18 Months In - The Guide To Keeping Your Hot Tub Clean Part 2
Chlorine
It is used to kill nasty bacteria. When you use a hot tub, the warm water picks up oils, fats, dirt and hair from the surface of your skin. Bacteria from the air and unclean water can feed on deposits left in the hot tub, if there are enough bacteria it can lead to the development of infectious diseases. Therefore, it is essential to use chlorine to control bacteria levels.
You must always use the STABILISED versions of these chemicals i.e. commercially available forms of granules, tablets or sachets. Chlorine can be very dangerous in the wrong hands and should be stored in a lockable cupboard when not in use. You should READ THE INSTRUCTIONS carefully before attempting to use any hot tub chemicals and make sure no-one uses the tub immediately after you treat your hired hot tub.
Chlorine Granules
Chlorine granules give your tub an instant lift in “free chlorine”. This is the stuff that fights bacteria, it will combine with bacteria in the water and create sediment which is picked up by your filter. If the levels of free chlorine drop too low, the levels of bacteria will eventually become uncontrollable, the water may turn green and smell! For that reason, it is recommended that chlorine is added to the water daily. However, not everyone has time to do that, so in our next post I’ll run through the benefits of using Chlorine Dispensers!
Chlorine Tablets
Tablets and dispensers allow some degree of freedom when it comes to hot tub water maintenance. If the tub is not in use, the dispenser, UFO or mushroom as we call them (Right). Will allow the chlorine tablets to slowly dissolve over time.
If you are using the tub regularly, then you should always test the tub for free chlorine content (as discussed in my last post). You can do this with test strips or a fancy digital tester. I will cover different testers in my next post!
Chlorine tablets are available in bulk and prices vary between tablets and granules depending on the brand. You can buy 1kg of granules for the same price as 1kg of tablets (around £10-15), but you are going to use the granules a lot quicker than the tablets. Keep an eye out online as some chlorine tablet suppliers will generally throw in a free dispenser. If you live in one of our areas and hire a hot tub in Barnsley for example, we will show you how to use the hot tub and give you enough chemicals to last you through your hire period, this is included in all hot tubs and in our low cost hot tub hire packages.
We generally boost the free chlorine content of fresh water with granules, then pop around 2-3 tablets in a dispenser to maintain the ideal chlorine levels (3-5ppm). As mentioned, you should always allow around 24 hours for the chemicals to “settle in” before using the hot tub, and always test before you enter the water to prevent exposure to high levels of chlorine/bacteria in the water!
If you want us to cover a topic or review a product, drop me an email on Tony@eazyhireltd.co.uk
We also have hot tubs for sale that you can purchase online you can find them in our Hot Tub Store UK wide or, if you are based in our hire area you can hire a hot tub in Yorkshire or Nottinghamshire.
Cheers!
