Scarred of Tub/ Water quality concern!

[hottubJames]

Team,
 
I have had my new tub since Early November. Upon Delivery the installer/set up guy had crushed up 4-5 bromine tables threw them in the water. Told me to adjust the floater full of tablets and shock once or twice a week as well to monitor water quality with the test strips provided.
 
I enjoyed my tub daily for up to 1 hour soaks at a time.
I constinatly checked my water prior and after soaks thinking I was keeping things in line.
bromine levels 5ppm
Shocking weekly or once after guests joined.


However everytime I touched the bromine tablets or even opened the container it made my skin tingly and feel funny.

well before long I had large bumps and peeling skin on my legs.

Was it a reaction to the chemicals?
Was it a contaminated Tub?
Chemical Burn?

Other users of the tub Wife, Kids or brother in law who all enjoyed the tub never had an issue.

After SEVERAL days of research I learned a ton on the forums reguarding water quality!


Prior to the flush I had gone to a local store to purchase the spa flush and chatted with a salesman there.
 He recomended a $100.00 + spa marvel product to soften the water. I had reaseached this already and questioned about sanitation. He said I could use it with the Bromine to soften the feel. As well purchased a drop kit to test the water.

I then performed the decontamitation mentioned on one of the forums, flushing the lines for an hour sit for 24 hrs, dumped the tub, refilled, balanced and then super clorinated for an hour! then scrubed rinsed and dumped again and New filters added!


 Proceeded to refill and balance my water with a new arsonal of knowledge!

First managing ch, ta, ph and establishing a bromine 30 ppm bank. I had added the spa marvel product.

The water looked great, felt soft to the touch.
ch 150
ta 120
ph 7.5
bromine 3-5

I adjusted the floater and tested the water daily for a couple of weeks, shocking once a week. While my skin healed and not personally using the tub!
Brother in law and kids used it for a couple of short soaks no problem (my ginny pigs)


Once I was all clear of peeling and brave enough for the water I tested once again prior to getting in!
All balances were sound!

My brother in law joined me for my first soak in a long time! it felt great!  stayed in for 30 mins, got out, tested the water! everything was still bang on!

Showered when I got out.. And Then a few hours later I woke up to being on FIRE!

you could see the water line from my chest down was red like a sun burn!
I had a long shower and went to the pharmasy where I was given benadryl!

It has been a few more weeks of skin peeling and scratching every wall and doorway like a bear! Antibiotics and steroid creams were now a daily regiment!
Chemical Burn?
Allergy?


I have since dumped the tub!
Refilled
Super decontaminted with bleach! using the measurements off pool calculator
Scrubed, rinsed, scrubbed, rinsed and refilled againnew filters!
This time Switching to Clorine regiment!

Using clorine concentrate (bioguard) and the instructions for my tub (540 gal)
testing every day to maintain a minimum of free clorine

50 ppm borates
ch 150
ta 60
ph 7.5
f.c 3
cc 3

I had had the water perfect! even took it in to another store where they sold me the concentrate !

then they sold me smart tabs for hot tubs "put em in the floater and you won't have to maintain your f.c. with the concentrate", just shock it with the concentrate or lithium..

SO,
Last week I added the smart tabs and the f.c shot up over 10ppm with the floater darn near closed. the fc remained that way for a few days.

I removed the floater earlier this week and have been testing my water daily!

50 ppm borax was added at refill

ch 150
f.c 3
cc 3
ta 60
ph is balanced to 7.5 moderatly goes up running the tub with aireation for a hour to 7.8
cya 25

I am concidering going to the bleach method as a concern of possibly being allergic to shock?

 
As I am sure you can understand I am scared to death to get in the tub again!

Any suggestions before I end up with a 15,000 flower bed?

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

Basic rule of thumb;

If the "rash" appears within 24 hours it a chemical sensitivity, after 24 hours it's bacterial (bacteria requires an incubation period).

One way to test for a chemical sensitivity is to drain the spa, rinse it out, refill and heat. BEFORE adding ANY chemicals, get in and use the spa (fresh new water is clean). If there's no reaction (and there may still be, look up Grovers Disease), it's probably a reaction to chemicals, pH or some other quality of normally treated spa water.

There's also the poor mans allergy test. Take bandaids and soak each  pad in a very mild mixture of each chemical you use mixed with water. Put the band aid on, see if you get a reaction (to do it correctly one bandaid would have only water on it [the control] and someone else would prepare the bandaids without you knowing what  chem is on which bandaid)

[Tman122]

Bromine did the same thing to me. Turns out it aggrivated the exema I had and didn't know about.

[Flyonthewall]

i'm not a big fan of bromine.  i hear more negative feedback about it from customers.  a little alarming that they crumbled up tabs on start-up, but probably not the culprit.  what were the ingrediants of those mystery tabs you bought?  i haven't seen any chlorine product in a tablet that was mild enough for a portable spa.  you say you shock it.  with chlorine or monopersulfate?  i've heard of people being allergic to both. 

[shaggydog39]

I too had problems with rashes when using chlorine and bromine.
My hot tub supplier suggested I try Spa Marvel.
I used pulled the filters and added the Spa Marvel tub cleaner and ran for 24 hours.
I refilled the tub, installed clean filters, adjusted my calcium, ph and alkalinity levels.
I then added the Spa Marvel. (And that is all).
I even checked the Spa Marvel website. That is it. No need to add anything else for 3 months.
This is the first product that has cured my rash problem.
I had read an earlier post of someone using bromine with this product, and it gave him a rash. Do not use this product with bromine or chlorine. It is a natural enzyme that inhibits bacteria growth. Just check the website or youtube.
It is amazing!!!

[chem geek]

Just so others note, Spa Marvel are enzymes so do not disinfect and are not EPA approved as such so there are no claims made to kill bacteria.  It will not prevent person-to-person transmission of disease and will not be allowed (by itself) in any commercial/public spa.  What you do in your own spa is your own business.

Rash problems with proper chlorine use are much less frequent.  The chlorine level in a spa due to CYA is less than that found in tap water so unless you are getting rashes in your shower and bath or require a whole-house filter to remove the chlorine, then it's unlikely you have a problem with chlorine.  If you used Dichlor-only and got the rash after months of hot tub use, then that could be from the buildup of CYA that makes the chlorine less effective or it could be from using too little chlorine that would allow bacteria to grow.

[RUBADUBDUB]

SPA MARVEL DOES NOT REPLACE YOUR SANITIZER!!! You still need Chlorine or Bromine. Says it right on the Bottle. Also it states to balance your pH and Alkalinity...

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

It's always suspicious when someone's VERY FIRST post looks like a sales pitch for a product....ESPECIALLY when they're responding to a post that's almost 3 months old

[rin-spa-aic]

It's always suspicious when someone's VERY FIRST post looks like a sales pitch for a product....ESPECIALLY when they're responding to a post that's almost 3 months old

Actually a year and three months!

[Hottubguy]

I sell spa marvel but you need to use some sort f sanitizer with it