
The popular emergence of the swim spa as a βtweener β a vessel between a pool and a spa in both size and temperature β has evoked a question. How do you sanitize it? Do you use pool chemicals on a smaller scale, or spa chemicals on a larger scale?
That depends on who you talk to; there are two completely different schools of thought. According to Jennifer Gannon, proprietor of BonaVista Pools, Spas and Outdoor Livingβs retail store in Toronto, the swim spa is a small pool. βThe products we supply are from our pool collection and typically treat a volume of 2,500 gallons (10,000 litres). I remind our clients to keep sanitation high and clean the cartridge filter often, with a shock treatment to recover after heavy use or weekly as a preventative measure.β
As is true of both pools and spas, dealers report that clients are often interested in reducing sanitizer levels instead of keeping them high. Gannon explains, βWe are now introducing an ozone and UV system called HydroClear Pure Water, which should reduce the amount of sanitizer required.β
Black Pine Hot Tubs in Edmond, Wash., offering TidalFit Exercise Pools, is another dealership that views a swim spa as a small pool. βWe follow a traditional chlorine-based approach and offer the Leisure Time product line,β says general manager Sarah Agen. βWe recommend granular chlorine, sodium dichlor, with the amount you use based on the volume of water, which is larger than a traditional spa. Itβs half an ounce for 500-gallon spa, so you increase the amount for the larger body of water.β
LIKE A HOT TUB
Conversely, swim spas can also be considered a giant species of hot tub for an equally compelling set of reasons: the temperature is elevated compared to swimming pools, they are a fraction the size of an average pool (meaning bather load calculations are more hot-tub like than a pool), theyβre covered and have therapy jets along with swim jets.
βItβs more hot tub,β says Dan Boelhauf, sales manager for Aspen Spas, both a spa manufacturer and retailer. βA swim spa has a baseline temperature that runs on the warmer side and itβs covered, so I think you approach it like a really big hot tub.β
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Aspen Spas recommends the Pristine Blue product line to most of its customers, which is based on copper compounds and sodium dichlor. Boelhauf says it works for a large number of the companyβs customers, largely because itβs gentle on bathers and spa surfaces.
However, heβs quick to point out that when it comes to water treatment for swim spas, as well as hot tubs and pools, the treatment needs to fit the client and the way the vessel is used.
βWeβre all chefs here and we all know the basic recipe,β he says. βItβs a matter of adjusting it to best fit the situation. We know that every customer is different, every swim spa is going to be used somewhat differently, so we need to be able to respond to the customer needs, which goes beyond whether or not itβs quote-unquote βa swim spa.ββ
Boelhauf reports that βprobably more than halfβ of the companyβs clients are not particularly interested in using their swim spas for exercise.
βThey might live in an urban area with a small property, or they donβt want to spend 50 grand on a pool,β he says. βThose customers are more interested in luxury and relaxation and are very likely to have more people using the spa than someone using it for exercise. Obviously a high-use spa is going to need to be treated differently than one where thereβs just one or two people using it for whatever reason. We tailor the treatment to the customerβs needs. So on the one hand, we do have a recipe, on the other we need to be flexible in the recommendations we make.β
He also adds that while customers are concerned with water quality, many are not always prone to following directions to a T. βWe know that many people will not pay as much attention as weβd like to see,β he says. βSo we do try to set up most people with a product base that is forgiving. It comes in all shapes and sizes, so itβs tough to prescribe specifically how swim spas as a category should be treated.β
DEVICES ARE NICE
As Gannon mentioned above, in-line sanitizing systems like ozone and UV are options preferred by many clients looking to reduce chemical residuals, especially chlorine or bromine. According to Jarrett Dahlberg, general manager for Phoenix Hot Tubs & Swim Spas in Tempe, Ariz., a Master Spas dealer, different treatment options help meet client expectations for superior water quality.
βMaster Spas has a product called EcoPur Charge, which is a mineral treatment product that snaps into the filter,β he says. βWe use that in conjunction with ozone and if a customer is really concerned with purity, weβll add UV light treatment.β
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Still, he points out, on-board treatment systems do require sanitizer residuals and shock treatments. βOur modas operandi is definitely dichlor with non-chlorine shock,β he says. βI wouldnβt say that you treat it just like a hot tub, because youβre adding more chemical due to the greater water volume. Dichlor works well because it mixes in easily and it has a more neutral pH. With the ozone, UV and EcoPur Charge, weβre keeping the chlorine residual down to 0.5 ppm, so itβs very low.
βThe ozone and UV systems are fantastic,β he adds. βWe use them on our display spas, where we always want the absolute best water quality. There really is something about the water quality those systems produce. Our customers love it and I wouldnβt run a display spa without that technology.β
βYou do still have to use chemicals, but it definitely helps cut down the amount of chemical treatment that is needed,β agrees Agen. βOn swim spas I donβt notice it as much with customers as we do with the hot tubs, but reducing chemical use is always going to be a concern for some customers. With smaller bodies of water people do tend to be a little more concerned about it.β
To the original question about hot tub and pool comparisons, Dahlberg adds, βI guess if you break it down that way, weβre treating swim spas more like pools. We have far fewer challenges treating swim spas than hot tubs. Bather load is less of an issue with swim spas and they have bigger filters, bigger pumps and faster turnover than hot tubs. Itβs not surprising theyβre easier to maintain.β