Newbie hot tub owner Foam?
- Thread starter JohnnyB22
- Start date
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Nope. Either more chlorine or raise CH up to 125ish. More here, How do I use Chlorine in my Spa (or pool)?
Nope. Either more chlorine or raise CH up to 125ish. More here, How do I use Chlorine in my Spa (or pool)?
Thanks for the tip on more chlorine to address foam. I have a Hotspring with ACE that calls for 50ppm CH which is very low and I do get a lot of foam sometimes. We are very careful with our suits being rinsed after washes and not having lotion or other things that could contribute to foam. It also dissipates quickly after turning off jets. Is this simply low FC? We usually target 2-4FC range at the start of a soak and we keep it at 98-99F.
In my limited experience, one small tub for 5 months, it seems there are two kinds of foam. The type of foam that comes from the foaming agents in soap from suits and from body lotions will tend to persist after the agitation stops. This type can be reduced by oxidation with chlorine, bromine or MPS. The type of foam that forms while the jets and air injectors are running but dissipates almost immediately after the agitation is stopped probably comes from other causes, and does not seem to respond to oxidation. If I were guessing, I would say it is from the various types of dissolved solids that build up over time.
I'm still on first fill after 5 months, so the dissolved solids are starting to build up. We have foaming while the air is running that can get 3 or 4 inches deep in the center of the tub, but it dissipates within about a minute after the air is stopped. Even taking the sanitizer to shock level doesn't seem to have much effect on this. We've just learned to live with it. It isn't much of a problem really, as it doesn't interfere with our enjoyment. We usually just run the air bubbles for 5 minutes or less of our soak anyway, if we use the air at all.
Incidentally, I started keeping the bromine level between 6-10 ppm after having a soap type foaming incident. Before that, I was targeting 4-6 ppm. The higher level seems to help keep the water clearer and the foaming minimal.
I'm still on first fill after 5 months, so the dissolved solids are starting to build up. We have foaming while the air is running that can get 3 or 4 inches deep in the center of the tub, but it dissipates within about a minute after the air is stopped. Even taking the sanitizer to shock level doesn't seem to have much effect on this. We've just learned to live with it. It isn't much of a problem really, as it doesn't interfere with our enjoyment. We usually just run the air bubbles for 5 minutes or less of our soak anyway, if we use the air at all.
Incidentally, I started keeping the bromine level between 6-10 ppm after having a soap type foaming incident. Before that, I was targeting 4-6 ppm. The higher level seems to help keep the water clearer and the foaming minimal.
I would say mine is the second kind you described. Had not though of dissolved solids as the issue before. I tried Sea Klear a few times but it did not seem to make any difference.
Raising CH up to 125 ppm is easy and will eliminate that as a question. For me the key was to make sure you have 30 ppm CYA in the tub to buffer the harshness of the chlorine and then to test and add every 30-60 minutes after a soak to make sure you were adding enough FC to oxidize the waste. Then just add that after every soak. The goal is for FC not to be 0 after a few hours or the next day. Once you achieve that on a regular basis then your hot tub sanitation will be good.
They sell a defomer witch is basically fabric softener. Use use some while running jets and once it breaks down foam shock it with whatever sanitizer you use. I have had a lot of people soaking and foam got so bad it was best to dump water and start over. They also sell scum balls they float on top of the water during use and while closed but they soak up body oils and soap from your suits. Another trick is to use a pool skimming net and scoop out the foam and dump over board. Do it several times and it will knock a lot of foam out. Hope this helps.
