Hot Tub Safety

Welcome to "Tub Talk with The Hot Tub Lady," the ultimate podcast for hot tub enthusiasts and owners who prioritize safety and maintenance. Join us as we dive into the world of hot tubs and explore essential topics to ensure a safe and enjoyable hot tub experience.

In each episode, The Hot Tub Lady will tackle common questions and concerns raised by hot tub owners. We'll cover a wide range of topics, including proper water chemical maintenance and the frequency at which they should be checked. Learn about the crucial parts of a hot tub that require regular maintenance, such as filters, heaters, pumps, jets, and control panels. Discover the best practices for troubleshooting common issues like heating problems and error messages.

Safety is our top priority, so we'll provide you with standard safety precautions to follow while using a hot tub. From supervising children and pets to maintaining optimal water temperature, we'll guide you through the necessary precautions to prevent accidents and ensure a secure hot tub environment. Additionally, we'll discuss the usage of cleaning products, highlighting what to avoid and which products are safe for maintaining a clean and healthy hot tub.

Mold or mildew in a hot tub can be a cause for concern, but fear not! The Hot Tub Lady will share expert advice on identifying, addressing, and preventing mold or mildew growth in your hot tub. We'll also delve into the recommended frequency of draining and refilling your hot tub to maintain optimal water quality.

Lastly, we'll touch on common electrical concerns and address whether children and pets can safely enjoy a hot tub. Understanding the unique safety considerations for your loved ones is crucial, and we'll provide you with insights and tips to ensure their well-being while enjoying the hot tub experience.

So, if you're a hot tub owner or simply curious about hot tub safety and maintenance, "Tub Talk with The Hot Tub Lady" is the podcast for you. Join us as we explore the fascinating world of hot tubs and empower you to create a safe and enjoyable oasis in your backyard. Don't miss out on valuable tips and advice from The Hot Tub Lady herself!

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Welcome to Tub Talk with The Hot Tub Lady Podcast! Join Jacque as she shares her expert tips and tricks for hot tub safety and maintenance. Ever wondered if it's safe for kids to use a hot tub? Or what are the typical electrical questions you should know about your hot tub? Tune in as Jacque answers all these questions, plus more, so you can get the most out of your hot tub experience! Get ready to learn everything there is to know about hot tubs - let's go!


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Transcript

0:27

Hey, hey, hot tubers. Welcome to the podcast Tub Talk with the hot tub lady. And I am your host, Jackie Johnson, the hot tub lady. And today we are going to get into hot tub, hot tub safety a little bit.. It's one of the things that people are concerned about, but it's not a, oh my gosh. Every day because hot tubs, for the most part are incredibly safe, and as long as you wire them correctly, you're really not gonna have any issues. And it's just a matter of taking care of your hot tubs. So all the maintenance and the things that come along, these are what we've got going on, and I'm just going to. Go through it. If you guys have any questions, be sure to jump in and, and ask along the way. We're going to, this is our new podcast time. This is when I'm gonna go live and then we'll have the podcast up. And, hey you guys, thank you so much for listening and watching last week. I had overwhelming numbers last week and that was really, really good and I really appreciate that. And you guys are the absolute best. So let's just jump into this and our very first question is, how often should hot tub owners check their water chemicals? So this is a question I get almost every single day, and especially new hot tub owners. They seem to think that they need to check 'em, check their hot tubs every single day, and I'd say maybe the first week or two until you get. Things lined up until you actually understand how to read the test strips. It is important that you, you do it. I'd say maybe your first two weeks every other day, or if you wanna go every day, don't try to be one of those people. This is, I see this all the time, don't be one of those people who is testing their water every 10 to 15 minutes. They'll be like, oh, I put in some pH decrease or, And why isn't it changing On the test strip you do need to give your chemicals 24 hours to work. That is super important that you do that. And when you give, give that chemical time to work it. You're doing your thing and you can overt test your hot tub because if you're testing it too often, you are actually going to make. You're gonna over chemicalized it and then that's gonna make the water not safe. So it's really important that we try to keep, you know, test your, test your water once a week, especially after you get comfortable with the hot tub. Once a week is plenty. I do have the eyecare in my hot tub, so I don't test mine very often, but I'd say on a saltwater hot tub, once you get it dialed in and things are going really well and you know that it's crystal clear the whole time. Even once a month is probably plenty because the lights will blink if, if the salt is off, but not until you