Pool supplier does not recommend Frog @ease - so is it good then?

So back to guts of post... this is instance TFP agrees with pool store. Avoid the Frog ease system...

Will the addition of borax (up to 50ppm) and the ozonator ease some of the pain? I need to accept reality... as much as I could be disciplined to maintain the hot tub, I have to accept reality that what I'm supposed to do will not match the frequency with I would like to do it.

A few friends over, mixing between pool and hot tub... I guarantee the last thing on my mind after some shots and a few beers at end of late night is what the person-hours in the hot tub calculates so I can dump in chlorine. Reality sucks.
Convenience goes completely out the window when you inevitably end up with a an issue and don't actually have any water chemistry baseline with your tub or know how to diagnose. You'll chase you tail for days or just end up needing to drain and refill often. I'll take a little more up front learning over struggling constantly with cloudy water or drains.

It's a little bit of a steep learning curve at first, but if you devote 10 mins a day for the first 2 months to testing with a kit, reading the guides here and understanding the balance, then it becomes second nature. I almost never test anything other than PH and CL a 2-3 times a week. My PH almost never moves with Bortates on fill and Aqua Clarity maintenance once a week. I rarely test TA oR CH. One you have learned the amount of chlorine your tub likes on a regular basis or after light to heavy uses, it just becomes a simple calculation in your head that you do without thinking. I rarely use the app for calculation anymore because I know how much different amounts of chlorine are going to affect my levels and how long they are going to last.

The best part of this is that I know what my levels are or what they should be, so when I have an issue I can easily triage and fix without running to a store to run tests or blindly chasing issues with unnecessary chemicals.

Just my 2 cents but I think having a tub that is always clean and usable is way more convenient than the tradeoff of a floater that you can't accurately test or diagnose issues with. And either way you go, you still need to add chemicals after use, so you are going to have to make that calculation either way. At least with the BBB method, you know what your starting baseline is so you aren't just guessing how much to add.
 
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"When you use your tub (this applies to when you are still using Dichlor or after you switch to bleach), the rule of thumb is, you'll use approximately 7 ppm FC per person per hour in a 350 gal tub."
Interesting. That would mean 4 people soaking for one hour would consume 28ppm FC? If the CYA was only 40ppm, then you’de have to start with FC above SLAM level which isnt advised OR the FC would be zero after an hour. Maybe they are just trying to help guide how much chlorine might be needed when done or realize you maybe add some 1/2 way through.
 
Interesting. That would mean 4 people soaking for one hour would consume 28ppm FC? If the CYA was only 40ppm, then you’de have to start with FC above SLAM level which isnt advised OR the FC would be zero after an hour. Maybe they are just trying to help guide how much chlorine might be needed when done or realize you maybe add some 1/2 way through.
I take that number with a grain of salt. It seems to me that it's overkill especially if you know the people, they are clean, with unwashed suits and no weird spills, lotions etc. I never start this high. Also, things like ozonators or mineral systems are going to affect it. If it goes to zero during the soak, then I generally know it's coming and make sure add a bunch after. I also never use my tub with people who I don't know or have concerns about contracting something from. I also almost always test again the next day to see if I hit or missed the mark based on how much chlorine got eaten up after.
 
Convenience goes completely out the window when you inevitably end up with a an issue and don't actually have any water chemistry baseline with your tub or know how to diagnose. You'll chase you tail for days or just end up needing to drain and refill often. I'll take a little more up front learning over struggling constantly with cloudy water or drains.

It's a little bit of a steep learning curve at first, but if you devote 10 mins a day for the first 2 months to testing with a kit, reading the guides here and understanding the balance, then it becomes second nature. I almost never test anything other than PH and CL a 2-3 times a week. My PH almost never moves with Bortates on fill and Aqua Clarity maintenance once a week. I rarely test TA oR CH. One you have learned the amount of chlorine your tub likes on a regular basis or after light to heavy uses, it just becomes a simple calculation in your head that you do without thinking. I rarely use the app for calculation anymore because I know how much different amounts of chlorine are going to affect my levels and how long they are going to last.

The best part of this is that I know what my levels are or what they should be, so when I have an issue I can easily triage and fix without running to a store to run tests or blindly chasing issues with unnecessary chemicals.

