baqua vs. chlorine

[ketsch5]

new tub owner. drained and re-filled my tub. left it with no chemicals for a week, and water was crystal clear. once i added my baqua chemicals, it has been cloudy since. how can i remedy? should I switch to a new line of chemicals?

[Brewman]

Cloudy water is one complaint of Baqua users.  Not sure if there is a remedy- what you don't want to have to do is plop in even more chemicals- Baqua costs too much as it is.
I tried it for almost a year, and never could get it quite right.  We ended up switching to Brilliance, which is Bromine with no chlorine, made by the good people at Baqua.  I'd consider switching- you'll save money on chemicals.  Even Brilliance which still isn't exactly cheap, is less expensive.  And a dichlor routine would be cheaper still.  
If you stay with Baqua, don't be suprised if you get a brown cruddy buildup at the waterline.  Just zap it with your scrubby pad and surface cleaner.  It should gradually go away.
Our biggest problem with Baqua wasn't water clarity it was the coughing that we started getting- the water was almost fizzy, especially with the pumps on full blast.

If you do switch from Baqua to something else, get as much water out of your spa as possible.  We even put a shop vac on the jets- it was amazing how much water we pulled out that way.  

[drprwnap]

I use Baqua in my pool.  The thing I noticed is that I have to clean my filter twice a year.  That's for 12,000 gal of water.
I always have water mold or cloudy water if I don't clean the filter. I don't plan on using it in my spa.

drprwnap  

[alwaysperky]

Hi,

I've used the Baqua for just over two months.

Pros:

• Crystal Clear Water
• Very easy once a week test and chem adjustment/very stable

Cons, I think :

• Bitter taste to water
• strong sort of new plastic odor(don't know if it's because the spa is new or from the chemicals)
• though I have nothing to compare to, I noticed it seems really Fizzy too. (All though, the fizz could just be from the rocking power of the pumps and jets)

• The scum line has been.............bad?  Seems like it's not as bad as the first month, and perhaps it's an indication the chems are working to destroy and coagulate the undesirables.

I'm still very new at the chemical thing, but intend to use my back-up testing plan as my Sundance dealer will test my water and advise me with great accuracy, the condition of my water.

We shall see.

On a side note, my buddy uses Soft Soak and is complaining because he's always dealing with high PH.

[Brewman]

Keep scrubbing away at the scum line, and it should gradually go away for good.  That's how ours did, anyway.  If your water gets too fizzy and you start coughing, you'll experience what we did.  

[lynnette]

    We are using Soft Soak by Spa Guard which is the almost the same as Baqua.  When I used Baqua I had the same problems with cloudy water and alot of foam.  We tried Nature 2 but I broke out with a terrable rash.  A local swimming pool dealer handles Soft Soak so we tried it.  Don't know why or what is different but it has been working fine for about 7 months for us and no foam at all.  I am also using Spa Guard Natural Spa Enzyme once a week.  Maybe the Spa Enzyme would help with your cloudy water it did for us. Also Soft Soak seems to be a little cheaper than Baqua.  Good Luck. Lynnette

[Brewman]

Using liquid gold and platinum in a spa is proabably cheaper than Baqua!

[Mendocino101]

I always wonder why people want to try Baqua when it is so hard to find more people who have had success with it than those who did not. It seems to me you always find many more ex users than those who are current happy users.

[Ehizzle]

I am a dealer and have had very good success with Baquaspa products. One thing on the first post about leaving it for a week with no sanitation. No matter what system you use if you leave it that long and then put chemicals in you will probably have the same reaction. Never leave the water that long without sanitation. That could have been the only problem.

As far as using these kind of product on a pool: Softswim has a product called assist that is designed to take care of the water mold problem that is common in larger pools using Soft Swim. My typical reccomendation is to use soft swim in above ground pools and small in ground pools. Average to large size in ground pools seem to have more problems.

[Brewman]

I always wonder why people want to try Baqua when it is so hard to find more people who have had success with it than those who did not. It seems to me you always find many more ex users than those who are current happy users.

In our case our spa dealer included it with the starter package.  We didn't know any better at the time.
We especially were suprised at how much $$$.

