Hot Tub Forum
Original => Hot Tub Forum => Topic started by: grosenau12 on May 09, 2013, 11:59:52 am
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I have a very new Sundance Capri spa, which has only 260 gallons of water in it. I use the ClearRay system and the SunPurity cartridge. I have been following the recommended procedure of adding one capfull of granular chlorine dichlor twice a week, as well as non-chlorine shock MPS. I am clean when I get in the spa and use it about twice a week. I am the only user most of the time, so it is not heavily used.
Over 4-5 weeks, the spa becomes incapable of holding chlorine. The free chlorine drops to zero within an hour or two of putting it in. Eventually the water becomes cloudy if I don't use SpaClear to brighten it up, which I do every week or two. The alkalinity and Ph have been within range, I adjust them if needed, but mostly that has not been a big problem. I have stabalized the calcium level to within range, since the water is too soft in my neighborhood. So I am being very careful with chemistry, but still the chlorine levels become impossible over a short period of time to stabalize and it appears that I am not getting enough sanitizer in the water. The ClearRay is operating properly, and I leave the circulation pump on for 16 hours a day. The spa is indoors, so the area is super-clean, and I check and clean the filters regularly. They never seem to have crud on them, so that is not the problem.
What am I doing wrong? How can I stabalize the sanitizer level in this spa.
I have never gotten the water to last more than 2 months. I just dump the water and start over. I'm supposed to be able to go at least 3 months, and it seems that I should be able to do that.
Thanks.
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sounds like you could be getting behind on the sanitizer level a little each day until it reaches a point some biofilm may be occuring.
Do you maitain the MPS residual level at all times?
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Thanks, TdiDave. I put a capfull of dichlor in twice a week and shock about the same amount of MPS twice a week. Supposedly, with ClearRay and the SunPurity mineral sanitizer, you are not supposed to use much chlorine. I ordered test strips to test the MPS level. Previously, I was only able to test free chlorine. I presume the big thing I need to adjust is the amount of shock (MPS) that I am putting in, since that is what the literature on SunPurity says. But I don't want to over-shock such a small quantity of water (260 gallons). But I'm still learning what to do. I use Spa Clear once every 2 weeks to keep the water clear--otherwise, it starts to get cloudy. I can't understand why I am having so much trouble keeping the levels adjusted properly. My big question is whether it is OK for the chlorine level (free chlorine) to drop to almost zero within a few hours of adding dichlor.
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I have been telling people to hit it with dichlor after use, 1 tblspn or so per person after use, then shock 2oz once a week. Watch PH/Alk. We are also have good luck with leisure time replenish if you have it available to you? It's a chlorine/shock mix..
Also with sun purity much like Jacuzzi's proclear or Nature 2 it's only good per water fill, so if you are changing the water every 2 months are you replacing the sun pure every time?
And yes if there is enough bacteria present it will eat up chlorine pretty fast. I am also one that doesn't always worry about a PPM of chlorine, as long as I am adding after I get out and shock once a week things seem fine. I will also hit it a bit harder with chlorine once or twice a month.
FWIW I have a J-345 with Clear Ray at the house now..
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Thanks. Changing the Sun Purity mineral cartridge, even if I dump water after 2 months, might help. I was worried about using too much chlorine. The Sun Purity instructions and all the people at the place where I bought the spa say not to do more than twice a week, and then only one capful. The spa only has 260 gallons in it, but that also causes contamination to spread more easily. I keep reading that used up chlorine sits in the tub and is actually bad for the water, but I don't know how to get rid of it. I use the Spa Clear once a week, and that seems to brighten up the water, but the contamination seems to build up no matter what I do, and free chlorine seems to disappear within hours after adding dichlor. I still cannot figure out the chemistry of this thing. I'm relatively clean when I get in the spa, it's usually just me, and I only use the thing 2-3 times a week.