WHAT TO DO WITH THAT OLD SPA IN THE BACKYARD?

www.rickrobinsonhomes.com

WHAT TO DO WITH THAT OLD SPA IN THE BACKYARD?

So you want a new spa or bought a home that has an old one there already, and don't know what to do. This is a question I hear often. One of the question I would ask is, "Does the spa still work?" If not it's probably best to just throw it away. A lot of companies will take your old spa away for a fee. If you are buying a new one see if the company will remove your old one as part of the deal.

If your spa does still work but you are tired of investing money in it and want to upgrade to a new one, try listing it for sale on Ebay or Craigslist and set a reasonable price. Remember spas are like cars, once they leave the showroom they start to depreciate. I had a friend put a sign out front of his house that said "Spa For Sale, First $500 Takes It!" He sold it in 2 days. One of the local landscapers saw it and took it right out of the yard on their trailer.

There are also companies that will just come and take any old items you don't want. Check your local newspapers and phone books. Just remember to have the electric removed from the old spa by a qualified electrician and make the wiring safe until the new spa arrives. There still is a big market for used spas, one persons junk is another mans treasure!

Until Next Time...

Is It A Bad Idea To Build A Spa Into A Deck?

www.rickrobinsonhomes.com

Is it a bad idea to build a spa into a deck?

I have been getting a lot of questions lately about building a deck around a  spa so I wanted to touch base on the pros and cons of this type of installation.

First off let me start off by saying I love the look of this type of installation but it does present some very difficult service issues.




Sundance spas

                        Lets go over the pros first:

• Very attractive appearance
• Easy access to get in/out of spa
• Does not block any views
• Seating can be incorporated around spa

                       Now lets talk Cons:

• It can be a trip hazard
• No service access to panels around spa
• May need a crane to install into place ($)
• If no access for service NO REPAIRS
• If spa is ever removed you have a big hole

Now I am not saying don't do it, all I am trying to do is give you some incite as to what the situation is. Most spas made today have a removable skirting all the way around the spa in the event of service the technician can remove this skirting and gain access to the inner part of the spa and find and repair the issue, if there is a deck around the spa then the skirting can not be removed and no repairs can be made unless the spa is removed out of the deck.

I recommend getting a designer to plan out this type of install. You can have pre-determined hatches made in the decking to allow a service professional to open these hatches and gain access to the skirting. In most cases they can blend these hatches into the decking so they are not noticeable and will not take away from the beauty of you new deck project.

If you have a pre existing deck you can also place the spa at an outer edge of your deck and remove a section of handrail and redesign it to incorporate the spa and you will get an appearance of a sunken spa and still have access to three sides of the skirting. This is what I usually recommend to my customers.

No matter what your choice is, a spa is a great family gathering spot, and even greater relaxation destination. So go out and get one NOW!

Until Next Time...

My back is killing me, thank god for a spa.

Rick the Spa Guy

My back is killing me, thank god for a spa.


Recently I was diagnosed with kidney stones while this was pain full as hell I can not begin to tell you about the pain I am going through with my back because of the stones.


I woke up in the middle of the night a week ago with intense pain in my lower back, I went to the ER and they diagnosed me as having Kidney Stones that needed to pass. While I did pass the stones quickly; in my straining to try to get comfortable from the pain I ended up pinching one of my nerves in my spine that goes all the way down my left leg.


Since that day I have been in constant pain, the doctors say to stay in bed and apply heat at first then cold to try and relax the nerves and muscles, this is a task that is harder than it seams. I was in bed for at least 5 days unable to move very much, but now I am up and about trying to be able to go back to work.


I got in the spa one night to try and alleviate some pain and the hot water was just what I needed to relax and calm down the muscles. When you are in pain you will do almost anything to get some relief. It is very hard to get in and out of the spa but the muscle relaxing qualities are unbeatable.


I now have a profound respect for people with constant back pain as it has crippled me. Without the heat to relax my muscles I do not know how I would have gotten through it.


If you are considering a spa and have back related pain, Do Yourself A Favor And Get One Now...
I think everyone should get in a spa every once in a while to experience the relaxing and massaging effects you can get. Thanks for listening.


Until Next Time...

It's cold out there Don't forget to check on your spa

Rick the Spa Guy

It's cold out there so don't forget to check on your spa. When the weather gets very cold like this in the north east and all parts winter, we tend to neglect our outside spaces because it is just to cold to be outside but this could cost you some big money.


It is happening once again, I am getting many calls from people saying they just went outside and their spa is not running and the water in the spa is frozen.


The issue is they wait to long to check on the spa and by the time they realize something is wrong it is too late. A frozen spa can cost you a lot of money in repairs, one person I know had to spend over $1500.00 to get the spa repaired once they thawed it out and the spa was only 1 year old.


