I'm about 3 weeks into my spa ownership and I am still on my initial chemicals given to me from me spa dealer. I have a Marquis promise with the built in Spa Frog dispenser and currently using the mineral cartridge and bromine. As I get close to needing to buy some new chemicals I have been doing tons of research for the best method of keeping my spa clean as well as minimizing my involvement once the cold weather arrives.
I am very familiar with the dichlor/bleach method described by Chem Geek on various forums. It is similar to how I manage my pool and it has worked well for me. However, I find that bromine has been easier on my skin vs. chlorine so I am thinking maybe I want to stick with it for now. Yes, I know...the dichlor/bleach method in a perfect world means you are bathing in chemical free water but with winter months coming, I may not be able to get to my spa on a daily basis to balance everything.
The spa frog system so far has caused me minimal effort to keep my water clean and balanced. Other than changing the initial setting one time, I have had to add nothing to my water. The bromine levels have been consistent around 2ppm. PH does seem to drop to 7.2 but that seems to be the low with it closer to 7.4 most of the time (guessing aeration helps keep it high). So, on to my questions:
1. Cost - Obviously sticking with the cartridge method would be more expensive. However, is there an easy way to refill the spa frog cartridge? I am currently using the purple ones which I think hold a bit more and last about a month. if these are refillable somehow, I can just buy some granulated bromine.
2. Mineral cartridge - Is this doing anything? Like really doing anything or is it not needed as long as I keep my sanitizer levels right?
3. My tub has ozone which I know is supposed to be an oxidizer (obviously) so is that why I am not requiring frequent shock treatments?
4. As for shock - for those of you using bromine, do you use bleach/chlorine or do you go the non chlorine route? I have tons of calcium hypochlorite powder that I use to shock my pool from time to time and figured I could use this in place of calcium additive when I drain and refill my tub. Thoughts?
Thanks