excessive foaming after 2 months

[Jostudly]

I have had my tub for almost 2 months and have been getting my water testing weekly at the dealer and I am still getting excessive foam with the air turned on. They test my water in a machine and here is where I am at:

Bromine : 6.1
PH: 8.2
Total Alkalinity: 82
Adjusted TA: 82
Cal Hardness: 116

I am using Bio Guard products and I am told to put in 1.5 cap of Spa 100 to boost alkalinity, 1 tablespoon of Lo N Slo to lower the PH, and 2 tablespoons of Spa 300 to increase cal hardiness.

Just to compare results I went to another dealer with the same water and they tested with drops as follows:

Bromine: 6
Total Alkalinity: 90
PH: 8.1
Cal Hardiness: 100

The other dealer suggested if I want to keep the water and get it at the proper bromine level I should do as my dealer directed from but not to add the 1.5 cap of Spa 100 for alkalinity. They told me to add a  chlorine shock until my bromine levels are at 10-20ppm for at least 12 hrs and once they are stable my foam should be gone. If that does not work they said to drain my tub and start over. I would like to know is the other dealer right by having me add chlorine shock to my bromine tub to get my bromine levels really high to get rid of my foam problem?

[jbequer]

As a new tub owner i went through this foam issue. I know how you feel, its embarrassing having to deal with this foam issue in front of friends and family, trying to explain why this is happening . I used more chemicals than needed to trying to fix the problem and it only got worse.

My advice to you is to use a purge product like ahh-some and clean and refill . I did a lot of reading and spoke to many people that told me to do this. When a tub is new, it is tested , filled with water and emptied. The problem is that it is impossible to get all the water out of the inner pipes within the spa shell. These spas are sometimes kept in the factory or stores for months before they are sold. While sitting they accumulate some real nasty bacteria from the water that is stagnant . Believe me, you will be disgusted at what you see when the purge product gets everything out. It took me three purges to get it all out, and this was only a one month old spa. I can't even believe i was bathing in this stuff. To make a long story short, after this process my spa has the cleanest water I've ever seen. I get a lot of compliment on the clarity of the water which i never had before even when new. I use much less chemicals, no foam out products, no clarifier, no scale on walls and much easier to keep up. It is recommended by many to purge drain and refill after one month of ownership.

All i can tell you is to stop trying to fight the battle because you've already lost. There is some real bad biofilm in your spa that is dangerous to you and your families health. My wife and kids were getting little bumps and rashes on their skin that looked like bug bites. After further reading, i found out that it was hot tub rash or basically infection from dirty water. This made me really be meticulous about how i take care of the water. Ever since the refill, everyone is very happy, no complaints about nasty water or rashes.

Please do some reading and do yourself a favor and take my advice. Enjoy your hot tub with a fresh start, i know it sounds like a pain to have to do this but it will save you time, money and overall headaches and health risks that WILL come with dirty biofilm.

[Vinny]

There used to be a person here, Chas, who was a Hotsprings dealer (maybe he's still here) that had a rule of change the water after the first month of ownership - so true!

Anyway, foam is caused by detergent in suits, body oils, lotions, hair care products ... almost anything. Its amazing how hot water will suck out everything from fabric and the body.

The best thing to do is run your tub with the air on and get it foaming, get a pool skimmer and scoop the foam out. Shock the tub to eat up anything it can and once the water gets old - replace. The cheapest and easiest chemical is water.

[Jostudly]

Okay well I have already started to add more chemicals. If the foam does not go away in a couple of days I will for sure be purging the lines and re-filling. Thanks

[Jostudly]

I also went from setting my filtering from twice a day for 3 hrs to 3 times a day for 4hrs. I am wondering though on my settings its says the time to start filtering which I set at 1am. I am told if you set it twice a day it would start again at 1pm. I am wondering if it is set for 3 times a day how do i know when the 3rd filtering will take place?

[jbequer]

Everything you are doing is overkill, it's a perfect sign that the bacteria has won the battle. Trust me, I know what your going through, it's a pain in the a-- and it's not going to get any better, if It does, within 24 hrs you'll be back to nasty water.
You will be upset with yourself when you see how much effort you are putting into this . When after you purge drain and refill, you will see how easy water care will be.

The question is, do you really want to bath in this stuff? Health comes first , trust me not worth it!!!

[Jostudly]

okay will go with the drain. Going back to my filtering settings question more then 2x a day it only allows me to set start time so when would it filter the 3rd time?

[jbequer]

Make sure you purge, use ahh-some its cheap and works good, do at least two applications.

As far as the filtering , i would call the dealer and have him run through the filter setting, every spa is different.

[Jostudly]

Okay thanks

[Quickbeam]

There used to be a person here, Chas, who was a Hotsprings dealer (maybe he's still here) that had a rule of change the water after the first month of ownership - so true!

I remember that. I believe he was also of the opinion that if you did change the water after the first month, it would increase the lifespan of your hot tub. It was because I read about that on this forum that I changed my water after one month, and like "jbequer" I was surprised at what came out of the pipes.

[Sam]

Everything you are doing is overkill, it's a perfect sign that the bacteria has won the battle. Trust me, I know what your going through, it's a pain in the a-- and it's not going to get any better, if It does, within 24 hrs you'll be back to nasty water.
You will be upset with yourself when you see how much effort you are putting into this . When after you purge drain and refill, you will see how easy water care will be.

The question is, do you really want to bath in this stuff? Health comes first , trust me not worth it!!!

Foaming has nothing to do with bacteria.  As stated above, it is the result of soap residue on skin, hair, bathing suits, etc.  The turbulence of the water and air injectors combine to create the perfect situation for foam. 

I still like the idea of a system flush, but that is a different issue that the one he started the op about.

[Jostudly]

I have added 2 scoops of Spa Chlorine shock since Sat and noticed last night when I was in the tub that I had less foam with the air on. I will wait a few more days and if it is still there I will drain it.