There is no warranty for a frozen spa. If your like most of us you get busy this time of year and the backyard takes a backseat to the holidays, and that is ok as long as you do your diligence and check in on your investment at least once a week.


If you keep your spa water tempreture at about 98 or 100 degrees and something happens to the spa it should take at least a week to drop the temp down to freezing temperatures where you have to worry. Some spas are more insulated than others so that estimate depends on your brand of spa.


It only takes a minute or two to go out and lift the cover and see if the spa is OK and check the chemical levels,and if you do find something wrong you should have plenty of time to call and get someone out to make the repairs it may need so you do not loose any great and relaxing time in your spa.


Happy Holidays


Until Next Time...

Need to know how to find a leak in your spa?

Rick the Spa Guy

Do you Need to know how to find a leak in your spa?


If you are losing water in your spa more than 1 inch per week then most likely you have a leak. Now in the winter months when the air is cold and the spa is hot you COULD lose more than this in evaporation if you leave the cover open too long so do not mistake this for a leak.




How do I know if my spa is leaking or not? You can do a bucket test. Get a small bucket and fill it with the spa water and place it on the highest seat so that the top of the bucket is above the water level but you need to be able to close the cover, so find whatever bucket fits your needs best.


Now place the bucket on the highest seat and mark the spa water level with some duct tape mark the water level in the bucket as well, so you know the exact level. Now close the cover and wait 24 hrs, after that open the cover and see if the spa water has dropped down from the tape mark, if so now look in the bucket and measure if the water in the bucket has lost the same amount of water if so then it is just evaporation and you have no leaks. If your spa water level is lower than the bucket then yes the spa is leaking, now what?


So now we know you have a leak now you need to find it. First I would open the spa cabinet below the control panel to see if any of the pumps are leaking or if there is an obvious leak in the equipment area.


If nothing is found there you need to take it to the next level. Get yourself a 2 foot long wooden dowel, you will need to remove all the skirting around the spa to expose the insulation. Now the fun part!!


Pick a starting point, stick the dowel into the foam and insert a foot or so then pull the dowel out, as you are pulling it out inspect it for wetness. Once you get in the area of the leak or leaks the dowel will become wet.


 It is easier to use the dowel than it is to start pulling all the insulation out little by little. Now once you find an area that the dowel comes out wet start digging inward towards the back of the spa shell, as you are removing the insulation note if the insulation is getting wetter or dryer, if getting dryer then start moving to the left or right. Remember this: the water can channel through the foam and be leaking out of the spa in a totally different area, this is why we use the dowel and take our time.


Another thing to keep in mind is this, as you get close to the actual leak the wet foam should get warmer, if the foam you are handling is wet but cold then you are not close to the leak and it may just be channeling out the spa. Once you find the leak you will have to asses the area and determine if this can be repaired with the water in the spa or if you will need to drain the spa to repair.


In a lot of cases it would just be a loose fitting or bad silicone around a jet fitting and you will just need to tighten the fitting or run a new bead of silicone around the outside of the jet fitting. If you find a crack in the plumbing or a bad glue joint then you will need to drain the spa and replace the broken fitting and let the new glue joint dry for 24 hours before refilling the spa.


So this is the basic 101 of spa leak repair, check back for further spa repair helpful hints.


Until Next Time...

Why Do I Want To Buy A Spa

Why do you want to buy a spa?

Let's discuss some of the reasons to buy a spa. Let me start off with my family, I have a wonderful wife of 23 years, a 21 year old son in college, and a 15 year old daughter, like most busy families out there we do not get to spend very much time together. My son is away at college and only comes home every other month, my daughter would rather be bored than spend time with her parents. One thing we can all agree on is the spa is great, we get in and relax to the warm water and just talk about our family and what is going on, NO phones, NO television, NO video games, just us.

Now not all kids want to use the spa with their parents, so I guess we are lucky that way but at least we get to have some quality family time. Aside from the family togetherness there is also the therapeutic qualities of the warm water.Tight joints in the body with the warm water, loosen up the muscles and relax you. You can keep the water temp anywhere from 65-104 degrees. The warmer you keep the water, the less time you should spend in it, the rule of thumb is this, if the spa is set to 98 degrees which is body temperature,you can enjoy it as long as you want, for every degree above that, you have to pace your time. At 100 degrees limit your stay to 30 minutes, at 102 you should only stay in for 10-15 minutes, at 104 the limit should be 10 minutes and then get out and recoup. Then go back in if desired. You can overheat the body by raising the internal body temp too high and causing Hyperthermia.

