Welcome to our forum.
Hey all, A good friend of mine ownes a Sundance Cameo and uses the Bromine Tablets to keep his tub clean. He doesn't read these boards, but I have heard on and off that tablet Bromine is a "Bad Thing" (tm) and was wondering if this was the case. Certainly if there is something destructive about using this I'd like to know so that I can offer him some suggestions for keeping his tub healthy and in good shape.-Ed
I discourage pretty much everyone to avoid using compressed tablets and floating chemical dispensers in their portable spas...There are two problems in my view that make them less desirable to use in a hot tub. 1) Your portable spa has a cover on it- Unlike a pool, your spa has a cover that can trap chlorine gas. This gas is often strong enought to do damage to your cover, any headrests, as well as your lungs...2) A floating dispenser does not give you very much control over how much chlorine or bromine your spa uses. In most cases, chemical will be eroded into your spa whether or not it needs it. This leads to yet another problem- some tablets can adversely effect your pH, frequently making the water more acidic, and possibly more aggresive towards the metal parts of your spa...I recommend all my chlorine/bromine customers to use a granulated product, only to be added after each use and once a week as a shock, with the jets running and the cover opened. This in my opinion, limits the corrosive effects and will help prevent chemical damage over the life of the spa.
I discourage pretty much everyone to avoid using compressed tablets and floating chemical dispensers in their portable spas...
Would this still be the case if you are using bromine tablets (I am using them now...) and you only keep the bromine level around 1ppm. My dealer told me to keep it lower since we have and ozonator and we also use a Spa Frog in the filter.Are you saying that if you use granular form of bromine that it dissipates quicker and after 15 minutes and you close the lid there is no more bromine in the spa that can damage the cover or headrests?I have also seen a few of these comments recently and and again questioning what we are using as I want our spa to last but also want the maintenance to be as easy as possible. I personally don't like the idea of having to put something in and leave the lid open after every use. We typically use the spa right before bed and would rather not have to stay up an extra 30 minutes to go down and put the cover back on.Chas and other have also mentioned Brilliance but I'm not quite sure what that is and how it's that different than the tablets if it's still bromine.We've had out spa about 3 months now and I'm just getting to the point where I feel we're in a pretty good groove. For the most part, I put a couple tablets in a week and adjust the ph/alk as necessary and that's about it. I guess what I'm saying is that I'd like to know more why one system (granular vs tablet) is better so that I can make an educated decision to change if I need to.Thoughts?
Thanks for the responses!The danger of over-sanitizing is reduced life of pillows and cover. Aside from improper usage is there any other reason to not use Bromine tablets? Are there any dangers if you "stay honest" with your chemistry?-Ed
Yes. Bromine tablets are about 44% chlorine.
I want our spa to last but also want the maintenance to be as easy as possible. I personally don't like the idea of having to put something in and leave the lid open after every use.
Chas, do the tablets with '96% 1-bromo-3-chloro-5, 5-dimethythydantoin' have that much chlorine as well when disolved?
Somehow, I have a hard time believing this argument to not use bromine tablets. What you are saying is probably true to some extent but I question whether its any different than those who use a chlorine based system. If you put dichlor in after every use and leave the lid open for a while, does all that chlorine burn off before you put the cover back on? I doubt it. There is likely still some (if not quite a bit) of Chlorine in the water when you put the lid back on and the same gasses will accumulate and damage the cover and pillows. I would think the same could be said for people who use dichlor to shock. I've read on this board about how shocking with dichlor 'superchlorinates' the water and you should wait 24 hours or so to use the spa. Do you leave the cover off for 24 hours to let all that chlorine burn off?I don't know... Maybe I'm a hard person to convince. It's just in my nature as an engineer to ask a lot of questions and if I'm going change something that I'm doing, I want to make sure I have a good reason to do so.If someone can show me how using dichlor won't damage the cover / pillows as I have suggested above, then I'd love to hear it. I'm willing to make a change for the right reasons but until then I'll probably stick to my tablets.As for systems like Brilliance, I looked at that and it appears to be difficult to find. I can't find a local dealer who sells it and the popular online places don't cary it either. Is this because it's new? Or is it just not very popular?
If you put dichlor in after every use and leave the lid open for a while, does all that chlorine burn off before you put the cover back on?
As for systems like Brilliance, I looked at that and it appears to be difficult to find. I can't find a local dealer who sells it and the popular online places don't cary it either. Is this because it's new? Or is it just not very popular?