Tired of the smell and the burning eyes

[ssbraun]

I know I am all over the forum with these chem questions, but forgive me. the more I try to undestand what others are doing, the more I get confused....

Tony, This sounds backwards.  You put Shock into the tub BEFORE you use it, and once a week add dichlor?  I thought you used Dichlor AFTER each use and shocked with MPS once a week.?  
 

The pre-soak MPS addition is recommended for users of Nature2, and the weekly dichlor would keep the free chlorine at the recommended 0.5 ppm per their website...otherwise, the dichlor after each soak and weekly shock with dichlor or MPS to get rid of chloramines is what makes sense to me after lots of reading on this forum...

Steve

[svspa]

jcmsrv,

I do still use the N2 although I am considering whether I'll keep it when do my next water change.

The nature 2 site does say you can substitute dichlor so I guess you don't have to use MPS with nature 2.

I don't know, I might keep using it as a supplemental sanitizer, not terribly expensive (~$20 very 4 months).

Steve

[J._McD]

Froggy, while everyone seems to be in agreement with using far too many chemicals, what about your pH and your alkalinity.  If your pH is low chemicals are going to gas off the water creating the smell.

I wouldn't suggest trying other chemicals until you conquer this problem.  Chemical balance is just that, balance.  You are using too much, cut back on quantity.  If you try something else at this time you will probably perpetuate the problem.  Let's get a handle on this one first.  The previous infromation given should be useful, but pH is a critical issue as well, check it.

How long have you had the spa?  

Do you have ozone on the spa?  

[Froggy]

guys I'm doing exactly what my dealer told us to do, we have had our Maxuus for about 2 months now.

I'm confused, we use keep the tub between 2-3ppm and ph is between 7.2-7.8 on the test strip.

We use Leisure time Spa56 chlorine granuels,When I check the chlorine before we enter the tub, most of it is gone.

So Question, if the test strip is saying all is o.k. then what should I do differently.

What is Dichlor and MPS ?

[svspa]

Froggy,

Dichlor is the chlorine granules you are using.

MPS is typically what is called 'shock' or non-chlorine shock.

I am kind of at a loss to give you more direction after re-reading your post on how much chlorine and shock you add to your tub daily and that your chlorine level is at 2-3ppm.

You said you add 2 ounces of chlorine and 2 ounces of shock after every use. That's 3 tablespoons each. Most folks I reckon would be adding about 1-2 teaspoons of chlorine daily to stay around 2-3ppm.

Your daily dose of chlorine is more than my weekly shock dose that raises my ppm to >10. I add 1/2 tablespoon for my daily dose to get to 2-3ppm.

Of course this is also dependent on your tub size and use.

I would suggest you check out Vermonter's FAQ on chlorine dosing.

http://www.rhtubs.com/bbs/FAQ.htm

Northman also has an FAQ on the same page about using chlorine and non-chlorine shock.

Some of the more experienced folks may be able to give you more info on what may be going on with your tub.

Worst case you might consider dumping your water and starting over following one the routines specified above by Vermonter or Northman.

Steve

[tony]

What is Dichlor and MPS ?

If you are using Leisure Time chems, your Spa 56 chlorine is dichlor.  Renew is MPS.

There is no way to maintain 2-3 ppm free chlorine.  What you need to do is reach that mark after you exit the spa.  Your Maxxus is going to take a little more of your Spa 56 chlorine than most of the rest of us just because of its size.  The free chlorine level will drop to zero or near zero by the next day.  If you use ozone and/or Nature2 (or SunPurity) along with your chlorine, your water will most likely stay in good shape for two or three more days without use at which time you would have to add more chlorine or until you use your spa again if sooner than that.  My guess is that it will take between one tsp and one tblspn after use to get to the proper level depending on how many people and for how long.  Shock once per week with Renew per directions on the bottle.  Renew is a buffered MPS, so it does not affect pH, but you use about double that of other non buffered MPS products.

With this type of routine, you should not have any burning eyes or chlorine smell.  Vermonter and Northman's routines are very informative and are must reading for chlorine users.

[TubbinSoon, now we be tubbin]

My opinion is that you don't need MPS when using chlorine (dichlor). We have 600+ gallon tub and we put in about one tablespoon after use. Once a week we put in 2-3 tablespoons for shock but don't use MPS. We never, never have odor or burning eyes unless you lean over the beaker of mixed dichlor when mixing in the tub as the dichlor "off gases". This lasts only a few moments. The sanitizing is done in about a minute or less, 30 seconds from what I have read.

I agree with others; back off the quantity and if you intend to use MPS, don't use it daily and don't put it in with any chlorine/bromine product at the same time.

Dealer advice is interesting. My dealer is bromine only and I buy from different vendor. I did not like the bromine floaters due to odor when I was in the tub. Then when I got out if smelled as if I had washed my hands in chlorine. Hard to get off my hands.

Good luck.

[tony]

My preference is to shock with MPS over chlorine.  I believe it is a better oxidizer and I don't have to put my spa out of commission to wait for the chlorine level to come down to use it.

I tend to use a minimal amount of dichlor after each use, so I like to be sure I raise my free chlorine level to 3-5 ppm once per week.

[wmccall]

My preference is to shock with MPS over chlorine.  I believe it is a better oxidizer and I don't have to put my spa out of commission to wait for the chlorine level to come down to use it.

I tend to use a minimal amount of dichlor after each use, so I like to be sure I raise my free chlorine level to 3-5 ppm once per week.

Agreed, and if the tub does get a little cloudy for whatever reason, in my opinion the MPS bring it back faster than a chlorine shock.