will help you bring your water back into balance.
Always adjust your alkaline levels first, as it will cause larger fluctuations in your pH levels. You’ll want to aim for an alkaline level between 80 and 100 ppm and a pH level in the range of 7.2 to 7.8.
Once this is done, you can follow a simple schedule for adding your sanitizers, such as adding chlorine once or twice a week, depending on usage.
You’ll also want to use a shock treatment to oxidize your water if it needs a more throughout clean and has developed algae blooms, foam, or has gone cloudy.
An important thing to remember when treating your water is to leave your cover off for at least 30 minutes after treating your water to allow the chemicals to release the gas they produce as they treat your water.
You’ll also want to wait 24 hours before using your hot tub after any chemical treatment.
4. Change your Water Regularly
You may be wondering why you have to change your water if you’re regularly treating it and cycling it through your filters.
While these systems do a great job maintaining your water and keeping it clean, they aren’t able to pull everything out forever. Eventually, your water will develop a buildup of organic matter like oils from makeup, sweat, and lotions that aren’t always pulled out of the water completely.
These oils can stick to the surfaces of your hot tub as they build up and even coat the insides of your pipes if left in the water for too long.
This is why changing your water is essential.
If you use a chlorine system, you’ll need to drain and refill your hot tub every 3-4 months, whereas a salt water system will only need to be drained roughly once a year.
Once you’ve changed your water, you’ll need to test its levels and treat it immediately to bring your pH and alkaline levels back into balance, as mentioned above. This is when your water will be most unbalanced.
5. Keep Your Hot Tub Clean!
Keeping your hot tub clean will help maintain your system, keeping it running properly and giving you the most relaxing spa session possible each time you lower yourself under the hot water!
To clean your hot tub, you’ll want to do some things more regularly than others.
For example, every couple of days, you’ll want to run a soft cloth around the edge of your hot tub’s shell, wiping away any oils, dirt, or particles that may have built up. This will keep them from falling into your water and unnecessarily dirtying it while also keeping your spa looking its best.
You’ll also want to skim the surface of your hot tub to remove any debris that may have been blown in by the wind during previous sessions. Keep a fine mesh skimmer nearby to make this a fast and easy step, either before or after your sessions.
You can also add some hot tub sponges to the water after a session to help absorb any oils that may have gotten into the water for a quick and easy way to remove what the skimmer can’t.
Vacuuming your hot tub will also need to be done regularly. This will give you a way to clean the surfaces of your hot tub under the water, cleaning off any products that may have built up. This will keep your tub feeling fresh and prevent any surfaces from becoming slippery.
Something that will be done less frequently is a deep cleaning of your hot tub, including the filters and any part of your plumbing you can. This cleaning will only be done when you drain your water to change it.
At this time, you’ll want to use a shell cleaning solution to give your entire shell a thorough clean and rinse your filters before submerging them in filter cleaner. This will remove all the bacteria, oils, and debris they’ve collected and help them run more efficiently again.
You’ll know it’s time to change your filters out for new ones when you can no longer get them clean through this process.
Hot Tubs and Spas in Boise
You’re now fluent in hot tub care!
Whether your next step is finding the right products to care for your spa or you’re ready to discover a quality hot tub to upgrade your backyard, Idaho Spas has what you need!
With over 30 years of serving the Boise communities and a line-up of top-quality products, our dedicated experts would be happy to help you find the hot tub of your dreams. Contact us or visit our showroom in person today.
