I have a spa but no power. Now what do I do?

www.rickrobinsonhomes.com

Have spa but no power?  

Not to worry... most spas are very well insulated and can retain their heat fairly well for up to 2 weeks.

Not all spas are the same, some of your older spas or smaller ones may not have  full foam insulation within it.

 This could be an issue for you, if this true for your spa go out and get some household insulation and stuff this inside the spa cabinet like you would inside your attic this will give you a barrier from the extreme cold nights.

The biggest mistake people make when they have a spa and the power goes out is to drain it this is NOT a good idea.

If the spa was running and was heated to around 100 degrees just before the power went out then it will take a while for the spa water to cool down on it's own (up to two weeks), but if you drain the spa of water, that safeguard you may have had is gone. 

Now the surface of the spa will get cold and then transfer that coolness to the under side of the spa and the plumbing lines. Then the spa lines can FREEZE and crack. Now this doesn't mean that if you drained your spa it will automatically freeze. The outside temp needs to be below 40 degrees for several days for this to possibly happen. I have seen spas with ice inside them defrost in the spring and run fine with no issues.

Now getting back to my original statement LOL...

Most spas are fully insulated and as long as you do not keep going out there and lifting the cover up to check on it every hour  "you know who I am talking to" the water temp will remain high and you should be fine. I have seen a spa with a temp of 99 degrees when the customer lost power for 2 weeks and when the lights came back on the water temp was only down to 68 degrees.

Once the power comes back on you want to go out to the spa and be sure that the spa has power as well, if not check the breakers.

Run the pumps to be sure all is good then note the temperature on the topside display set it to 100 degrees and monitor it every hour to see that it will go back up to temperature without any problems. If you have made it this far you are golden check the spa chemicals to be sure that it has a good balanced level before going back into it.

I hope everyone is OK and has power back.

Until Next Time...

It's Closing Time...

Well summer is almost over and it is back to school time, for kids this stinks but for us parents it's a time to rejoice...

For my readers in New Orleans area my heart goes out to you and my hopes are that you can withstand mother natures vengeance and keep up your spirits.

The weather pattern effecting the south will soon travel north east and hit this region and bring with it lots of rain etc. Now is the time most people start to think about closing their pools both above ground and in ground. Remember that if you close your pool now be sure that you have a good cover pump to remove all the excess water that will build up.

For my spa readers now will be a great time to do the quarterly drain and refill of your spa, be sure to have all the chemicals you need to start up the spa again once full such as Bromine/Chlorine, PH up and Down, Alkalinity increaser, and a metal remover. I also advise replacing the spa filter if it is more than a year old, you should be hosing off your filter at the very least to ensure that the spa runs good and the heater operates normally. Check the spa cover and be sure that it is in good shape, if your spa cover is getting heavy then you should replace it BEFORE the winter months hit as heavy snow loads will certainly damage the cover and leave you in a desperate search for a replacement in the freezing months.

Bottom line, take the time now to inspect your spa and close that pool so you can begin the fall with a clear head to help your kids get all they can from the coming school year. LOL

Until Next Time...