have a complete and total understanding of what's going on with your hot tub. So it's really important that you keep your chemicals in the right spot. And again, just just because I say 'em all the time, you always wanna start with your alkalinity. Your alkalinity needs to be between 80 and one 20. That is the most important. That is the buffer for everything else. If you don't have your alkalinity in line, your pH and alkalinity and chlorine and bromine, all those are going to bounce. So, and your chlorine will not be as effective if you don't have your pH and alkalinity in line. pH needs to be at 7.6. That's that's the same. pH as your as a tear for your eyedrop. So that makes it really, really comfortable and it's a very neutral spot and it also keeps it, it's safe for the hot tub. It's safe for you. You're not gonna get any chemical burns. You're not gonna cause damage to your hot tub. So 7.6 is where you wanna be. That is also where chlorine is the most effective. So for example, if you get chlor your pH up to an eight point. Four, your chlorine is going to be as a third, as effective as it would be at 7.6. So it's really important that you, and it's a huge money saver for you to keep that pH at a 7.6. So kind of keep that in mind as well and, and do all that. But once. Once you get you're comfortable with your testing, your water, once a week is plenty. If you're on a salt system, you may maybe even get by once a month. No, you at least once a month test your water. You'll get to the point where you can tell by fill and smell if something's wrong with your hot tub, but that takes a couple years to get there and keeping your chlorine at a safe. Level is really important. I, I had somebody message me on Instagram yesterday. And again, guys, if you want, if you have any questions, Instagram is the best place to get ahold of me or check out the Facebook page. Clean your hot tub filter. That's where my T-shirt came, comes from today. Get me on there. There's tons of people there that will actually help answer your questions. But anyway, I did have somebody a ask me a question yesterday on, on what. The question, they switched from chlorine to bromine and then they kind of let the hot tub get away from him a little bit and their bromine level got away while they ended up with pseudonyms and pomas is what they call hot tub rash. I'm sure. Everybody's heard a hot tub rash and it's actually quite painful. And my oldest son, if he just looks at a hot tub that's not balanced correctly, he will break out in pseudonyms. And what it is, is it, it looks like. Chicken pox almost. It's just you break out in these little pimples and they they get kind of, they get like, they get infected and they get little pus pockets in them, and they're, it's, they're really uncomfortable and you can't, the only way to get rid of 'em is to weight 'em out. And Pseudonomas is, is a bacteria that grows in a hot tub. The, and it grows in swimming pools as well, but it is the simplest and easiest bacteria to kill. You only need a. Point oh one part per million of chlorine to kill pseudonyms. So if, if you have. Any chlorine in your hot tub at all, you're gonna kill pomas and then that's gonna make that water safe for you. Now the, you really wanna keep your chlorine level between a one and three part per million. If you're on spa frog or a silver system, then you only need to be a five part per million. But I hope that didn't confuse and I hope that helps out and all of the things. So those of you that are watching Sha, gimme a hey and let's. Let's see how things are going, and if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. Ask that question today. Our question number two on safety is what is the most important parts to maintain on a hot tub? This is a big deal because people don't. Don't realize that not only are you keeping your water clear, which a water clarity is part of hot tub safety, but it also is protecting the hot tub and keeping the hot tub breading longer. But of course, number one is clean your filter. That is your number one thing that you need to do on a hot tub. You need to clean your filter at least once a week. You can get by with once a month, but I'm gonna tell you once a week. So clean your filter once a week. One, it keeps, it helps, keeps the bacteria and keeps the water clean and it does all the things. Two, it also keeps the hot tub running smoothly. So it, you're able, you're not starving the pumps. You're getting heat to the water, to the heater so that it'll heat, it'll be able to circulate. It'll do all the things that need to happen. Those of you with inflatable hot tubs out there, this is really important as well, because the filters on those inflatable hot tubs. Really only are about a 10 square part or 10 square foot filter, whereas a filter on a regular hot tub. And I shouldn't say regular, but most other hot tubs is typically anywhere from 35 to 125 square foot for each filter. And if you have a 35 square foot filter, you typically have two or three of them. So most hot tubs have a hundred square foot filter, and those inflatable hot tubs only have about a 10 square foot filter. And Gallonage wise, you're actually pretty close to the same gallonage. Most of those inflatables are anywhere from 180 to three 10 gallons of. Of water in that hot tub, and you've got the same thing going on your. On your fiberglass hot tubs as well, so kind of keep