One of the best feelings in the world is delivery day for your new hot tub! Your shiny spa has just arrived and is perfectly in position. But wait! Before you can relish your first soak, follow these five simple steps to prepare your new hot tub for enjoyment.

1) Fill the Spa

The first step is the most obvious – water! Grab your garden hose, remove the hot tub filter, and drop the nozzle inside the filter compartment. If your spa model has two filters, you only need to remove one. Fill until the water is parallel with the neck jets.

Why not place the garden hose directly into the spa well? It puts you at risk for airlock, which is when trapped air pockets prevent your jets from functioning. When water goes straight into the plumbing, however, it pushes out air.

Plan for around an hour to fill your tub. Garden hoses have an average flow rate of 6-8 gallons per minute (gpm) depending on their length and diameter. So if you have a 270-gallon hot tub and your hose is 7 gpm, it will take approximately 40 minutes to fill completely.

2) Have an Electrician on Standby

Once your tub is filled, then it can be connected to electricity. This is where you need a licensed electrician with hot tub experience. While there are a few spa models that plug in, most need to be wired and appropriately connected to your breaker.

Waiting to power your tub until it’s full also prevents a huge no-no – running a spa without water. Remember that the pumps and heater are engineered to work when there’s circulating water. Turning them on without water could fry these electrical components.

3) Add Metal and Scale Control

We provide Brilliance Metal and Scale Control with your startup chemicals. It’s great for protecting your hot tub against stains. As a bonus, it uses a soy protein that makes your water feel silky.

Add 0.5 ounces for every 150 gallons. Jets should be running to help with circulation, though you can pour the liquid formula directly into the center of your tub water. Then wait a minimum of 30 minutes. Ideally, we recommend north of 60 minutes – give your chemicals time to fully do their job and stabilize!

4) Add Sanitizer

Now it’s time to add sanitizer. We recommend the FROG @ease In-Line System. It features two cartridges: mineral on top and chlorine on bottom. Set them to four on startup and set a timer for 15 minutes.

Next add your shock. This can be the FROG Jump Start, which is a single-use packet, or chlorine granules (follow the manufacturer’s directions for measurements). Both products will help establish a base chlorine level.

5) Set to Heat

Fair warning – this part may be the most tantalizing! Remember you just filled your hot tub with tap water. Depending on the time of year, it could be pleasantly cool to downright icy! All those hundreds of gallons of water need time to become steamy.

Expect 12 hours or more for your water to reach around 100 degrees. For our Marquis and HotSpring brands, we see an average heat rise of several degrees per hour. For example, if your tap water is 50 degrees, that could take around 16 hours to double to 100 degrees. Factors like your number of gallons and the heater output to even the ambient air temperature can make a difference. Use your hot tub cover while the water is warming up to trap heat inside.

From here, there’s nothing left to do but sink into your new tub and enjoy your first soak. We recommend commemorating this special occasion with a good drink, fun snacks, and your favorite tunes. It’s time to celebrate!

New to owning a hot tub? These beginner posts will help you feel like a spa pro in no time:

• What Is The Perfect Hot Tub Temperature?
• 5 Ways To Create Hot Tub Privacy
• 8 Steps To Winterize Your Hot Tub

Your hot tub cover is one hard worker! This single feature is responsible for keeping your water pristine and trapping in all that delightful heat. Regular cleaning is an important way to extend the life of your cover. That’s why we’re dispelling four don’ts for maintaining your hot tub cover so you can preserve its longevity.

1) Skip regular cleaning

We know – cleaning your hot tub cover is just one more chore on a long to-do list. But in all reality, it’s super simple. Monthly cleanings not only remove grime, they stay ahead of mildew and mold too.

For everyday care, all you need is a standard push broom to brush off material like leaves and sticks. You can even use a garden hose if there’s any soil that’s caked on – just don’t use something as strong as a pressure washer!

For a deep clean, first remove the cover and place on a level, non-abrasive surface. This allows you to access both sides without scratching or tearing the vinyl. It also ensures that any dirt and debris that washes off doesn’t drip into your clean spa water.

