'05 Sundance Optima power outage plan

[Ronnie526]

     When I reached the "critical point" during a blizzard & resulting 40 hour power outage last weekend, I wasn't sure what to do w/my 05 Sundance Optima tub.  Not having a compressor to blow out the lines, I wasn't sure what to do.  I finally just drained the tub to hopefully minimize freeze damage. (I have since refilled the tub, and it appears I did dodge the bullet ).  Was that the right thing?  Going forward; I have a generator being delivered today.  I can't seem to find amp draw for various pump motors in my manual - anyone know offhand?  Also, is there a way to disable the heater without going into the control panel? (It's a little difficult to access).  I see running in "Economy" mode helps, but manual says the heater would still run during filter cycles.  Can I just program NO filter cycles, or is there an easier/better way?
     Any input/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks!!
     

[sorebikr]

     When I reached the "critical point" during a blizzard & resulting 40 hour power outage last weekend, I wasn't sure what to do w/my 05 Sundance Optima tub.  Not having a compressor to blow out the lines, I wasn't sure what to do.  I finally just drained the tub to hopefully minimize freeze damage. (I have since refilled the tub, and it appears I did dodge the bullet ).  Was that the right thing?  Going forward; I have a generator being delivered today.  I can't seem to find amp draw for various pump motors in my manual - anyone know offhand?  Also, is there a way to disable the heater without going into the control panel? (It's a little difficult to access).  I see running in "Economy" mode helps, but manual says the heater would still run during filter cycles.  Can I just program NO filter cycles, or is there an easier/better way?
     Any input/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks!!
   

I'm interested in this thread as my hottub is 2.5hrs away from my main place, and it gets into the teens most nights during the winter.  What do you mean by 'critical point'?

Personally, I think you made a mistake by draining the tub.  You had a big mass of stored energy in that tub.  A tub at 100+ degrees should be able to stay above 32 degrees for quite a while.  Draining the tub (and not blowing out the lines) literally removes all of that, and you'll be left with water in the pumps and lines that will freeze up much faster. 

I wonder if the tub runs if you disconnect the power to the heater (just pull the plug). 

[Spatech_tuo]

     When I reached the "critical point" during a blizzard & resulting 40 hour power outage last weekend, I wasn't sure what to do w/my 05 Sundance Optima tub.  Not having a compressor to blow out the lines, I wasn't sure what to do.  I finally just drained the tub to hopefully minimize freeze damage. (I have since refilled the tub, and it appears I did dodge the bullet ).  Was that the right thing?  Going forward; I have a generator being delivered today.  I can't seem to find amp draw for various pump motors in my manual - anyone know offhand?  Also, is there a way to disable the heater without going into the control panel? (It's a little difficult to access).  I see running in "Economy" mode helps, but manual says the heater would still run during filter cycles.  Can I just program NO filter cycles, or is there an easier/better way?
     Any input/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks!!
   

I'm interested in this thread as my hottub is 2.5hrs away from my main place, and it gets into the teens most nights during the winter.  What do you mean by 'critical point'?

Personally, I think you made a mistake by draining the tub.  You had a big mass of stored energy in that tub.  A tub at 100+ degrees should be able to stay above 32 degrees for quite a while.  Draining the tub (and not blowing out the lines) literally removes all of that, and you'll be left with water in the pumps and lines that will freeze up much faster. 

I wonder if the tub runs if you disconnect the power to the heater (just pull the plug).

You are correct, it was a mistake to drain the spa. You'll be fine for a few days with the residual heat from the main body of water. If you have a generator all you'd need to do is add a trouble light to the equipment compartment to keep it warm in that area but for an extended blackout use the generator to run the circ pump or the filtering pump if there is no circ pump, that will keep the water moving and it adds heat to the water as well.

[Ronnie526]

Biker - By "critical point" I just meant the point where I realized ... "CRAP! ... I think we're looking @ a multi-day outage here!"  Also, neglected to mention that tub was down @ 80 because we only use on weekends.  I think I maybe would have been OK anyway; thanks for enlightening me!  NOW that I have my genny with a 220 circuit, I just have to figure out how to run constant circ pump only.  I do HVAC, so I have no problem going into the panel & figuring out how to power CC pump and nothing else.  I may just make a pigtail for that motor & bring it up to an easy access spot.  Thank you for your help guys!

[Chas]

We don't have snow and ice here in paradise, but we do have folks who live off the grid. One family has a genny which they run three hours per day - to keep the hot tub hot and the freezers cold. The rest of the day they have lighting from a battery and inverter. They simply ran a conduit to the tub and put an outlet on a box on the the end of that conduit. They then unplugged the circ pump from the tub control box and plugged it into the outlet. It runs the circ pump 24/7 off the battery/inverter (this is a HS so it has a 110v circ pump, and it's an older unit which has a plug/outlet for the circ pump. The newer HS still have 110 circ pump, but no more plug/outlet).

It works great for their needs: the circ pump (and ozone) run all the time, drawing power from the battery system. Then when they fire up the genny, it charges the battery, but it also allows the heat to kick in on the tub - they say it only drops a couple of degrees in the coldest part of the year, so it doesn't take long to catch up on temp. And they run their genny in the evenings so they have access to power to run jets, plus the heat is on when they use the tub most often, so it can hold the temp.

I know this is very different than trying to keep a tub from freezing, but thought it might stir some thought. You can get a 110 version of your 220 circ pump, and run a separate circuit out to it from the generator panel, or just run 220. I would imagine that you would want to be able to have the circ pump simply switch over to the genny without having to open the spa's access panel - that would be a real chore if it was buried in snow and ice - so you will want to run the pump from it's own circuit which goes into the house or basement.

Just some thoughts.

HTH

 

[SerjicalStrike]

If you have a generator, get one of the $20-$30 space heaters from the hardware store and place that right inside the equipment bay.  Leave it on medium until the power comes back on.  It also helps to block any vents on the front of the tub. 

[Chas]

or that...