that in mind as cleaning your filter. Number two, as far as safety of the hot tub, is keeping that water level high enough. If you have that water level too low and it's starving the pump, couple of things are happening. Again, a, you're not getting water circulated properly. If it's not circulated, it's not clean, it's not ready to go. If it's also not getting sanitized, if it's not getting sanitized, that's also allowing a place. For bacteria to, to, to grow and that type of thing. So kind of keep that in mind as well. One of the other really important things that you need to do is, you know, just check the, check the hot tub every once in a while if you're a one 10 hot tub. Double check those cords, make sure there's no phrase, make sure no animals have chewed on those cords, that type of thing. When hooking up, I've got more electrical questions around, but make sure that if you have a G F C I box that that's covered at all times. There's a lot of times over the years, especially in the winter, that the G F C I box cover how will have been opened up, and then they'll get moisture inside that cover. And once you get moisture in that cover, Inside the G F C I breaker, then those trip really easy. And once those trip, but then all the same things. You don't have, you don't have circulation, you don't have sanitation, and you're also running the risk of freezing the hot tub. So those are, those are all really important, but moving water is better and safer and cleaner than stagnant water. The best way for me to describe it is, let's say you're going on a hike and you're. You're hiking down a mountain and it's got a really beautiful, fresh, clean stream running down it, and that water's gushing and running, but the water is clear and you can see the bottom, you can see the rocks, you can see everything that's going on. Now, if you compare that to a stagnant swamp that is full of the water's not moving, and it's full of algae and it's full of weeds and animals and, and all of that, and it's cloudy and murky and it smells. Now if we take all the filtration and everything else out of there, the, the number one difference between those two bodies of water is that stream is moving. And so the, the algae doesn't have time to stick to something and start growing where the swamp is sitting still. And then it just, it's a perfect environment. For things to get going. Same thing's true with your hot tub or your swimming pool. If that water's not moving, you are not going to be able to keep it clear and it's not going to be safe and it, that's a really big deal. And I, especially on your swimming pools, hot tubs as well, I personally recommend that they should be running 24 hours a day, seven days a week if you have a filter system on your hot tub. That is not a circulation pump. I actually recommend that you do that. You, you run at a minimum of six hours a day. That's a really big deal. Again, that helps keep, keep all of that. And then you just wanna, you know, make sure that you change your water every three to four months. That's a big deal. Clean those filters, and that's all gonna help with the safety of keeping your hot tub nice and nice and clean and safe for everyone. Number three. How often should the filters be changed? Great question. This is one that I can't stress enough. Filters should be cleaned. I'm gonna tell you once a week, knowing you're gonna do it once a month. They should be replaced once a year, so that's a big deal. To replace those filters a minimum of once a year. Now, there are the Trix filters on the hot spring high life. Those are a ceramic filter. Those are actually a five year filter, but they're the only ones out there that are five year. I have talked over the years about having a rotation system, and I actually do this at home. I have three sets of filters. I have one filter in the hot tub, one set in the hot tub, ready to go. I have another set in the garage that's all cleaned, soaked, done all the things, that one's ready to go. And then I have a third set that is, I literally leave it soaking in the filter cleaning solution and I'll leave it in there for a month or so and then I just rotate. And for me, and especially in the the where I live, that helps so much for the winter in getting through the winter. So like October, November, I'll make sure that I have three sets that are ready to go, and then I just rotate through those three sets and then I can get through the extreme bitter cold before I have to worry about freezing those up again and doing what I. You know, the things that happen cuz it not a good filter is going to equal a frozen hot tub. And that is just something to, to keep in mind. But we definitely want to make sure that we are replacing those filters once a year. Now, in a situation like that, where I have three sets, I also, that means those filters are only getting used a third of the time, so I need to buy a new set every three years and, and I'll mark 'em. I actually will put the date on which they were purchased on 'em, and I have five filters in my hot tub. And then I, so I put, put the year, and then I also put what number, and then I just rotate those through the hot tub as well. So, A, a filter in your hot tub and now this doesn't count those inflatables, but a filter in in your fiberglass hot tubs. Those are gonna last about a year. Inflatable hot tub. You need to just be replacing those once a month. 