We recommend a monthly hosing off of the filter. Every 3-4 months, soak the filter overnight in a commercial filter cleaner and water solution, then rinse it thoroughly.

Filters are plugged up by two types of material: organic and mineral. Organic material includes oils, grease, skin cells, etc. Mineral buildup is formed from different minerals found in water naturally, calcium being the most common. Commercial filter cleaners offer a soap to degrease and help wash away the organics, and an acid to loosen and dissolve some of the minerals trapped in a filter weave. Most cleanable filters should be replaced about every 2 years.

Many modern spas use micro-filtration also, they use a disposable filter with a much tighter weave. These filters must be replaced frequently and are usually not cleanable.

Filters are the kidney of the spa, they filter out the particulate matter and keep the water looking clean and clear. Dirty filters can have many unseen drawbacks as well, including: weak jet performance, overworking jet motors, heating and flow related errors, and even shortened circulation pump life.

Spa water should be changed every 3-4 months. After this time the total dissolved solids (TDS) in the water build up to a point where the water does not react properly to the chemicals you add. It takes more chemicals to balance and sanitize the water. TDS can also greatly impact the clarity of the water since they cannot be filtered out by traditional methods. Also fresh water just feels great!

With most products the tub is ready to use after ten minutes, enough time for the chemical to disperse throughout the spa and dilute fully into the water. We recommend using shock treatments and chlorine dosing after your last hot tub use of the day, allowing them all night to function and dissipate before your morning soak.

If you take your chlorine level above 5 parts per million, you should not enter the spa.

Chlorine breaks down fairly quickly in sunlight and heat. If you over chlorinate your spa, simply open the lid and let the chlorine levels fall down below the 5 ppm range, it is now safe to enter. If you leave it open long enough it will drop completely.

In our local relatively temperate winter we do not normally recommend shutting down your hot tub since this can be quite a nice time to enjoy them.

If you do want to winterize the unit follow your normal drain, filter clean, and surface wipe down routine. Leave any bottom drains open. The best final step is to take a wet-dry shop-vac and actually go around and vacuum out the water out of all the jets, you can usually hear when there is no more water being pulled out of a line, go around all the jets until the lines are clear. Clip down and tarp your cover.

The first step with modern electronics is to reboot them, much like a computer. Turn power off, wait 10 seconds, then turn power back on.

With a 120 volt spa, unplug it for 10 seconds and plug it back in, then look for a small light on the plug, if you see no light, check your house breakers and then contact us.

With a 240 volt spa, you should have a house breaker labeled, turn it off, wait 10 seconds, then back on. If still no functions, contact us.

Well honestly this one is here as kind of a joke, because we do hear this all the time.

In most modern top of the line hot tubs the heater has been over engineered to reduce its fail rate, so much, that just because the spa is not hot enough, there are a few things to check before a more expensive heater replacement. Please contact us or read on below. If it is the heater we can certainly get you a quote.

This is a flow error for a Sundance spa, the hot tub should never heat in this mode. This error is most commonly caused by a dirty filter, it may be time to clean or replace your filter. If you have a MicroClean filter it usually means it needs to be replaced. If you just recently changed the water you could have an air lock in the heating system, consult the owners manual to resolve the air lock. If none of this resolves your problem you may have a failed component and may require a service call.

This message is called watchdog. Watchdog can often be caused by an inconsistent source power. To test, turn off the tub for 60 seconds, then reapply power. If it reappears quickly you most likely have a problem with your temperature sensor or the capacitors on your main circuit board.

No functions will work during this error. For a more detailed explanation look at this post on the matter.

If a hot tub has salt water or ACE installed, this message indicates the salt water or ACE system requires attention. In rarer cases this error message means there is a error in communication with the temperature thermistor (sensor), this could mean it has failed, or has come unplugged. In some cases a communication failure between the control panel and control board can cause this message. Power off for 30 seconds then power on will reset this error.

Pre 2009	Post 2009

This error message means the high limit thermistor (sensor) has been activated, this is usually related to a flow restriction or slow flow, commonly a dirty filter. If this is happening after a water refill there may be an airlock present in the heating system. A faulty circulation pump can cause this error, as can a faulty thermistor. Power off for 30 seconds then power on will reset. The hot tub will not heat during this mode.

Pre 2009	Post 2009

This error message means the pressure switch is open when it is not expected to be, this is usually related to a flow restriction or slow flow, commonly a dirty filter. If this is happening after a water refill there may be an airlock present in the heating system. A faulty circulation pump can cause this error, as can a faulty pressure or flow switch. Power off for 30 seconds then power on will reset. The hot tub will not heat during this mode.

Pre 2009	Post 2009

The first thing to check is the heating cycle settings, most spas can be set to only heat during certain times. Sometimes this is set through a digital topside, or by a time clock on the control pack. If a tub has been programmed to only heat one or two hours a day, it is unlikely it will ever reach full temperature, even more so in the winter.

These setting are commonly adjusted or confused in households with children, but any set of busy hands can do it! Consult your owners manual or contact us if you think this may be the case.

If you see none of the error messages listed above, the best final step is to make sure you have nothing in the spa (leaves, rubber ducks, etc) and temporarily remove the spa filter completely, close it up and let it run overnight.

If it heats up, consider the last time the filters were replaced, with proper cleaning they last 2 years.

If you still are getting no heat from your spa, it is best to contact us, you probably have a less common malfunction.