Welcome to our forum.
Don't soak in battery acid and you'll be OK! Seriously, there is a newbie learning curve but it really isn't difficult.Use either bromine or dichlor (which is chlorine for the tub) and everything will be fine.You need to know what's coming out of the tap to know where you want to go. Once you know that it's a simple matter of adding chems to bring a certain level up or down. If calcium is too high you need to add a chemical to keep it from depositing on the tub.Stuff will happen to the tub - see my post on good water gone bad - but you'll gain experience and be able to handle it. Just remember that PH, alkalinity (you may or may not have to adjust this) and calcium have a range and the sanitizer needs to be enough to kill bacteria.It may be fustrating in the beginning but it does get easier.Adjust PH up with either soda ash or baking soda - baking soda will adjust alkalinity too. Adjust both down with PH minus.
I've only been up & running a little over a week, but I'm finding maintaining the water is much easier than I thought (thanks to the people here pointing me toward the Vermonter dichlor method). So far, it has been easier than maintaining a 55 gal aquarium - add a little of this & little of that while filling (1/2 bottle metal gone, 1 pkg spa up, & 1 oz defender) & then 1.5 tbsp dichlor (spa 56). Then 2 tsp dichlor after each use (has been daily so far). Readings all come out where they should. Used 2.5 tbsp to shock after neighbors came over the other night. So far, so good I bought the Leisure Time "Complete Spa Care Startup Kit (chlorine) for about $40. It has everything you need to get up & running & maintain things for a while. It even comes with an instructional DVD for water maintenance. The only thing I found was that their recommended amounts of what to add seemed a little higher than needed so I backed off - can always add more later if needed so why put in a bunch of stuff on day one, right?
I'm the one who posted about "hating tub maintenance" and I hate to think that I scared anyone off. I have more pH problems than most due to my water source, so you may never experience the same issues. And I only said i "hated" it because I was so frustrated that my tub was not playing by the rules- I am a bit of a control freak, so if I add acid, the pH better drop, dammit. I still love my tub, love the relaxation it brings me, and I look at tub chemisty as a chess game that I want to win in as few moves as possible. It can be fun. You'll see what seems to be a high proportion of people here having problems and seeking help because this is where we get great advice! I dont bother to post about how satisfied I am when my water is perfectly balanced.......maybe I should.......