10 square feet is going to definitely need more than that. So let us move on to number four. How do I troubleshoot common hot tub issues such as hot tub, not heating and air messages. So this is all part of the safety as well. Again, if I haven't made it clear, you definitely want to make sure your water is moving and heating. So, you know, typically the number one error message that we get is. There's going, there's no circulation. Filters are dirty. They, I've, I've kind of nailed that down for, for today's episode, but that's, that's typically number one. Number two is, you know, usually it's a bad pressure switch or that again, the pump is starving. In a situation like that, most of the time you're going to need a service call to do that, but your number one is going to be a dirty filter. Number two is a, a. Pressure switch. I've actually seen a lot of not enough water in the hot tub. And if you. Take and clean out your hot tub every three to four months like you should, and you wanna take the, the panel off of the front of your cover. It's always a good idea just to take a look at your pumps and make sure that there's nothing leaking. The first thing before a pump leaks on a hot tub, the pump seal is going to go bad. And for that pump seal to go bad, you're typically gonna see just a little tiny bit of water dripping between. The suction side of the pump and the pump itself, and that's where those two pieces actually screw together and that pump seal in there sometimes will wear out and it's just a fact of life. It's gonna wear out, but it'll actually have just a little drip of water in between those two pumps. If you catch a pump seal before, It goes bad. It's a, it's a really in relatively inexpensive repair. You can usually get that done for under a hundred dollars. However, if that pump seal goes bad most of the time and any water gets into the, the pump itself, that moisture is going to seize up the pump, and then you're gonna have to replace the whole pump. And then you could be talking, you know, anywhere from 500 to $1,500 to replace that. So kind of keep that mind. It's a good idea when you, when you take that cover off and, and you don't need to get in there and, and mess with a lot of stuff. And I'm not one, I don't like to take the covers off, so I kind of leave that for the service techs and there's nothing wrong with that as well. But you also can tell by sound if your pump seals are going bad, if the, if the pumps start getting louder, a lot of times that means the pump seal's going bad. And if you let that go, literally, if you, if you all of a sudden notice that it's getting louder, you need to call someone right away. You can't wait six months for that to fix that. That's a situation. And that could be something also as simple as the. The pump has wiggled off of the feet and sometimes that'll just make it a little louder or something is, is just has fallen up against the pump and that'll make it kind of louder. Or if something gets sucked down in the pump, sometimes that'll make it a louder as well. But if, if your hot tub sounds louder, then it normally is than it's typically time for a service call. So just kind of keep that in mind as well. So that is a few of the things that you can, you can check filters, water level, look at your pumps. If you do have to call in for a service call, and especially if you think you have a leak, one of the first things that you're going to do is y you're gonna walk around the hot tub and you're gonna try to find out where that leak actually is coming from. And hopefully it's coming from the equipment compartment, cuz if it's coming from the back of that type of thing, sometimes that can turn into a pretty expensive repair. Not always, but sometimes. And sometimes it's just the way that your concrete is laid out. The water is going to run wherever it is the lowest point. So if the back of the hot tub is where the water is lowest, that's where the the leak is going to run to. But if, if you have water outside your hot tub, you're gonna call and you're gonna say, Hey, this is, this is where I see the leak. And you always wanna make sure that the leak is, is a leak and it's just not water running off of the cover and it's, or rainwater that got stuck underneath the hot tub. But those are, those are things, things to definitely check out. So, and then got a quiet crowd today. Number five, what are the. Some of the common safety precautions. What are some of the common safety precautions for a hot tub? I would say probably the biggest one, that people is not getting their hot tub wired correctly. This isn't something you wanna mess around with. You're doing hot tub. Water and electricity. I do recommend it get get done by a professional and you do need to have what they call A G F C I box or A G F C I. That's a ground fault disconnect, and what that does is that's gonna trip the breaker if there's water. Affecting things or if, if the wi, if the wires get too hot or anytime, anything like that, it's really important that you have that. And code for the most part is that box has to be five feet away from the water. And so the best way for me to describe it or what people need to think about and a lot of people, especially with the the one 10 hot tubs as well, you don't need to be, want to be able to stand in the hot tub. And be able to reach over and touch that breaker or plug in or unplug that hot tub. The