It’s absolutely great to have a water feature like a hot tub that you can use any time for the whole year. However, as a hot tub owner, you have to make sure to do some basic maintenance steps to keep your hot tub clean and last longer, and one of them is a shocking process.
Shocking a hot tub in this term is the use of a large dose of oxidizer to ensure that the water is in a safe state after it’s been contaminated. This job has some benefits, for example, removing bromamines and chloramines, organic contaminants, killing bacteria, and reactivating bromides.
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Here are six steps that you can do to shock a hot tub by yourself.
How to Shock a Hot Tub
Prepare the Product
In general, there are two types of shock products that you can choose based on your needs.
- Chlorine-based:
– Can work as oxidizers and disinfectants.
– Use periodically since the chemical ingredients can be hard for the hot tub’s plumbing.
– It’s best to use it when you first open your hot tub, change the water, and need to give it a good cleaning after a heavy bather load. - Non-chlorine-based:
– This shock won’t disinfect the water.
– Great at oxidizing other contaminants and
– Safe to use for regular use to keep the water safe while you’re using the spa on a regular basis.
Open Hot Tub Cover
You will need to do this step which is basically to let your spa breathe to keep the chemicals off the water. Anything that floats on the water like the spa cover, thermal cover, or any other accessories has to be removed completely.
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Test the Water
To make sure that the shock product works properly, the chemistry level of the water needs to be:
- pH level should be between 7.4 – 7.6.
- Alkalinity should be between 100 ppm to 150 ppm (parts per million).
- Calcium hardness needs to be about 100 ppm to 250 ppm.
Turn Off the Blower
- Turn on the circulation pump to help the shock circulate well through the hot tub.
- Turn off the jets so the water won’t move too agitated.
Start the Job
Now you’re ready to move forward with the job. Make sure you use gloves or other safety gear.
- Check the manufacturer’s instructions to know the perfect dose of the shock product.
- Measure the amount of shock you need for the amount of water your hot tub holds. Consult the manufacturer if you’re not sure how many gallons of water are in your hot tub.
- For an indoor hot tub, open the windows to get a well-ventilated workspace. If it’s outdoors, be extra careful because the strong wind might blow the chemical to you.
- Pour the shock into the hot tub and wait about 20 minutes.
Finishing
After waiting for 20 minutes, you can do the last step:
- Cover the hot tub if you’re not going to use it immediately.
- Before using it, ensure the time needed for the shock to be completely done.
- Since there’s no exact rule about how long you have to wait before using the hot tub again, check the chemistry level again and the shock instruction pages for more details.
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Keeping your hot tub water clean is important to ensure that everyone is safe from any unwanted irritation. Check your hot tub water now!