[NJDave]

Baqua Spa is a money making chemical line. The profit margin on chlorine and bromine are only about 25% compared to 100% with Baqua Spa. A lot of dealers enjoy the margins, as the product is not offered to mass merchants. As a tech in the field, I get to see just what BaquaSpa can do to a spa. As pointed out customer satisfaction is low and the price is very high. The product is just plain destructive to cartridge filters. It clogs them up. You must clean filters more frequently, in some cases once or twice a week. If not, "FLO" error problems will occur, especially a spa equipped with a smaller 24 hour circulation pump or a spa equipped with the new 6 month throw away filters. It also shortens the life span of cartridges. Other complaints have been the odor, cloudy water, coughing and pink slime. We always encourage our customers to make the switch to another sanitizer, whether it be Nature2, Dichlor or Bromine. As stated earlier, if you decide to switch, be sure to remove all of your spa water, prior to adding another chemical, otherwise you will see the most interesting shade of green water, that you have ever seen. Not trying to bash, but I'm sure most "techs" on this forum would agree, with the clogged filter flow issues and wasted service calls that follow.

[Ehizzle]

Once again. Nature 2 is not a primary sanitizer. As far as filter changing. Baquaspa uses the filters to sanitize. That is the way it is designed. Baquaspa will destroy the plastic on some, mainly lower end spa manufacturers. Some of the companies still use a plastic on their jets called Lexane (not sure of the spelling) Most of the major manufacturers have changed the plastic they used and this is not an issue. 99% of the customers I have with issues with coughing or smell are indoor spa. I would not reccomend someone using Baquaspa indoors and neither does the company itself. Baquaspa is good for people who dont like chlorine or bromine, want less maintenance (if you do it right), and dont mind paying a little more.

[ketsch5]

NJ Dave- I think you hit it on the head with the Baqua profit line. I have both experienced the brown scum as well as it ate my filter (after only 2 months). Unfortunately we just stocked up on more, but will switch to another product when these run out. Do you recommend Bromine or what?

[NJDave]

Ketschs,
After 20 years fixing all brands of spas, one really gets to see alot of hot water, good and bad. Spa techs really have a messy job crawling under decks and quite often we get wet, working under a leaky tub and getting our arms into the customers water, to fix a jet or fitting.  I have gotten sick 4 times, hospitalized twice, due to contact with customers bad water. So, I pay close attention to the condition of my customers water, not just for their health, but mine also.  Having  a Hot Tub is truly a pleasureable experience. But, having a improperly or unsanitized tub, can be quite harmful to the users and the hot tub equipmernt.  Your spa mechanic will know within seconds of inspecting your equipment, whether you do a good or bad job. The corrosion to the heater and pumps tells the story. All of the sanitizers mentioned, obviously work or they would not be on the market. Each has positves and negatives. When, talking about Baqua, I spoke from first hand experience as a mechanic being exposed to the problems directly caused by this product and the ratio of unsatisfied customers to satisfied. For manufacturers to have to redesign filters, jets, fittings and orings to
withstand the abuse of this product, must tell you  something. The 3 other most popular sanitizing products to choose from are Bromine, Dichlor and Nature2. Ehizzle was correct to say, many people do not  present the Nature2 product correctly. Nature2 alone can not sanitize your water. Used in conjunction with a ozonator and MPS Shock or Dichlor can be a very effective method, without the smell of chemicals. We have 3  filled spas on the floor, ready for wet testing. All three spas utilize the Nature2 product. The spas get wet tested about 6-8 times per week and the customers are impressed with the clean and clear water. More work with Nature2? It is recommended that 2 oz. of MPS Shock or Dichlor be added with each use. For some folks, that is a negative. For most, it is takes just a few seconds and well worth the clean water and odorless water. Dichlor Chorine is also popular, as it is very effective and economical. But, chlorine does disapate faster than bromine, in hot water. So, it has to be added more frequently than other sanitizers, a neagative for some. Some people like the chlorine smell in water and some don't. The use of Bromine in Hot Tubs is still the most common method. It is very effective and quite simple. Tablets placed in a floater will last 7 or more days, disolving slowly and always working for you. But, like the other products, it may be right for you and not for someone else. Some people have skin irritations caused by Chlorine and Bromine, which steers them in another direction, looking at Nature 2 and Baqua or one of the other new alternatives on the market. Once again, all four of these products will keep your water clean and free from bacteria. I can not tell you which chemical to use or which will please your family the most. If you are unhappy with your present sanitizer, dump the water and start over with another sanitizer. Once you find the right method, you will stick with. Boy, how did I get started on this rant. I better go for a soak. Enjoy the clean hot water. Dave.