Winterizing Your Spa
Winterizing your spa is very important!
As water freezes, it breaks the plumbing apart, cracks fittings, and can explode the pump. Even heating elements will expand to an irrepairable point if you live in a freezing area and fail to winterize your spa.
What you will need:
- Wet/Dry Vacuum (ShopVac)
- 1-3 Gal RV Antifreeze
- Channel lock pliers (16” will work best)
- Funnel or baster
- 2-3 hours of your time
*Drain your spa – often, pre-treating it beforehand is recommended so that whatever water may be left in the spa will not cause problems over the winter.
*Vacuum all the jets and injectors, until there is no water left.
*Remove your filter and vacuum at the plumbing, avoiding the O-Rings.
*If you have an air channel, turn on the power and make sure the pumps are NOT running. Turn your air blower on until water no longer comes out. Turn power off.
*Loosen the plumbing connections at your pump and at your heater. Vacuum all water.
*Reconnect the plumbing to the heater, the lower of the two connections on your pumps.
*Add RV anti-freeze to the pump using a funnel or baster. Most pumps take about 4 oz.
*Re-attach your pump unions.
*Add about 1 oz. RV anti-freeze to each jets with your funnel/baster.
*Add RV anti-freeze to plumbing attached to your filter until it runs out of the intakes at the foot of the spa.
*Add anti-freeze to the air channel/air injectors. This might be tedious, but it will be worth it!
If you get heavy snow, place ¼” plywood over your cover to help enforce it. You can also cover your spa with a tarp and strap it down. Your hot tub is an investment… don’t freeze your investment!
4 Ways to Thaw out Your Spa
4 Ways to Thaw out Your Spa
By all appearances it seems that spring is upon us. The temperatures seem to be coming up and with this winter being exceptionally cruel for those in colder climates, spring will most certainly be the most highly anticipated event of the year.
Officially, spring starts March 20th. This means more attention will be given to preparing for our annual migration into the back yard. Clearing off decks, cleaning patio furniture, some yard work and let’s not forget buying gas for the Barbeque. Visions of pool parties, cookouts and maybe even some late night entertaining come to mind.
Four spa maintenance tips to freshen up your back yard Spa
1. Drain the spa– If your water has not been changed in some time, a quick drain and fill will remove the “heavy” water and replace it with fresh water that will be easier to manage. No one wants to sit in a pool of chemicals and there is nothing more inviting than a soak in a hot tub with crystal clear water.
2. Replace the filters– Most homeowners ignore this crucial step in proper hot tub maintenance. Just because it looks clean, doesn’t always mean that it is. Often the residue of sweat, dead skin and body oils are still in the paper element of the filter, but they can’t be seen because they have been bleached out. Regularly changing the hot tub filters will keep your spa running more efficiently and prolong the life of your spa.
3. Clean the plumbing– Use a plumbing cleanser and conditioner. This will keep any ickies from building up in your plumbing lines while conditioning your equipment like pump seals and gaskets.
4. Inspect and clean your cover– The cover has been exposed to the elements all winter. It is due for a complete inspection for damaged foam or tears in the vinyl. 90% of all heat loss occurs at the water’s surface. Don’t ignore this first line of defense against inefficient heat loss. It is bound to have a coat of dust and dirt on it. Use a good cover cleaner that will condition both the vinyl and the stitching.
They say that you get what you plan for. Take some time out be good to yourself and plan for a great backyard retreat. I guarantee you’ll be glad you did!
4 Ways to Protect Your Spa from Cold Weather Damage
The entire country has seen bitter cold weather this winter. Even in sunny Florida the temperatures have been below freezing for quite some time now and we have been getting lots of questions about how to protect a hot tub against cold weather damage. Below are 4 tips to stay ahead of old man winter.
1. Keep your spa cover free from snow - Spa covers are not designed for heavy snow loads. As the snow falls, keep a broom handy so that you can sweep the top of your hot tub. It might surprise you to know that a foot of really wet snow can weigh as much as 300 pounds! Saggy hot tub covers are an eyesore.
2. Check to be sure the hot tub is running – Out of site out of mind should not be the case with your hot tub. Power outages or fluctuations in power can trip the GFI breaker. Without power, your spa will not heat the water. Even if you are not a winter spa user, check your spa regularly. Don’t let your Gulf Coast Spa freeze! A cracked shell cannot be repaired.
