Do Hot Spring's Filters Suppose to spin? Or WHAT????

[kbingel]

Hi,
 
Ok, a little history here.  Got my new Jetsetter this July....all is GREAT....loved it.....water fantastic.....then I noticed that the chemicals the guy who set up the hot tub with me, were labeled incorrectly.....I had been putting in down PH instead of Chorine.....my water turned green and had a bad odor.....drained, cleaned.....started over.....in no time, same issue....not as bad...bet getting there,,,,,drained, started over....really watching my chemicals....getting the hang of it....small adds and adjustments....etc....keeping it balanced....etc.....still.....got ....a ....smell.....and...not there yet.  Bought a Silver Ion to my filter,, bought a ceramic filter to use when I take one out at a time to clean etc drained and cleaned again....still....not great.
 
By coincidence, the problem with my water didn't start until I cleaned my filters for the first time, approximately, one month after owning the hot tub.....so I have always wondered if I did something incorrectly, as in putting them back in since cleaning, and using the correct chemicals doesn't seem to really fix the issue.
I do know the first one has the grey top, and that's the one with the silver ion thingy,,,,,I spray them with a special hose adapter, soak in the grease remover stuff, spray again, insert....
 
QUESTION<<<<<Are they suppose to spin at all?  Does the piece in front that goes up and down suppose to be down? or up?  It was staying up, now it stays down....what is the function of this piece?  Is there anything I should check for in the filter compartment that I don't understand?  I have looked EVERYWHERE on line for information on this part of the Hot Springs line and can not find anything.
 
Could there be another reason I can't get rid of that smell....?  It's faint now, but there.....
Also, I used that gunk remover stuff the last time I cleaned it....just in case....it's only about 6 months old now, with one user....and three cleanings....what are my options? Anyone else have this problem?
 
Thanks for ALL the advice I can get....it's getting COLD here in upper Michigan so I only have one more chance at a drain and fill....before FREEZING begins.
 
Karen
 

[d00nut]

The floating piece is the weir door (acts as a skimmer.)  It should go down when the jets run to trap debris in the filter compartment.

The filters should not spin.  The only way it would spin is if the filter was loose.  If the filter is loose and you have bypass, especially on the circ pump filter, your water won't be pristine like you would want. 

Do you get all the degreaser out when you put the filters back in the hot tub?  I tell people to hose out the filters till it stops foaming... then hose out for another minute or two.

At the end of the day, it's all chemistry.  I am not sure how you could put ph down in instead of Chlorine unless your dealer put these chemicals in unmarked plastic bags?!  What is your pH?  Alkalinity? FC?  It sounds like something is completely off.

[kbingel]

Thanks for the quick reply!

Ok, the Weir door is down when the jets are on but up when they are not?  Does that happen automatically? 

I have tried hard to really rinse out those filters, but I am not sure I was doing as good a job as I thought in the beginning.  I am getting better at everything now....

What happened with the chemicals was this!     The young man who went over all the chemicals with me, labeled each one with directions for use, amount, etc.....so on the one he thought was Chlorine, he wrote: "add one half capfull after each use and/or as needed"....so that was what I was doing.  I never even looked at the bottle itself. It wasn't until I started having problems that I took a look at it and went, :WHAT?:  so my mistake as well, but as a newbie, I just trusted the experts! 

Now, do you have any suggestions to help remedy this?  It isn't nasty at this point, just a lingering smell that I smell, but my husband doesn't.  Mind you, I have a really good smeller.....but I still think there is something amiss.

I live at least 6 hours away from the closest dealer of Hot springs, about one and a half from other dealers.  I can call I guess and take my water in?  The thing is, It was perfect for a good 6 weeks....then bam!!!  so I think my original water is fine....

Do you think those purge things like ICK, etc....would be a good idea? And when you drain your hot tubs, do you clean them as well?  If so with what?  I thought there wasn't much you could use to clean them so I just use water.   

Sorry to go on and on.....just so frustrating.

Karen

[d00nut]

Ok, the Weir door is down when the jets are on but up when they are not?  Does that happen automatically? 

That's completely normal.  I got a HSS Envoy, does the same thing

Now, do you have any suggestions to help remedy this?  It isn't nasty at this point, just a lingering smell that I smell, but my husband doesn't.  Mind you, I have a really good smeller.....but I still think there is something amiss.

I would say we/I need to know what your water tests out at.  If you got a lingering smell, it's either excess chlorine gas or (and more probably) some bacterial funk making its home.  pH needs to be pretty darn neutral for dichlor chlorine to be effective.  Sounds like you were putting a lot of pH down in, which may cause the pH to be off, which in turn would cause the chlorine to be pretty much ineffective.  Again, readings from a test kit would be very helpful in helping you

Do you think those purge things like ICK, etc....would be a good idea? And when you drain your hot tubs, do you clean them as well?  If so with what?  I thought there wasn't much you could use to clean them so I just use water.   

I like the idea of purging your plumbing.  However, I don't think this would solve your issue.  It's more of a sanitary thing to do when you drain and clean your water.  However, I know plenty of spa owners who don't do this and their spa water is perfect.

Sorry to go on and on.....just so frustrating.

We'll get to the bottom of it!

[kbingel]

Hi

Well, I don't know exactly the water chemistry as I live in the middle of nowhere so I have to only go by the test strips for now....when I get a chance to go town, I;ll have it analyzed if possible.

As of this morning the test strips read:

Alcalinity-80
PH-7.8
hardness-150

All were in the normal range however the hardness was on the far end of normal...
My free chorine was low, as expected as I didn't add any in a couple of days....I try to add it every other day if not using it....everyday if I am.

When I add it every other day, I usually do the 10 minute clean cycle with the top off half way....the water right now looks clear, but has that faint oder still....and is, at least to me, kind of soft feeling, if that makes sense. 

Do you prefer the ceramic filters to the paper ones?  And if you don't have a dish washer, do you clean the ceramic ones the same as the paper?  i.e., in the degreasers for 24 hours, and then a prince?

Thanks again for your help.....it's hard for new owners, no matter how much they read!!!!

[d00nut]

I'd lower the pH a bit, since you are on the high side of acceptable.  7.4 is what I tell people to shoot for.

I can't comment of the feeling.  How much chlorine do you add when you do add it?  How long do you soak? 

What does the odor smell like? 

I use the TriX filters (their plastic) but I don't put them in the dish washer.  You can only put them in the dishwasher to get a good rinse off (after you rinsed them out with the hose already.)  Plus, in my experience the TriX last a lot longer if you never put them in the dishwasher (5+ years.) 

The thing with the TriX filters is that they tend to be a better filter, but also tend to clog a lot faster, so you might have an issue with dirty filters, especially on the circ pump filter (the one with the silver ion.)

Try moving the filters around on different stand pipes.  That might also help.

[hottubdan]

Could the odor be in the cover?