Draining, Cleaning, and Refilling your Bullfrog Spa

Bullfrog Spas

1 year ago

A woman touching the water in her bullfrog spa

Ever wondered how often you should give your hot tub or swim spa water a refresh? Maintenance is key to a well-taken care of hot tub. Let’s dive into the details of why it’s important, how often you should do it, and how to clean your spa before refilling.

How Often to Drain and Refill Your Spa

The frequency of draining and refilling a hot tub or swim spa can vary depending on several factors, including usage, water quality, and maintenance practices. As a general guideline, it’s recommended to drain and refill your hot tub or swim spa approximately every three to four months. However, here are some considerations that might affect the frequency:

Reasons to Drain Your Hot Tub or Swim Spa

Water Quality

As you use your spa, soap and detergent residues from your skin and bathing suits, along with other substances from maintaining the spa’s water chemistry will accumulate in the spa water and make maintaining the water more difficult. Rinsing your bathing suits and showering without soap prior to entering your spa will increase the life of your spa water.

Chemical Balance

Regularly draining and refilling the hot tub or swim spa allows you to reset the water’s chemical balance. Over time, chemicals used for water sanitation can accumulate and become less effective, affecting water quality and user safety.

Deep Cleaning

While regular chemical maintenance helps keep the water sanitized, draining the tub periodically allows you to thoroughly clean and disinfect all the surfaces, including the shell, jets, and plumbing lines. It will also help prevent bacteria growth and calcium buildup.

Winterizing

Although in most cases winterizing your Bullfrog Spa is unnecessary, there are times when you may consider doing so if you will not be using your spa for 6 weeks or longer. You will need to drain your spa and get rid of all water by following the instructions in the linked article or contacting your local authorized dealer for assistance.

How to Drain Your Bullfrog Spa

Note Before Starting

Drain your spa to an area that can handle a large quantity of water. Avoid drainage that can lead into basement window wells or any other area where damage could occur. If draining water onto vegetation, make sure that the water’s sanitizer level (chlorine or bromine) is less than 0.5 PPM.

Steps To Drain Your Spa:

Step 1: Turn off The main electrical breaker to the spa.

Step 2: Locate the drain below the equipment compartment door.

Step 3: Pull the drain out with a slight clockwise turn. Use pliers if needed. The drain is fully extended at approximately two inches (five centimeters).

Step 4: Remove the drain cap. Note that the drain spout will not drain when fully extended.

Step 5: Attach a standard garden hose. Push the drain spout in halfway to actuate the drain. The spa will drain about 5-10 gallons (20-40 liters) per minute. Ensure that the drainage is in an area safely away from window wells or basement entrances.

TIP: Use a sump pump to remove water faster from your spa.

Step 6: Once the spa is fully drained, pull the drain spout out all the way, remove the hose, replace the drain cap, and push the drain in all the way.

TIP: If any water remains at bottom of spa, use a wet/dry vac to remove all water. Rags or towels may also be needed.

Cleaning the Spa

Once your spa is drained, you are ready to clean areas of the spa that are not normally accessible when filled with water.

Warning: An empty spa without water in it must not be left exposed to sunlight as shell damage may occur. Shade the spa while cleaning and then fill back with water immediately when done.

Shell Surface Care

For normal cleaning of a dry spa, use a mild, diluted, dishwashing soap, window cleaner, or specific spa surface cleaning products recommended by your local authorized dealer. For stubborn stains, use a mild acrylic cleaner or a mild detergent. To apply these cleaners, use a soft, damp cloth or sponge. Rinse well and dry with a clean cloth.

Avoid using cleaning agents that leave soap residue in the water. Never allow your spa surface to be exposed to alcohol, acetone (nail polish remover), nail polish, dry cleaning solution, lacquer thinners, gasoline, pine oil, abrasive cleaners, or any other household chemicals other than those listed. These chemicals void the warranty.

JetPak Plumbing Care

For optimum spa care, each time the spa water is changed, remove all JetPaks. Clean the back manifold area with a spa surface cleaner and a long, soft bristle brush. For cleaning the JetPak acrylic surface, follow the same instructions above for Shell Surface Care.

Filter Cleaning or Replacement

Now is also a good time to check your filters to see if they need to be replaced or cleaned. Refer to this article about filter maintenance for further instructions.

Pillows3>

With all the relaxation they provide, it’s no wonder hot tub pillows may require a periodic cleaning. To do so, you simply wipe dirt and grime off with a cloth and mild soap. Non-petroleum based protectant products that maintain water resistance and appearance are also available and are good to use about once a month.

Spa pillows can be prone to discoloration if exposed high sanitizing levels. To minimize discoloration risk, it’s best to take pillows off when shocking your hot tub’s water and leave the cover open for at least 30 minutes afterwards.

Refilling Your Spa

Once your spa is clean, you are ready to refill the water. Make sure to follow the instructions in the linked article or your owner’s manual for proper filling and startup of your Bullfrog Spa.