Cleaning the spa filter:

The patented horizontal SlipStream™ filter system found exclusively in Sundance and Sweetwater Spas requires much less maintenance than a spa with the traditional vertical filter cartridge orientation. However, you still must clean the cartridge on a regular basis whether you have been using the hot tub often or have not been soaking for some time. Remember your hot tub filters up to 24 hours a day 365 days a year to remove dead organic material that can grow in the warm water as well as dust and other debris. Even if your hot tub is always covered or located inside you will still need to clean the filter cartridge on a regular basis.

During your first month of spa ownership hose out your cartridge once a week and soak the cartridge in Filter Cleaner & Degreaser at the end of the month. This will help remove any construction materials and lubricants that work through your spa during this break-in time period.

After the break-in period we recommend hosing out the cartridge every six to eight weeks if you use Chlorine or Bromine with a minimum 24 hour soak in Filter Cleaner & Degreaser two to three times a year. If you use BaquaSpa we recommend that you hose the cartridge out at least once a month and soak the cartridge for 24 hours every month as well. A spare cartridge and one of our soaking tanks makes this necessary chore much simpler and much more efficient.

Because your single filter is much larger than those found in most hot tubs and because it is positioned in the dirtiest upper one foot of the spa water layer, given proper care your cartridge filter should last two to three years. Remember to alternate with your spare cartridge and service as recommended above. When the filter material finally becomes stained or fuzzy or you get "FLO" errors that go away if you run the spa with the filter removed, it is time to replace your oldest cartridge.

Remember to always turn the power to your hot tub OFF before you remove your cartridge for cleaning and don't turn it back ON until you have reinstalled your newly cleaned filter cartridge. Never take the cartridge out with the power to your tub ON.

Sanitizer Options & Myths discussed:

     While there are a number products, some EPA Registered and some that are not, which are being used to sanitize hot tub water, several products and methods have proven themselves over the years to be considerably better at sanitizing hot tub and spa water.
     In addition, combinations of devices like the SunZone™ CD ozonator, Sundance Mixing Chamber™ and the Sundance MicroClean™ filter have been proven to greatly extend the drain & fill cycle times to once or twice a year while reduce the amounts of chemicals and sanitizers that would have to be used otherwise.
     If you have an older Sundance or Sweetwater spa why not ask one of our Technicians what it would take to upgrade your hot tub to this incredible 21st Century Technology!
     Remember, if a product claims to kill germs and bacteria and to sanitize the hot tub surfaces and water and if the product's use claims to result in a healthier hot tub than that product is supposed to obtain EPA Registration after first showing the EPA that it works as claimed for your particular hot tub application.
     Contrary to what you may have been led to believe there is NO chemical free hot tub made anywhere in the world today and there is NO hot tub finish additive that eliminates the need for sanitizers.
     Unlike the wooden hot tubs of 20 years ago, today's spas and hot tubs are mostly made of non-porous thermal plastics such as Acrylic and Centrex. By their very nature, these modern non-porous surfaces prevent germs and bacteria from growing within the plastic and any germs and bacteria on the spa surfaces or in the scum line is quickly killed by your chosen sanitizer. You bathe within the spa water, not within the spa plastic finish, so don't spend extra money for a gimmick additive that really has no proven health effects for you and your family.

     A healthy hot tub is dependent upon good filtration, a physical process, a properly balanced pH, Alkalinity and Calcium Hardness, a chemical process, the addition of ancillary products to help clarify the water, prevent staining and water spotting, to dissolve the scum line, etc., a chemical process and of course the sanitizer that many times is only effective when the other factors are within recommended limits. The sanitizer is frequently a combination of a chemical process as well as a physical process, such as ozone and chlorine or ionization and shock.
     Because of your spa's patented filtration design you have a major advantage with respect to filtration. You could use most any of the various sanitizer options available probably more effectively than most other brands of hot tubs on the market.
     Certainly, the ultimate decision as to which sanitizer system you choose is up to you and there is nothing wrong with experimenting with different sanitizer systems until you settle on the system that makes your family the happiest and is most comfortable for you to use.
     Once you settle on a system be it chemical only or a combination of ozone or ionization with chemical back-up, it is very important that you perform the water tests and add the products as the manufacturer recommends. Performing only a portion of the recommended steps frequently leads to less than satisfactory results.
     If you have purchased a spa from a dealer who told you that his brand was "Chemical Free" because it has an "ionizer" or that the chemical additive in his acrylic would allow you to use fewer chemicals than hot tubs without the additive and you are now having problems with you hot tub water, it would be best for you to bit the bullet get onto an EPA Registered hot tub and spa sanitizer system before someone gets sick using your hot tub.
     If you want to try another sanitizer system or upgrade to the 2002 technology bring us a water sample and we will go over your options with you. There is no point bathing in unhealthy water or damaging you hot tub finish with harsh chemicals when Sundance & Sweetwater Spas have so many great options available to you.