water needs to be. A minimum of five feet away. But the, the whole goal is, is you don't wanna be able to touch that electricity while you're in the water. That's, that's so, so, so important. And if you have any overhead lines, tr you don't wanna have the hot tub right below those overhead lines. Either. Swimming pulls a whole nother thing and there's way, way more codes to go with that. Cause it's a much bigger body of water. But with a hot tub, that's, that's a really important thing. Again, just checking those wires every once in a while. Like at my house this. This year we've got baby rabbits, and I don't like baby rabbits. They're so cute, but they do so much damage. But you kind of have to have to check your wires every once in a while and make sure that no rodents have, have chewed through any of that, and you do not ever wanna mess with electricity and water at the same time. Another thing, like I, I promote the. The electrical, the heater pumps, you know, the, the bucket heater for the winter. And a lot of people lately are like, oh, that's a great way to heat my hot tub. It is not a great way to heat your hot tub. You do not wanna be in the hot tub with that bucket heater at any time. That is just to protect your hot tub in case your heater goes out and keep it. From freezing that is not designed for you to be in it while you're, while you're heating the hot, heating, the hot tub. So never put anything electric. Electric in the hot tub. I mean, these are pretty common things. You know, other, other common things is don't let little kids in the hot tub by themselves. You know, you always wanna have an adult. So supervision, that type of thing. Covers make sure you open your cover completely when you're in your hot tub. That is probably one of the things that people. Abuse the most is they only ha open half the cover and only use half the half the hot tub, which I get. But especially if you got little kids, never ever, ever let a little kid in a hot tub with half the cover on, you need to have that cover completely off and use the whole hot tub. You bought the whole hot tub, you didn't buy half a hot tub. So do what you need to do to to to make that happen. But that's important and you know, You don't have to worry about things like suction fittings anymore. They've, you'd have to be in a really, really old hot tub. I I there, I doubt there's any way that any hot tub with the suction fittings where it would suck, suck you down hold you down under. I don't think there's anything out there that would still be an operation that would do that. I think they fixed that quite a few years ago, and even if there was one still in operation, I, I just, I don't believe that it could still be running, but. You know, there, there are things like I know my youngest son, when he gets in the hot tub, he likes to put his foot on the suction fitting cuz he thinks it feels good and that causes the hot tub to purge. It's, it's not really a safety issue, but it's just one of those things to think about. But you know, 40 years ago, if you could go under, your hair could get stuck down in there and, and that type of thing. That's no longer an issue, but, you know, kind of, kind of always be aware of your surroundings and that type of thing. And if, if the kids are in a hot tub, make sure you're, you're out there with them and you're watching them. Just, you know, just common sense type stuff there. Do, do, do, let's see. Did we do that one? Yep. We just did that one. Number six. Should hot tub owners avoid using certain hot tub cleaning or certain cleaning products? Yes, a hundred percent. They're you should only be using hot tub related cleaning products. You don't want to be using anything in your hot tub that is not marked for hot tub use. You don't wanna use 4 0 9, you don't want to use pinesol. You don't wanna use any of those chemicals that you would use for regular cleaning in. Like if you get scale buildup, you don't wanna use any of this, the, any of those things, those are all really hard on the hot tub, and they can cause foam and they can really irritate your skin down the road. Those are things that you shouldn't be doing if you wanna use something natural vinegar seems to work okay. I'm not a fan of it and I probably should try to try it again, but years ago I, I did vinegar to clean out a hot tub. And that hot tub smelled for, smelled like vinegar for the rest of its life. It, there was vinegar in the lines and, and I just could never get the smell of vinegar out of it. And when I would sit in it, you know, you, when you sit in a hot tub, your pores open up and then I would smell like vinegar. So I'm just personally not a fan of vinegar, but that's, that's just me personally. But yes, don't use anything on your hot tub that is not marked for a hot tub. That would, vinegar would be the only one that I'd recommend. Don't get a comet out. Don't do any of that. You're, you're gonna scratch your surfaces and you're going to do things. Don't use soap in your hot tub. Ever, ever, ever, ever use soap. If you use soap in your hot tub, you're gonna be dealing with bubbles for years. It's cuz it gets in the lines and it does all the things. And people are constantly saying, oh, I just, I cleaned the filters with soap, or I did this with soap. You're gonna be fighting it for a really long time. That's, it's one of the things that you, you don't wanna be doing. I ha I do use