Just my 2 cents but I think having a tub that is always clean and usable is way more convenient than the tradeoff of a floater that you can't accurately test or diagnose issues with. And either way you go, you still need to add chemicals after use, so you are going to have to make that calculation either way. At least with the BBB method, you know what your starting baseline is so you aren't just guessing how much to add.
I appreciate that reassurance. And just with pool... I did spend time in navigating my balance and SWG settings to find the optimal point... and when/if to add additional liq chlorine (after heavy rain, entertainment, etc). So understand same learning curve with hot tub.

I do have Aqua Clarity in my 'shopping cart'. So between the Dichlor/liquid chlorine approach (reach 30ppm CYA then switch to liq chlor), Borate process, and weekly Aqua Clarity, I need to learn over time about load and FC needs for my tub. Seems hard up front with nothing in front of me to actually put to practice but confident can meet the needs. If maintained properly, as with pool, no need for weekly shocks/slam.

Will have ozonator and use a mineral stick (changed every 4 months?)... and aware the ozonators may stop working and may not even notice difference in water quality. I'm also understanding if maintained, I should be able to eliminate need for non-chlorine oxidizer/MPS and 'weekly shock/slam.' I'd prefer to use minimal amount of chemicals as possible using the BBB/MA method (same as pool).

I don't use strips (except for a quick guestimate). And from other post, I may consider the Saltron Mini device... need more time to review.
 
I take that number with a grain of salt. It seems to me that it's overkill especially if you know the people, they are clean, with unwashed suits and no weird spills, lotions etc. I never start this high. Also, things like ozonators or mineral systems are going to affect it. If it goes to zero during the soak, then I generally know it's coming and make sure add a bunch after. I also never use my tub with people who I don't know or have concerns about contracting something from. I also almost always test again the next day to see if I hit or missed the mark based on how much chlorine got eaten up after.
I concur... that could be potentially nearly 3 cups of chlorine after an evening in the spa depending how long and how many people in and out.

I've seen across forums, some folks simply add a few ounces of chlorine before they close tub for night and then balance in morning if detect odor, cloudiness, etc. I've read others drop few tablespoons chlorine before nightly use, etc, etc.

Granted, tub not even installed. I'm just prepping myself for expectations and removing assumptions.
 
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I'm almost certain the element included is titanium... I'll look for specs later this evening to verify. But thank you for the input.
Received direct reply from Jandy... the heating element that comes installed is stainless steel. But easily replaced with a titanium... so something I'll just put reminder on my maintenance schedule and check periodically during the year.
 
I appreciate that reassurance. And just with pool... I did spend time in navigating my balance and SWG settings to find the optimal point... and when/if to add additional liq chlorine (after heavy rain, entertainment, etc). So understand same learning curve with hot tub.

I do have Aqua Clarity in my 'shopping cart'. So between the Dichlor/liquid chlorine approach (reach 30ppm CYA then switch to liq chlor), Borate process, and weekly Aqua Clarity, I need to learn over time about load and FC needs for my tub. Seems hard up front with nothing in front of me to actually put to practice but confident can meet the needs. If maintained properly, as with pool, no need for weekly shocks/slam.

Will have ozonator and use a mineral stick (changed every 4 months?)... and aware the ozonators may stop working and may not even notice difference in water quality. I'm also understanding if maintained, I should be able to eliminate need for non-chlorine oxidizer/MPS and 'weekly shock/slam.' I'd prefer to use minimal amount of chemicals as possible using the BBB/MA method (same as pool).

I don't use strips (except for a quick guestimate). And from other post, I may consider the Saltron Mini device... need more time to review.
Yeah, and the ozonator is going to eat up your chlorine faster, and honestly I don't really think makes that much of a difference. I won't replace mine once it dies. And correct on not using MPS. I react poorly to it, and also don't like adding additional sulfates, so this method is perfect for me because you never need it.

I definitely found all of this a little daunting when I started, but it was pretty easy to get the hang of and I really find it so simple to do now. I just never have any issues with my water and my tub is always ready whenever I want to use it. But sounds like you already went through this with your pool, so you already have way more experience than I did when I started.
 
I like mineral purifiers, such as spa frog. The @ease system uses a different type of chlorine that has some problems with testing, but works better (they say) with the minerals. I've never tried it myself, but there are a lot of people who use it successfully.
As a tech, I have no qualms with dumping any water problem. It's almost always cheaper than fixing them on a spa. If it's a recurring issue address the cause, but a random after-party funk gets dumped without a second thought.
 
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