Ignored tub for a week, chlorine at zero

[dishdude]

I didn't use my hot tub or check it for a week, apparently the ACE system decided to stop making chlorine. Water is clear but had a stagnant smell. I shocked it, PH was a little high so I brought it down. Should I do a drain and refill or let it be? Current water is only a couple months old.

For hot tubs without ACE, how are extended periods of non use handled? Like if you're on vacation for a week?

[d00nut]

I didn't use my hot tub or check it for a week, apparently the ACE system decided to stop making chlorine. Water is clear but had a stagnant smell. I shocked it, PH was a little high so I brought it down. Should I do a drain and refill or let it be? Current water is only a couple months old.

I wouldn't drain in.  ACE only does what you tell it to, unless something happens (like filters get dirty or salt levels get to high... or the 30 day check up is up.)

What was the status test at?

Give it a day, if everything is in range it will get back to normal easily.  Did you reset your output level?

[dishdude]

ACE is online and functioning, it was at 4, I turned it up to 6. Something is going on with the water, I checked it a couple hours after shocking it and chlorine was at zero. I shocked it again and it's at TB = 10 FC = 5.

If the chlorine is gone tomorrow does that mean something is in the water eating it up?

[d00nut]

Either someone is using your spa without you know, or do you have the ozone still installed on the tub?  Ozone (bubbles coming from the bottom of your spa) will eat the FC chlorine residual up.  Don't pay attention to TB, that has nothing to do with your set up. 

If you do, no worries.  PM me your email address and I'll send you a simple cheat sheet on how to easily manage your spa with those two items. 

[dishdude]

I'm confident no one is using the tub, and the ozone is disconnected. This morning FC  was at 1. I shocked it again back up to around 5, but it seems like something is in the water eating up all the chlorine. With ACE set at 6, I should have a lot more FC.

[Hottubguy]

I'm confident no one is using the tub, and the ozone is disconnected. This morning FC  was at 1. I shocked it again back up to around 5, but it seems like something is in the water eating up all the chlorine. With ACE set at 6, I should have a lot more FC.

Have you had the water checked for phosphates?  The symptoms you are describing makes me think you have a high phosphate level in tub

[dishdude]

I'm confident no one is using the tub, and the ozone is disconnected. This morning FC  was at 1. I shocked it again back up to around 5, but it seems like something is in the water eating up all the chlorine. With ACE set at 6, I should have a lot more FC.

Have you had the water checked for phosphates?  The symptoms you are describing makes me think you have a high phosphate level in tub

How do I do that? Take a sample to the dealer?

[Tman122]

I'm confident no one is using the tub, and the ozone is disconnected. This morning FC  was at 1. I shocked it again back up to around 5, but it seems like something is in the water eating up all the chlorine. With ACE set at 6, I should have a lot more FC.

Have you had the water checked for phosphates?  The symptoms you are describing makes me think you have a high phosphate level in tub

This would reflect easiest in your ALK right? High? 80-120 normal? Do phosphates cause foam?

[TemptingDestiny]

We find phosphates are a naughty pain in our Ace tubs. There are Phosphate test kits you can purchase, but dealers may have them on hand to test your sample as well. We have a residual level in our tubs here,(thanks, city water!) so we need to treat before starting up an Ace Tub.
Typically, if we don't- the system starts off well. Gradually over a week or two, we'll notice some foaming- bubbles that continue to float after it should have dissipated. Water usually gets cloudy. At this point, the phosphate levels have doubled or tripled from our regular tap water. This is when we'll start finding no chlorine in our Ace Tubs.
(We run 4 tubs with Ace)
Some products we introduce into the tub can have phosphates as well.
We usually just add a remover at fill up, it will get cloudy for a day, we'll clean filters and all the good jazz, then we are usually set.

[TemptingDestiny]

P.S...if the tub was crummy, the Ace System cleans first with Active Oxygen. Only after the water is clean, will it begin to produce chlorine. (Typically you'll find this during a 24 hour period, and this 24 hour period it does NOT generate chlorine the whole time) We always tell people that the initial Chlorine treatment is to help get the Ace System up and running, instead of it having to play catch-up. You may very well still be in the catch up phase in that funky water you'd had.

Have you cleaned your cell? At a user level of 4 with a tub unused, you would have had a pretty purple register on the FC test strip.

[BullFrogSpasMN]

I'm confident no one is using the tub, and the ozone is disconnected. This morning FC  was at 1. I shocked it again back up to around 5, but it seems like something is in the water eating up all the chlorine. With ACE set at 6, I should have a lot more FC.

Have you had the water checked for phosphates?  The symptoms you are describing makes me think you have a high phosphate level in tub

This would reflect easiest in your ALK right? High? 80-120 normal? Do phosphates cause foam?

Aquacheck makes a '1 Minute Phosphate Test Strip' to test for them and SeaKlear, BioGuard, etc. make liquid phosphate removers that are highly concentrated so not much is needed in a hot tub environment.  That is what we used to have our customers use during a salt system startup..now however our salt system manufacturer has a nice 2 oz. packet of a phosphate/bromine stabilizer that only needs to be added 1 time during startup which is a very simple process if educated properly and assuming you bought from a dealer that knows what they are doing 1. Fill the tub 2. Balance pH/Alk 3. Add phosphate stabilizer 4. add salt & set your 'output number' and that's all she wrote

[dishdude]

PH is around 7.6, Alk is around 100. I do keep the cell clean, and I don't see any buildup on the plates inside the cell. Water is clear, no scum line or anything visible in the water.

[BullFrogSpasMN]

PH is around 7.6, Alk is around 100. I do keep the cell clean, and I don't see any buildup on the plates inside the cell. Water is clear, no scum line or anything visible in the water.

Here is what you NEED to confirm to make sure ACE is performing optimally...a visual inspection of the water helps but provides no hard data to make decisions off of

1. balanced pH/Alk - you seem to be good
2. a calcium hardness level below 75 ppm
3. a phosphate test strip to test phosphates and remove if necessary (if you don't verify this and your city water source happens to have VERY high phosphates your ACE will struggle to create chlorine which in turn causes you to do what you've already done which is "crank it up" which in turn will cause the cell to fail quicker)
4. the appropriate amount of salt added to the water based on what model you have and of course the appropriate output # set based on your bather load/usage

The good news is once you have this procedure down it will be like riding a bike and the overall ownership experience will be easier and the water will be much nicer to soak in than old traditional systems, its just a little bit of a learning curve to start, don't get frustrated...Good Luck!