Windex on my hot tub. If I'm cleaning it and I, I forgot to buy some, some off the wall, honestly is one of the best from Bio Guard. That is one of the chemicals that you should be using. I'm big fan of natural chemistry. They have a natural product that is really good for hot tubs and it's actually really good for patio furniture too. But it's all natural products. That is one of my favorites. But just make sure it says it's for a hot tub. There's so many people that are like, oh, what? It's the same thing. It's not the same thing. And the things that you need to think about, like I said, is, you know, when you're in that water, you're, you're sitting in 104 degree water and you are you. Opening up your pores and your breathing in that, that steam. And if you're using a harsh chemical that's now getting into your system and that's just not something that, that you want to happen. So kind of keep that in mind as well. So, and then, you know, as long as we're talking about safety, I don't think I really touched on this too much. Kind of keep an eye on your heat. On, on what level? You're gonna get the most benefit out of 104 degree hot tub. And I have so many customers and they'll say, why? You know, what's the hottest this hot tub will go? And UL has come in, in, in the last 10 years. You 104 degrees is the highest temperature that any hot tub will go there. There's some ways around a few of'em, but 104 is plenty hot enough. And the difference between 104 degree hot tub and 102 degree hot tub is unbelievable. I like mine at a hundred, 102. I know for a fact that I get more benefits out of 104 degree water, but I run little higher blood pressure and I can't stay in 104 degree hot tub for very long. It's it, my body tells me that I need to get out. And it's important that you listen to your body. If you start getting flush or overheated, get out of the hot tub. But personally, I think anything over 104 is ridiculous. Again, I keep mine at a hundred, 102 even in the craziest cold of the winter. But, but keep that in mind and just, you know, if you're in a hundred, four, 20 minutes is plenty long enough. So if you're a little lower than that, you can stay longer. But don't overheat yourself in the hot tub. Listen to your body. It's, it's, it's very important that you do that. Number eight is how often should a hot tub be drained and refilled? This is a big one. I, when I first moved to Sioux Falls there was a ton of customers who had had their hot tub for years and had never drained it, and didn't ever think it was a big deal. They're like, oh, it's been great. Why would I have to worry about joining it? You need to drain your hot tubs. It's super important and so on your chlorine and, and your bromine hot tubs, you wanna drain those every three to four months. And the biggest reason for that is every time you add chemical to your hot tub and every time you use your hot tub, There's, you're adding total dissolved solids to that water, and as you're adding that to the water, it's making your sanitizers less effective. So if you think you've got, you know, let's say you got a box of water and it's full of total dissolved solids, and you add chlorine into it. It can't move around because there's, there's no place for it to go. So if you drain it, refill it, and it doesn't have any total dissolved solids, you put that chlorine in and now it's got the whole hot tub to bounce around and do what it needs to do to attack the bad stuff in the hot tub. So it's really important that you do that if your total dissolved solids get too high. It's a, you're building up scale in your hot tub. B, your, your sanitizers can't work and it's just uncomfortable. There is nothing better than brand new water in a hot tub. I, I absolutely love it and I need to do mine so, so badly. And I should have done it yesterday, but I didn't. We had the great memorial holiday, but I I took it pretty easy yesterday so that that didn't happen. But it's important you do that now on a chlorine hot tub. And this is one of the things that. Makes, or I'm sorry, on a saltwater hot tub, this is one of the things that makes saltwater great is you're not adding that many chemicals to a saltwater hot tub. You're putting the salt in it in the beginning, and then that saltwater system is constantly, Splitting that molecule and making, separating the salt from the, from the water in, its making chlorine over and over and over again without adding any extra total dissolved solids. And that's why you can go so much longer on a saltwater hot tub. That's why you can go up to a year before you have to change your water on a saltwater hot tub. For me, I actually do mine twice a year cause my hot tub is used a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot. But for a lot of people, you know, once a year is, is plenty. So kind of keep that in mind. But that is a safety reason. That's not just a, oh I'm, I was always told I had to do this, so I have to do it. There are reasons for it and that is, that is why you need to do that. Oh, this is one a good one. Can hot tub covers be repaired or should they be replaced? So your hot tub cover. Usually once it's been damaged, so let's say something fell on it and you got a hole in it or something like that, it's just a matter of time. You can, you can maybe patch it and you might get six months out of it, but once, once you've got a hole in your hot tub cover. I would