Chlorine vs. Bromine

[richny]

Sorry...I am sure this subject has been beaten to death..but I can't find the answer when I search.

I am used to using chlorine in my pool and was thinking of using chlorine in my spa.

Is there any major downside using chlorine vs. bromine?

The spa manufacturer says they prefer for me to use bromine....is chlorine too harsh? Don't want to damage any components.

I understand in many cases its personal preference...and I really don't want to make a mistake here. The guy that delivered my spa told me he prefers chlorine and recommends that to all his customers. Says its not as smelly and easier in some ways to maintain.

Any insight is appreciated.

Rich

[svspa]

Rich,

You'll probably get an equal number of replies for chlorine and bromine.

I understand bromine allows you to use the frog or other methods to continuously provide bromine to the spa. A number of people have been suggesting that with bromine you may still need to add chlorine after use.

I personally use chlorine, small amount after each use of the spa and then a weekly shock of about 4 times the daily amount. The drawback of shocking with chlorine is that you probably have to miss a day in the spa to allow the chlorine level to return to normal. The benefit though is every week you super sanitize your tub. To avoid this you could use MPS for shock but then you don't get the benefit of the super sanitization.

I have had no problems with my water, crystal clear all the time and I only deal with one chemical. Chlorine is pretty cheap and effective.

Be sure though that you use dichlor for your spa not trichlor that is used for pools.

Steve

[ssbraun]

Is there any major downside using chlorine vs. bromine?



Rich

No downside to either...you will find many members who use each of the 2 sanitizers mentioned.  I'm not sure why you can't find the info you're looking for, as there has been LOTS of discussion.  Search settings should be for, say, 90 days with a key word like "chlorine" and you should get lots of results.  I use dichlor, and have never tried bromine.  It works well for me...there is no "right answer" to this issue...  

[golferm]

Hi Rich...I've used both.  I just 2 weeks ago switched back to chlorine (dichlor) and love it.  I was using an inline bromine dispenser for my Jacuzzi 355  and found it very difficult to keep the sanitizer levels correct.  Either they were too high or too low.

With chlorine, I drop in about a teaspoon each day, and double that after use.  

I live in Calgary, Canada, and it's wicked cold here right now (-20C or about 0F) and I can still manage to get outo there each day to dose the chlorine.

You get immediate results with chlorine, whereas when I've used bromine, it can take a couple of days to get the residual sanitizer level high enough.  

Whatever you do, don' use the chlorine pucks (trichlor), which is widely considered bad for hot tubs.

Happy Sanitizing....

Mark

[johnvb]

What tub do you have and are you also going to use an ozonator?

I use chlorine in my pool, bromine in my tub. The Sundance Optima was designed for bromine, in that it has a small tab-feeding compartment on the weir.

To sanitize the tub, once a week, I add two tabs in the compartment and a cap full of shock to the tub, that's it. Because of the ozonator, I don't have to keep the bromine level up as high. Very little smell.

I don't have to shock the tub after each use. My tub is indoors, but if it were outdoors and in freezing temps,  to me, that would be an inconvenience.

BTW, chemical maintenance on your tub will be NOTHING compared to what you have to do to your pool. You will almost feel guilty....

[richny]

actually my pool as been great. I only add two chlorine tabs in the skimmer every other day and I am done. The only thing else is a little bit of ph adjust...very minor and some mineral remover every once in a while. Cleaning is a whole different story

For the spa I right on the fence between chroline and bromine. My local spa guy tells me to use chroline and the people that make the spa tell me they recommend bromine.  I am filling the tub up (hopefully) this saturday and need to make a decision pretty soon.  Bromine sounds less labor intensive in case I don't have the time to get to the spa every day.

[tony]

IMO, for a new spa owner, nothing is as simple as chlorine.  You have complete control of your sanitation and there is always a learning curve so control is good.  After you get the sanitation thing down, try something else if you like.  Dichlor and MPS can be used with almost any system (except biguanides), so you won't be wasting any chemicals you purchase.

[richny]

Yup...I am going to stick to chlorine for the time being and see what happens.  

This is what my spa guy told me to do:

1. Fill tub with water through the filter area
2. Add about 2 ounces of Conquest in the spa and let it run for a few hours
3. Add about 1/2 cap of Dichlor and let that run for a little bit
4. Bring in water sample to test all levels

Then he recommended, based on my test strips, that I add approx. 1-2 teaspoons of dichor each day.

Spa is approx 450gallons.

Does this sound right? And what about MPS? Should this be added?

Thanks all

[tony]

Conquest is your metal sequestering agent, I believe.  This routine sounds good.  Most of us chlorine users add 1-2 tsp dichlor after use if you soak regularly.  If you skip a few days, have to add a little every day or two.  Shock with MPS weekly.  Test and adjust pH and TA weekly.