Lets talk about some other reasons for buying a spa. Gathering together all the people you love to spend time with. Once you have a spa and the word gets out, the friends will be calling to come over for dinner. How about therapy? I had dislocated my knee some years back and the orthopedic I was seeing recommended I do some swimming or spa therapy to help me with the swelling and joint pain. I never sleep as good as I do after using the spa, I am so relaxed I forget the worries of the day and just enjoy the stars. It's coming close to winter now,and in the Northeast that means cold weather, but there is nothing like going out and getting in a 100 degree spa with the snow coming down and I am there in the spa as warm as can be, I love it!

Remember this, a spa can add value to your home as well. With a swimming pool you limit the buyers that would look at your home, but a spa is an added bonus for anyone. You can take the spa with you when you move so you are never without it. You can use the spa all year long in any weather, with a pool you would get maybe 6 months in the cold climate areas.

There are many reasons to buy a spa, but the bigger question you should ask yourself is what are YOUR reasons for NOT buying a spa?

Check out my other tips here @ www.fixmypoolandspa.blogspot.com

Until Next Time...

Thinking About Buying A Spa

Rick the Spa Guy

Hey Everyone, today I just wanted to talk a little about buying a spa and what to look for or not care too much about. I sell Sundance spas and Cal spas, they are both great spas but are very different in their design. Sundance has been around since 1979 and sells all over the world as does Cal Spa, buying from a manufacturer that has been around a long time is very important as you know they have some sort of track record out there and the hope is that they will be around for the long haul, both of these companies have that track record.

I hear all the time about people buying spas because of the jet count, "My spa has 100 jets", remember that with any spa the therapy value and power is only as good as the pumps that drive the water, so in a 100 jet spa that has 2 pumps (usually 2 to 2 1/2 horsepower) each pump will run through 50 jets on average, now a similar spa with 50 jets and the same pumps will run through 25 jets each, which spa do you think will give a better massage?

There are manufacturers out there that advertise 5 bhp or 6 bhp pumps, the BHP stands for Brake Horse Power this means that when the pump first starts up it runs at 5 or 6 hp but once it achieves it's run cycle it down grades to a 2 hp or 2 1/2 hp consistently, so do not be amazed at a spa that has 6 bhp in the title, while these are still great pumps they are no better than a spa that has a full rated 2 hp pumps in them.

Another thing to look at is the Acrylic coating of the spa, most manufacturers use acrylic for their surface, but some have ABS plastic in theirs, and these spas are not as strong in the cold climate areas as they can flex much easier than Acrylic ones which can lead to de-lamination of the surface or blistering. In the Sundance spa for example they use Rigid Bond construction which means they use acrylic, a bonding agent, and the fiberglass structure that all have the same tensile strength, so as the spa flexes in cold and heat it will flex at the same time and should not de-laminate. If the manufacturer uses material that has different tensile strength, then the fiberglass and the acrylic can flex at different temperatures and the POSSIBILITY of de-lamination exists this DOES NOT mean it will happen just that it could more easily.

These are just my opinions on spas and take it for what it's worth. Don't buy a spa because it says it has 6bhp pumps or 100 plus jets, you want to know that it is comfortable when you sit in the seats, and that you CAN fit in the spa. Tall people can not fit in some manufacturers seating as their legs are too long for the shell design, and you will have this spa for 10 plus years you will have to live with the decision you make, so be sure you like it. The foot well is another big issue to my customers this is where your feet go when you get say 4-5 people in the spa together there will be 8-10 legs that have to get along in the foot well. Some spas do not have very big foot wells, some are very large so take your time and decide what fits YOUR needs.

A spa is the best therapy out there for what hurts, as well as a great family gathering spot.

Until Next Time......Happy Shopping...

Spa Draining and Chemical Balance

Hello everyone, it's been a while. I have been busy building my new website, it takes a lot more work than I thought. I just wanted to touch base on the spas out there and remind every spa owner in cold weather that this is the time of year to drain and refill the spa before the really cold weather hits.

Remember to always allow the proper time to drain and refill the spa with no interruptions. If you empty a spa and have to leave for any reason in a very short period of time(hours) the plumbing lines that will still have water will freeze. So that being said, drain and refill your spa add metal remover to the water as it is filling to protect against any copper or iron that may be in the water and once the spa is full turn on the power and verify that all the pumps are working and you have good water flow.

Test the spa water with your test strips or test kit to verify where the Alkalinity and PH are at. Always adjust the Alkalinity first as this is a buffer for the PH, once this is good recheck the PH and make adjustments as necessary. Once these two are good check the Calcium Hardness of the water and adjust as needed. Wait for the water temp to get above 70 degrees before adding and Chlorine or Bromine as they react better in warmer water.

The proper levels are as follows: Alkalinity 90-140 ppm. PH 7.2-7.6 ppm. Calcium Hardness 250-500 ppm and Chlorine/Bromine 1.0-3.0 ppm. Now you can monitor the heat and start enjoying your spa once again.

Until Next Time....