2) Use the wrong cleaning products

We’ve seen horror stories of spa owners using harsh chemicals like straight bleach, rubbing alcohol, or laundry detergent. Because these products aren’t formulated for vinyl, they can actually damage your cover. Only use a designated spa cover cleaner.

We recommend Brilliance Cover Cleaner, which easily tackles dirt and dust. All you do is apply, lightly scrub, and wipe off – no rinsing needed. Alternatively, you can skip products all together and simply use water and a microfiber towel.

3) Put the cover on right after chemicals

Whenever you balance your water, some of the chemicals start releasing vapors. While these are harmless to human health, they’re not the best for the underside of your hot tub cover. For proper maintenance of your hot tub cover, it’s best to keep your cover open 30-60 minutes after adding chemicals; closer to an hour after shocking. This allows those concentrated vapors to dissipate into the air rather than accumulate on the vinyl. 

4) Let water, snow, or ice accumulate

Let’s face it – moisture is heavy! It’s why home roofs in the Midwest are slanted so everything slides right off. But your spa cover may need an assist after a heavy rain or snowstorm. Even water dripping can freeze as it pools on top of your cover. A good rule of thumb is if you need to scrape or brush off your car, take an extra minute to remove snow from your hot tub cover too.

Is your hot tub cover possibly on the fritz? Here are five clues that it’s time to upgrade your spa cover. If so, visit our showroom so our staff can help you select a new cover!

Have you ever thanked your hot tub cover for all the hard work it does? A spa cover doesn’t have the same appeal as massage jets or mood lighting, yet it’s just as essential. It has the important job of protecting your acrylic shell from UV damage, trapping in heat, and preventing moisture from escaping. Your hot tub cover will work hard for around 6-8 years before it needs to be replaced. It’s unlikely to have a dramatic failure, but here are five signs that it’s time to replace your hot tub cover.

1) Sagging

This issue is the most obvious – your cover literally won’t fit anymore. Called “cupping,” the cover can warp to the point where it no longer seals. This will be especially noticeable at the corners and along the middle seam– like a plastic container lid that just won’t snap in place. Without a proper fit, heat and water evaporation will be free to escape.

Sagging occurs when the vinyl fabric becomes stretched. This commonly happens when snowfall, ice, debris, or rainwater is allowed to pool in the center. All that excess weight distorts the fabric. Another clue is if your stitching is starting to come loose.

2) Deterioration

Your cover vinyl has a big task withstanding all four seasons of Iowa weather. Over time, the fluctuations of extreme heat and cold, rain and snow, and even harsh sunlight will degrade the cover. This can cause the vinyl to become cracked, ripped, punctured, or discolored. It’s the same issue you see in cars with vinyl seats.

This wear-and-tear not only looks unattractive, but it’s a sign that deterioration has started. Any weak points in the vinyl will likely turn into a rip – penetrations that make your hot tub consume more energy just to stay nice and toasty.

3) Waterlogged

Holes and cracks are also an indication that your inner insulation is getting waterlogged. If your cover is getting heavier and heavier to move, it’s not because you need to hit the gym! Instead, you have an insulation issue.

This inner material is made from foam. It’s wrapped in a plastic liner that acts as a vapor barrier. It works like the lid on a pot, collecting condensation so it falls back into the hot tub.  But when that protection fails, the foam starts absorbing water. Imagine if the insulation in your home walls was always soaked with water – it wouldn’t have the ability to retain heat.

4) Smelly

Odor is another sign your cover insulation has been compromised. All that trapped moisture can start harboring mold and bacteria. That’s the last thing you want hovering over your hot tub water. Unfortunately, there’s not an effective way to get airflow into this dense material to dry it out or spray cleaner to kill germs.

5) Broken Parts

Even though a hot tub cover is simple to operate, it still has a number of parts that can malfunction over time. Everything from the hinges, handles, and snaps to tie-down straps and safety locks can all break. Sometimes it happens from a high gust of wind or a bad storm. Occasionally parts fail because of user abuse or error (we know, accidents happen …). Some of these individual components can be replaced, but if a number of them are broken, it’s easier to get a new cover.

Is your entire hot tub ready for a replacement? Check out our four clues that it’s time for a spa upgrade. Then visit our showroom to see our two hot tubs brands: Marquis and Hot Spring.