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Dear Spa
Guy:
I keep getting
disgusting white foam on the top of my hot tub spa water. After I
refill the tub, the water is great for about 4 weeks, then the foam
starts. Gradually after a few more weeks, it gets so high that I
cannot see my husband any more through the foam. What causes this
and how can I get rid of it ? – Foamy in West Hampton, NY
Dear Foamy,
Hot tub spa
water foam is caused when the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) level in
the water build up and are brought to the water surface by either
the use of the air bubbler (blower) or the air being injected
through your jets. The dissolved solids in the water sort of “stick”
to the air bubbles coming up through the water and are brought to
the surface. You see this as “foam”. The foam is actually the
dissolved solids clinging to the air bubbles as they escape upwards
into the air. The foam is the “stuff” that was previously dissolved
in the water.
TDS levels can
build up in the water from many things. When you get in a hot tub, a
lot of unpleasant stuff comes off of you. Perspiration, dead
skin cells, underarm deodorant, soap residue and dirt from bathing
suits, skin lotions and creams, hair spray, etc.
Some of this
microscopic stuff is caught by your filter, but a lot of it simply
dissolves in the water. Also, every time you add any type of
chemical to the water, you are introducing additional solids into
the same body of water.
Depending on
how much of these items are put into the water, and how fast (days,
weeks, or months), this will determine the point at which your water
becomes saturated. Once that starts to happen, the first thing you
will see is the foam. Soon thereafter, the water will permanently
cloud – as it reaches its true saturation point of TDS’s.
Once that
happens, no amount of filtering or additional chemicals will clear
the water and you will have to change it.
Hot Tub Spa Water Defoamer will help combat foam for a
while, but your best bet is to be as clean as possible before going
into the tub. That way you should be able to get about 8 weeks
between water changes.
Hot Tub Spa Water Defoamer – Learn More
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