About to get used tub, confused about baqua....

[kenoflife]

I'm about to get a 1998 HS Jetsetter - the man selling it got a new one, its been thoroughly checked out and
looks real good for $1000 - got the electric set, the site, figured out how to move it...but...

The local HS dealer is really up on the Baqua - but nearly everything I've read about it on the users sites on the internet has been negative - if not now, later - with algae, scum, etc..

The dealer says its about following directions precisely once a week, then no more problem.  The guy selling the
tub said he tried it years ago and encountered scum and problems.
I went to the dealer today(who nearly everyone thinks is extremely reputable compared to anyone else in the region) and wound up with $65 worth of the baqua system...

Has anyone had a positive experience using baqua on a small hot tub....for years on end? :-?

[Chas]

The 1998 Jetsetter had a one-piece light lens made out of polycarbonate.

Baqua eats polycarb plastics. Unless the tub has had a new lens put in which has the three-piece arrangement, you should NOT use Baqua.

I have had customers who have had the lens fall apart from the Baqua who loved the Baqua so much that they gladly paid me to come out and update the lens. Had no choice really, once the lens goes there is no replacement other than the update. Not a bad thing, really - it updates the tub to match the brand new tubs on the showroom floor, and it is no harder to glue in the new lens holder than it was to glue in the old one-piece lens.

I just did one in a Classic in the shop. I don't know if the PO had used Baqua, but my delivery crew thought the tub was going to the dump and they tossed a heavy wooden step into the tub and drove it home that way. Cracked the light lens. Everything else in the tub works great, so I put in a new lens, and the tub is for sale.

And, in the unlikely event that you crack the new lens, you can unscrew the lens from the wallfitting and replace just the lens without tools. Tres cool.

But - if the PO used Baqua and your tub has the one-piece lens, you will have to replace the lens sooner or later, I assure you.

 8-)

[kenoflife]

Yes - he did try baqua and didn't like it...AND he did replace the lens!

Strike 4 on baqua it would seem.

The PO (almost reads a little like POS, not sure about that abbreviation!) used just a little
chlorine with the tub the last few years, no ozonator.

His new Jetsetter has an ozonator, he's actually not sure he likes it as much as the old one...
(How come people selling you their old things often say how much they already miss them?)

The old tub was emptied and cleaned by the HS dealers when they delivered his new one.

At this stage I was considering also buying an ozonator and the T-attachment, etc.
From the little research I did the JED sounded good, the HS dealer has one with the kit
and attachment for $150 - which seems reasonable.

When I return the baqua system I could apply it to an ozonator...might be nice to just
have that to start off - then there's less of a daily chlorine check need, correct?

[Reese]

I'd suggest a little research before committing to a sanitizing routine or ozone.  There was a good thread on ozone here, started by Vermonter a few months ago, and several discussions on sanitizers, including Baqua.  A search with an expanded time frame should bring them up.  Also, go to rhtubs.com -- there are sanitizer guides, along with posts by Vermonter and Northman in the FAQ that are good places to start.

[anne]

This rocks! New members with questions, veterans with great experience, and people helping each other! I feel all warm and fuzzy! (Maybe that was the tub soak.....)

Anyway- kenoflife, I think that you'll find that the huge majority of people here use chlorine or bromine, some ozone, and they are all happy with the simplicity and cost effectiveness of such sanitation.

Enjoy your new tub!

[Brewman]

I used Baqua- my dealer pushed it too.  We had the grunge line thing happen, but it gradually went away after a couple months, and then no problems.  What did cause problems was the way it made the water "fizzy" and we'd sit there and cough like we both had a 40 year old 3 pack a day Pall Mall habbit.  Plus the stuff is rather expensive.
 Neither the dealer or Baqua themselves we of any help in getting us to use the product right.  Went from Baqua to Bromine, then to dichlor.  Of the three, dichlor is the easiest for us.

[Vanguard]

The biggest problem with Baqua Spa - or any Biguanide product for pools OR spas - is the tendancy for people to use too much.  With biguanide, even a little extra is not a good thing.

I've read about the new Hot Spring Auto Fresh, and maybe that would work better for those who want biguanide.  It is supposed to keep you from overdosing.

Personally, I prefer the Dichlor method.  It, for me, is just so much simpler AND cheaper.  I like the way the water looks.  When I take care of it properly, I don't smell any chlorine, so I like that too.

It eventually comes down to preference.  I would imagine the overwhelming preference is Dichlor.  

[Reese]

... I would imagine the overwhelming preference is Dichlor.

Based on what you read here, I'd have thought so, too.  However, someone started a survey of the pros here a while ago (perhaps a year or more). Surprisingly, it was closer to an even split between bromine and chlorine. :-/

[96SC]

Baqua eats polycarb plastics. Unless the tub has had a new lens put in which has the three-piece arrangement, you should NOT use Baqua.

It constantly amases me what I've learned about hot tubs since 'joining' this forum.

[kenoflife]

I'm definitely going to try chlor first...
funny the dealer said to just try baqua for 3 months and see, and then it would be easy to switch back and
buy an ozonator....but from all I've been reading switching back from baqua can be some work too...

The only question I have is whether to go ahead and get that JED ozonator before I even fill up the tub for the first time, or if a small tub like this is just as well served by just using chlor...seems like an ozonator should be installed before the water goes in?

Thanks for all the comments for a newbie  

[Reese]

...The only question I have is whether to go ahead and get that JED ozonator before I even fill up the tub for the first time, or if a small tub like this is just as well served by just using chlor...seems like an ozonator should be installed before the water goes in?

You can install an ozonator any time you drain the tub for a water change, so you've got time to get a little experience and do some more research before making the decision on ozone.

[Chas]

A good tech can install an ozone system on a HS spa without draining it.

However, I don't think the '98 models had the contact chamber. That limits the effectiveness of the ozone - you can create one by putting a 12' coil of 1/2" spa flex in the motor compartment.

Also be aware that the JED units and units like it have a chip or chamber which needs to be replaced at 9000 hours of operation. That's about once every year or so.

 8-)

[kenoflife]

Yes - I saw how the tube has to be wound around to fit in there....

Since you're a HS dealer....

The JED unit has a chip, does the HS $300 one (Freshwater III or something?) somehow justify
its cost by lasting much longer between chips or units.

[kenoflife]

you've got time to get a little experience and do some more research before making the decision on ozone.

I don't hear too many negatives about ozone? Except maybe the smell, toxicity - but that seems real minimal
if you open the tub for a minute...and compared to using more chemicals....
Guess there'd be a decision about which ozonator....

Any other negatives? Does the water feel different, smell different?
Or maybe a link.....can't get the search going just right here...

Thanks!

[Reese]

I don't want to re-open that can of worms, other than to say it isn't as clear cut as you portray it.  I bumped a thread "Ozone Question" for you to take a look at.  I'm guessing there are others in the "Dead Horse" section.