We get a lot of questions about cloudy water. People often wonder why this is happened to them and if it means there’s something wrong with their hot tub or swim spa. So our first message is don’t panic! It is very unlikely to be a mechanical problem with the hot tub itself and is very likely down to a contaminant in the water. This can include anything from organic debris, bacteria or lotions and makeup worn by bathers and will often be microscopic particles that are too small for your filter to pick up.

So you’ve noticed your water isn’t looking crystal clear? Follow these simple steps to help restore your water back to crystal clear:

  1. Ask yourself how old the hot tub water is. If your water is getting close to 3 months old then its definitely time to drain and refill. BISHTA recommends that you don’t exceed this timeframe and tubs which experience a lot of heavy use might need to be changed more frequently.
     
  2. If you’ve only recently had a water change then test your hot tub water and make sure that your levels are within the correct parameters as indicated by your test strips. You’re not just looking out for your sanitiser levels but your pH and total alkalinity levels are equally important because they allow your sanitiser to work effectively. Few people know that having your pH either too high or too low can cause cloudy water in its own right. Adjust your levels as necessary whilst the pumps are running and re-test your water a while later.
     
  3. Check your filter. Filters do most of the heavy lifting in your spa and will get clogged over time. Most will require regular cleaning so make sure these are rinsed off regularly and are deep cleaned periodically with a specialised solution such as Filter Kleen or Immerse sachets. Depending on which filter you have, these will need to be replaced on average every 8-12 months so if you can’t remember the last time you fitted a new filter then it might be time to change it over.
  4. If your chemical levels are where they should be then it’s time to ‘shock’ your spa water. A dedicated shock treatment such as Spa Fusion or Spa revive will oxidise non filterable waste and help restore water clarity. Check the packaging to see how much you should add to your size spa and again, add to water whilst your pumps are running.
  5. You can also combine this with a clarifier like Spa Sparkle which will collect up waste particles, allowing them to be picked up by the filter. It could take at least 12 hours to notice a difference and if your water is particularly cloudy then repeat treatments might be needed over several days.
  6. If you’re finding that your sanitiser levels keep disappearing and you’re experiencing cloudy water at the same time, then it means that there is something in the water which is eating up your sanitiser and causing cloudy water. At this point you can try adding in a higher dose than normal of either your chlorine or bromine granules whilst the pumps are running and combine this with step 5. This will show as a strong purple on your test strips but don’t worry - just let your levels fall down to 3-5 ppm before using your spa

These 6 steps should be all that's required to restore your water. On very rare occasions where the cloudiness doesn't improve or gets worse, you may need to accept that a water change is needed. If this is the case then make sure to repeat step 6 to kill off any bacteria that will linger in your pipework between water changes

If you’re struggling with water care then speak to us today and we’ll be happy to run through the 6 steps with you. Call the team on 01164 645 870 or send an email over to us. Happy hot-tubbing!