3. Keep the snow out of your winterized spa – If the snow has any chance of melting and refreezing, it can cause catastrophic damage. It is the expansion of frozen water that causes hot tub shells, hot tub pumps and plumbing plastics to crack. Make sure the cover is doing its job.
4. Don’t let your spa freeze! – Warning! If your spa is down for the winter and it has not been properly winterized, be sure to place a small space heater inside the cabinet to keep your spa from freezing.
NOTE: Take extra precautions when using a space heater. This should only be a temporary solution until service work can be performed and not a permanent solution. Keep the space heater away from all spa parts including the spa motor, spa control system and spa jets.
When it is cold outside and there is snow on the ground, a backyard gathering is usually not the first thing that comes to mind. Most people ignore it until things thaw out and spring arrives. But if you are a hot tub owner, take the time to check on your backyard investment.
If you have any questions about how to winterize your spa, please contact our free technical support line toll free at 866-829-3660.
We highly recommend using your spa all winter. It is a great way to heat up the core and relax your joints and muscles. Brave the cold and use it. You’ll be glad you did!
Hot Tub Cold Storage-step by step
As the winter weather brings lower temperatures and the snow becomes more prevalent, we have been getting many requests to provide proper spa winterizing instructions.
Below, we have broken it down into two categories. The first is a list of the items that will be necessary to winterize your hot tub. The second is a step by step guide to draining and preparing your spa for cold storage. Once the spa has been drained, the entire process should not take more than an hour.
Things needed to winterize a hot tub:
Garden Hose
Shop Vac
Recreational Vehicle (RV) Plumbing Anti-Freeze
Screw Driver
Step by Step Instructions to winterizing a spa:
DRAIN THE HOT TUB
Remove cover and turn primary pump on high speed.
Line up one end of the hose with one of the performing jets.
Prime the hose with the high pressure coming from the jet and allow the water to drain into the yard or pool. Be sure to place the hose at the lowest point inside the spa footwell when fully primed.
Once the hose is fully primed, turn off the electricity to the spa.
Allow the hot tub to drain completely.
CLEAR THE LINES
From this point, our goal will be to completely remove all the water from the spa including water from the equipment and plumbing system. As water freezes, it expands. Expanding water can crack hard PVC plumbing, filtration canisters and in some cases, even the spa shell.
Once the spa is drained, be sure to remove all the water from the hot tub foot well and seating areas.
Remove the equipment access panel and shut off the water by closing the shut off valves. Disconnect the heater lines (these are hand tightened unions at each end of the heater barrel).
Disconnect the pump unions at the front of the pump and the side or top.
At this point all of the plumbing has been disconnected. Nothing left to do now but to clear the hot tub plumbing lines of any residual water.
Use the Wet Vac to force air through all the jets, the suctions in the bottom of the spa, and the filter box. Be sure to clear all the water. Remember, any water left is a potential opportunity for spa damage.
The water will blow towards the heater and pump connections. You may want to have a bucket handy or towels handy to soak up the excess water.
Pour a small amount of RV Anti-freeze into each jet, all the air injectors (if you have a blower system), and into the bottom of the filtration area and its plumbing. This will keep any residual water from freezing and it will not hurt the spa plumbing system.
All the plumbing has been taken care of. Next step is to take steps to prepare the equipment for cold weather storage.
CARE FOR THE EQUIPMENT
The pumps don’t need to be removed, but we need to make sure that there is no water left in the “wet end” of the pump and motor. Most pumps will have a petcock valve that can be removed by unscrewing it. Removing this valve will allow any water in the pump to vacate. NOTE: DO NOT BREAK THE VALVE. If your pump does not have this feature, fill the pump with RV Anti-freeze.
If you have a spa control system that can be removed easily (Power Depot), then remove the spa pack and heater. Bring it indoors for safe keeping. Otherwise, just make sure that there is no water left in the heater barrel.
That’s pretty much it. Once finished, be sure to replace the spa cover and the equipment panel. Your hot tub is ready to withstand the harsh conditions of winter without sustaining damage. Replacing a hot tub is very expensive; take the time to properly winterize your spa and avoid costly repairs. You will be glad you did!
For additonal tips and information or technical advice on winterizing your spa, please contact your free spa technical helpline at SpaShopper.com
