Required temp to change water

[Miss_Rosie]

Hi. I wondered if anyone could help me in determining how cold the air temperature can be when draining/refilling my tub.  I have a cover that has been damaged and has let in debris, so I really need a total drain/refill.  It will be in the high 30's here this week.  Can I drain my tub with those temps?

[Anoroc]

Good question Miss Rosie- I would guess that if the temps are well above freezing you should not have any problems.  I am sure others will chime in if they are back from Christmas vacation.

[J._McD]

Draining and refilling the tub can be done in a short time and should not be a problem.  Get your hose out and verify that you have water access first then, drain the tub and refill it.  But, first things first, shouldn't you fix the problem and get a new cover?  If it is heavy also from moisture absorbtion, it is not insulating well either.

[Miss_Rosie]

I guess I did not say it, but I do have a new cover.  I also have the week off, and the temps are higher than they've been for a while, so I was hoping to get the dirty water out and clean water in.  I will have my hose rehooked up for the day, so I guess I'll drain as quickly as I can, wipe the tub clean, and refill.  

The reason I was asking about the temperature is that the store where I purchased the tub is trying to talk me into a half drain, but with the debris that has been leaking into the tub while I've been waiting for the new cover to arrive, I really want it totally drained.  They were concerned about the temperature, but I'm thinking with Wednesday being predicted with a high of 40, I'm going for it!  I also purchased a new filter to kind of just start new after this fill.  

What about any debris that may have gotten into the pipes?  Is that a concern?  I did not really get a response to that question at my store either.  I wondered if I should put something into the tub to clean out the pipes, but they didn't know of anything to do that.  

Thanks for the replies!

[ndabunka]

Debris in the pipes? How?  Don't all spa's have filters (or at least those nylon "thingys" on the intakes?  If you do (somehow) get debris into your system, you may end up with a lot of problems.  Suction issues, things caught in the pumps, etc.  A partial drain woulod probably be better as you would not be sucking ALL the water out.  Does your tub have a bottom drain floor?  Maybe a 80% drain would be a good choice.  You can (and probably should) use a wet-dry vac from Home depot or Lowes to get that last bit out of the tub so that it doesn't risk getting into your system (if you have a lot of leaves and such in there).

[Brewman]

As long as the temperatures stay above freezing you won't have any problems.  If any water trapped in your pumps and related plumbing should freeze, there could be damage- possibly expensive damage.  

If you think that your unfilled spa may go into sub freezing temps, make sure to take a wet vac and suck out the jets, and do whatever else the manufacturer suggests to drain the plumbing.