just plan on ordering 'em right now because they usually take six weeks or so to ha to get their, not most dealers or most places don't have them in stock for you to just go in and pick one up. So you, it's something that you have to plan ahead on. But the second that you get a puncture or a hole in that cover, what happens is, is you got the hot tub and then you've got the cover, and you've got that six inches of space between the water and the cover. And the whole idea of a cover is to keep that water in. Into the hot tub and keep debris out. And if you've got a hole hole in that cover on either side, either the top or the bottom, the bottom is worse. That steam is constantly going up and it's hitting that styrofoam. And it starts, starts filling up the, the voids in those styrofoam and it gets water locked. And once it gets water waterlogged, it is no longer effective. It's not keeping your water warm. It's not. It, it, it's not insulating. It might be keeping debris out, but then it becomes too heavy to use and then you quit using your hot tub. And again, that's a really big expense for you not to use. Now if the holes on the top side, it kind of is the same thing, but you got it, it slows it down a little bit. You've got rain and, and that type of stuff, but you have now damaged the structure and it is going to be, it's going to have to be replaced. I've had situations where dogs and. Whatever have chewed on the corners and that type of thing, and people have tried to, there really is no, I do not know of a good way to repair a hot tub cover. You can, however, you can patch 'em and string it out for a little bit, but again, the most you're gonna get is maybe six months out of it. So, so once you have damage on your hot tub cover, you want to, to know that you're gonna have to replace that. Now it's important to do good maintenance on your cover, to keep it from cracking and peeling and doing all those things. So, excuse me, just a sec. Oh. Sorry about that. Ha. My allergies are definitely kicking up, but you do need to, you do need to do good maintenance on your hot tub cover. You do need to do good maintenance on your hot tub cover, and that's gonna include things like 3 0 3 protectant, one of the best. It's a, it's a boat. Vinyl protectant, it works really well. If you can't use that, you can use arm roll. It's not my favorite, but you can use it again, natural chemistry's got some really good cover products. Almost all the chemical lines have some really good cover products, but you do wanna condition that hot tub cover every of, every once in a while, so that way the sun damage won't crack and do its thing. I have a lot of people over the years, they'll be like, oh, what? You know, I've had my hot tub. It's been seven years, but it's been inside the whole time, so that it's. The cover's in perfect shape. It's, it gets waterlogged just like all the rest of them, whether it's inside, outside, those are, those are things that just happen to hot tub covers. Consider hot tub covers like tires for your car. It is something that just has to be replaced, so that is one of the things that, that does happen there. But you can try to replace it. But I, I have yet to find a way to repair a cover com completely. Let's see, number 10, what are some common colle electrical concerns? Again, I kind of talked about all this, but it's getting moisture into that plugin or that breaker box. You do not wanna get moisture into that, and if you do, the, the hot tub's gonna break and, and, You're gonna have to replace that breaker. Now, breakers do go bad sometimes. That is something that, especially during covid, there was some we had some issues with, with breakers themselves. A, getting a hold of a breaker was, was really, really hard to do. And b, if you had one, you didn't know if it was, was a good one or not. They've worked, worked all the way through that now, so that's not an issue anymore. But the, if the breakers would get moisture in them or if they. Were poorly made, they were tripping. And if they're tripping you, you shouldn't be in your hot tub. But again, it's, it's all, it all goes back to keeping that water clean, circulating, doing all the things that, that need to happen there. So quite a few you watching today. Let's if anybody has any questions, I've only got about two more of my own left here, so now is a good time to ask and then. Number 11, can children safely use a hot tub? Now, I am not a doctor. I'm not a physician, I'm not a pediatrician. So use this, take this information however you want. Yes, children can use a hot tub. Do you need to turn it down? You do. You, you know, when my kids were little, I probably kept my hot tub at 90, maybe a hundred. But I can also tell you that my kids have been in a hot tub. They're now 30 and 20. 