DRY message and tub won't heat

[jeaves726]

Hi all.  First time post here.  I have always let the tub intimidate me in terms of repair, but have grown tired of service calls.  I know very little about tubs, but am pretty electronic/mechanically inclined so I'm starting to think about giving it a try. 

We have a Artesian Spa  Model: Waikiki

Right now we are dealing with an issue...possibly more than one.  We had let our tub go over the summer and did a poor job of maintaining it.  We have shocked, drained, cleaned, filled, drained, cleaned, filled, etc. and are back to a good state in terms of water quality.  Now the issues:

The tub displays a "DR" error.  After the third "DR" error it switches to "DRY" and then shuts off the pumps.  When we turn the tub on, the temp shows around 68 degrees.  It climbs rather quickly and will get to 105 degrees within a few minutes.  The water in the tub never heats and is still cold to the touch.   At the direction of the store where we bought the tub, we bled the lines at each pump to let any air bubbles out.  We also turned the tub off for over 30 minutes and then started the tub without the filters in.  I pulled the panel off the side and started studying the water flow/pumps and was wondering if y'all could answer some questions/give suggestions.

I'm leaning toward two things that are possibly wrong.  Obviously the heater is working (for now) because the heater pipe/tube and the elbow at the pump is hot. Either the circulation pump for the heater is bad or the valve is broken/shut off coming out of the heater.  There appear to be two shut off valves (one in front of the heater and the second after the pump).  When I move the first (in front of the heater), I can feel it slide open and shut.  When I move the second (after the pump), I don't feel anything move.  That leads me to believe that the valve is possibly broken and stuck in the off position.  The pipe above the valve (after the pump) is cold which tells me the heated water is not either not being pumped out or the valve is stopping the hot water. 

This is all basically a guess based on me looking at the tub.  Am I on the right track or even close?  I have a few pictures of the pipes I'm talking about if it helps, but I wasn't sure how to get them to post.

Thanks for any help!!!

[jeaves726]

Hopefully this link to my pictures work. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KbW5-wqWUup48DXylGmwDyIMFQ_wTcAm/view?usp=sharing

I'm sure most of you know what I'm talking about, but it never hurts to see it. I did disconnect the pipe above the circulation pump that I have labeled as cold in the picture. The valve does work and there was no water in that pipe (or very little). The heated water seems to be getting to the pump, but not being pushed out.   The pump looks to be in great shape overall and the impeller is in tact.  https://drive.google.com/open?id=1T37e-5MTPb8M_mA-6buRKU4crxlv6kfd

I pulled the cover off the top and looked at the relay (or capacitor...I'm not sure which).  When I opened the cover, it had a slight burnt smell but doesn't appear to be swollen on the top or bottom.  https://drive.google.com/open?id=1DvwJ07Bf3cU8OddD-l4CYHwS9KDbJkRc

There is also what looks to be a rubber washer/grommet that is not attached, floating on what I assume to be the shaft of the motor.  https://drive.google.com/open?id=1bLuysCP73uNaPpi-SJ3Ii4IdovHuaxSA

So now another question I have is, could the relay be blown and the pump be ok?  I'd much rather replace a $12 relay rather than a $250 pump. 

[Tman122]

Sounds like it's air locked. Pull the plug on pump one and let the air out.