anti foam alternative ?

[goneaway]

Cleaning my old filters i found the pleats full of brown sludge.
 Its the same brown sludge I'd see on the sides of the tub shortly after using antifoam, in which case I'm refusing to use it on the new filters.
Its obvious to me, that its not water soluble.
Are there any alternatives, or home grown recipies that work well without clogging the filters.

My latest fill is only a week old, and despite taking a shower before use, and not washing costumes in soap, there's already the early stages of bubbles forming.

[Hottubguy]

What's your calcium hardness level?  Sometimes when that's low the tub can tend to foam

[goneaway]

Good question, of which i'm not sure of the answer.
I use 4 way test strips, which shows all OK.
I'm pretty sure the latter is hardness, which is OK, however, i have nothing in my arsenal of chemicals to effect that.

[chem geek]

Test strips usually only test for Total Hardness, not Calcium Hardness, and they aren't always accurate anyway.  A Taylor K-2006 kit will test everything accurately including Calcium Hardness (CH).  A CH of 120-150 ppm is usually enough to prevent foaming but not so high as to cause scaling.

[goneaway]

Hi Chem Geek.
It's already complicated 

I have however, found this water quality chart from my local water company.

Is this any good as an indicator ?

Average Calcium readings were = 93 mg/l


http://www.ywonline.co.uk/web/WQZ.nsf/0/DB5E5071F371110F802574FD003D32D1/$file/Grimethorpe%202004%20WSZ.pdf

[hottubdan]

I agree...1st thing to do is to figure out where the faom is coming from.

Product we like is called SeaKlear Self Floccing Defoamer.  It encapsulates the material and takes it to the filter, rather than creating the scum.

[goneaway]

I'm struggling to find that in the UK.

[wmccall]

Also, are you adding in the foam out product by pouring it into the tub? If so, put it in a spray bottle and spray it directly on the foam.  I don't have much of a foam product, so whenever I do use it, I remember to rinse the filters out 24 hours later.

[goneaway]

I was originally putting it directly in to the water as directed, and then picked up on the spray bottle trick.
To be honest, having seen the state of the old filters, i'm now refusing to use the gunk stuff.
If it means changing the water more often, then so be it.

I did find a MSDS for the SeaKlear you mentioned, it has very little in it.
98% water
1% Acetic Acid
1% Chitosan (whatever this is)
and trace elements of Silicones

Is this kind to the filter, and how well does it work ?

[goneaway]

I found Chitosan locally, which also contains silicones.
Acetic acid is available in the super market, which i'm buying this evening.

Watch this space for results of my chemistry experiment.
I'll report back in a week or so, if i have any eye brows left !!

[Tman122]

LOL.....fascinating!!!

[goneaway]

So I concocted a recipe last night, however, i'm not sure it worked 
How long do you normally leave the SeaKlear in to see any results ?

[Sam]

Results are immediate

[goneaway]

So my recipe didn't work.
What are your thoughts on the following please chaps.

Would it be possible to simulate a foaming situation using household detergents.
If i connect a fish tank air feed to a gallon of hot tub water, then introduce a detergent to simulate the hot tub foaming, I could experiment with different formulae.

 

[Sam]

you can just do it in your kitchen sink with dish soap.