4 22. They've both been in a hot tub since they were six weeks old. My grandson, who is now 16 months, has also been in a hot tub since he was six weeks old Again, I've always been in there with them. They sometimes, as they get a little bit older, they wanna use it as a swimming pool. That's fine. They like to splash and do their thing. But everything that's good for you in a hot tub, everything that makes you sleep better, makes you feel better, makes you recover quicker. Makes, gives you peace of mind, helps with the conversations. All of that that is good for you, is good for the kids as well. Now you do want, like I said, you wanna turn it down just a little bit. You don't want, you definitely don't wanna want your children in 104 degree hot tub. But. 101 or lower. You, you do really well. The kids do really well then will go to sleep like that. There is nothing better than putting your kids in the hot tub an hour before bedtime and they just go right down. It's, it's absolutely awesome because it relaxes them and it helps them as well. But you definitely pay attention to 'em if, if they're getting flush or they're getting red or. They're sweating, pull 'em out. They, they don't, you definitely don't wanna be in there, and I wouldn't say you kids should be in a hot tub longer than 15, 20 minutes. That's in probably closer to the 10 minute cycle, and that's enough for 'em. But that's, yes, they can be in there If you are, have any concerns whatsoever. If your child has any issues whatsoever, ask your doctor. I am not a, I'm, again, I'm not, not a physician, but, Yes, I, I do encourage children to be in a hot tub, so that's, they're good. It's good for 'em, just like, just like everything else that's out there. So let's look at number 12. What are the safety considerations for pets when using a hot tub? Don't let 'em in your hot tub, please. It's one of those things that They wanna be in there, they wanna be in there really bad. But especially dogs and in situations like that, they, dogs are really dirty. And e you, even if you give 'em a bath all the time they're really dirty and they bring in a lot of, of stuff in their hot tub. So on the swimming pool side, people who, people, there's a lot of people love to let their, their hot tubs. Or they're dog swimming, they're swimming pools. But a medium sized dog is the equivalent of 10 people swimming in your pool. So a medium or small dog in your hot tub is gonna be the equivalent of 30 or 40 people in your pool, and it's just not, it's, it's really hard for you, hard on 'em and, and. It's hard on the hot tub. It's hard on the pets. It's, it's just not a good thing for him. The when, when I was younger, we had a, we had a chocolate lab and just loved him to death, but he would love to play fetch while we were in the hot tub. And he'd bring us a ball and he would go and throw it and oh my gosh, we would have to change, change the water every month. And he'd scratched up the hot tub and, and all the things, he chewed up the cover, ate the siding. I mean, he was the best dog ever, but oh my gosh, he cost me so much money. But, so kind of keep that in mind. Keep keep your, especially younger pups away from, from the hot tub. Again, you don't wanna. On chewing on the electrical cords and that type of thing you don't want 'em in the hot tub. I, I see lots of tons cute pictures of people's dogs who dogs are part of the family and I get it and they love it. But Edward dogs are sitting on the side. That's fine. Just try to, try to not let 'em get in the water. And a lot of times once you put them in the water, they think it's their hot tub, and then you have to fight with that the rest of the time. So that at least that's been my experience with, with hot tubs and dogs and and cats. Obviously you start gonna like it, so excuse me just a second. So sorry about that. But anyway, yet pets and hot tubs just don't belong together. So ki kind of keep that in mind. Your older pets are usually the, they're pretty content just sitting beside you and just knowing that they're in the same, same area as you. But that's one of the things to keep in mind. Anybody have any questions about hot tub safety or anything that I missed or sounds important that they would like to know? I'd be more than happy to answer that. In the meantime, make sure that you join our private Facebook group. Clean your Hot Tub Filters. Whoops, that's not it. Link in the description for my book, if you guys wanna check that out. Of clarity award-winning. So I've actually won three or four awards on that. And then of course, the log books as well. So the links and the descriptions on that. And then we also have The Facebook group that's really growing and we have a ton of people in there that we would love to have you come join us. It's free. We, we answer all kinds of hot tub questions. We have a ton of people, a lot of experts in that group that if, if I'm not online or something, that somebody else will be there. Kayla is really good. Jim helps a lot. I've got Just a ton. Rob Rob's in there. He always answers a lot of questions and he's in the industry as well. So but we have a ton of experts that are in there and we'd love to have you. I think we're well over 500 pushing 600 members over there. And then of course, if you guys could listen to the podcast, make sure that you give me a review over there, that would be great. I would really appreciate that. And. You know, guys, life is, life is good, life is hot. Tubs are awesome, and I will be back again next Tuesday. I've got a couple guests lined up. We're gonna have, I know Jim Walls wants to come on with the ideal water care. I've got the bio guard lady ladies coming on. We've got the filter people from. From the filter company and just, I've got a quite a, quite a line of people that while I was gone that really wanted to, to get going on this. So this is something, something new that we're going to be having some guests here pretty soon. And you guys are the absolute best and I look forward to seeing you next week.