Jim,

I seem to have gotten my levels back in the normal ranges again - however the water seems to cloud somewhat over a 3 - 4 day period even if no one has used the spa - any ideas?
 
Also just for general knowledge info - I've been reading up on spa water chemistry and am curious to know why we don't test for chlorine levels.

One more for today! - Can I do an accurate calcium hardness test on the spa water after I use the ionizer and other chemicals - I tried and the test doesn't seem to reach an endpoint. I was reading somewhere that when evaporation occurs the calcium stays in the spa so that when you add fresh water you are always increasing the calcium levels - what do you think?

Answer:

( this is a small 180 gallon spa) If the levels are correct, and no one has used it, then organic are still in the water. In order to remove organic matter in suspension in the water, use a bit of chlorine along with the shock each time. If you read too much about water chemistry, you may get confused, because ionized water is different than regular pool water. For instance we don't test for chlorine, normally, because it is not the primary santizer, the ionizer is.

The concept is this:

We want to go into water without harsh chemicals, so we ionize. The ions kill all the harmful bacteria, fungus, virus, and algae, but it does not remove organic waste from the water. There isn't anything growing in the water, however, the water will get cloudy over time, if the organic matter in suspension is not oxidized (burned up and cleared from the water).

We bathe in the water with out harsh chemicals. After we leave, there is organic waste to be gotten rid of; sweat, mucus, and so on. We oxidize the water, not our skin. We put in the chemicals after we get out so we are not bathing in a bleach solution.

If the water shows signs of cloudiness, and all other factors are correct, then we have organic showing in the water. That is why we put in shock and chlorine after we get out.

Each person's conditions are different. Everyone's skin is different, so there is no standard amounts of products that work for every one. As you use the spa you will have to evaluate the conditions and adjust the amounts, increase or decrease.

If you test for chlorine, it would be to make sure the levels are not getting too high. If you are using the chlorine each time, from 1/2 to 1 teaspoon along with the shock, then the levels of chlorine may get too high. Then I would test to make sure it doesn't get above 1 PPM as a residual after a day or so from the time you added the chlorine.

The chlorine helps the shock to remove organic from the water. It is similar to washing your white clothes in a bleach solution, removing organic stains.

I recommend using a teaspoon after each exit along with a table spoon of shock. See it that keeps the water clear. Weekly still shock with one table spoon and 2 1/2 tablespoons of shock.

Test it too see if the chlorine isn't getting too high. If so, go to 1/2 teaspoon of chlorine and one tablespoon of shock. The chlorine will gas of by the next time you enter the spa, so you will not notice it in the water or smell it on your skin.

The calcium test is harder to use with copper in the water. I usually recommend testing the spa water for calcium before adding copper/silver ions. The test is still functional, but doesn't change color as abruptly, making it difficult to determine which drop to stop at. It usually works out to within one or two drops. Just look for a color change, not for the complete blue change when testing.

I hope that answers your questions.