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Northern Lights Cedar Tub Care Manual

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1. The Advantages of a Wooden Hot Tub vs. the Acrylic Spa .................................................................... 3
2. Levelling .................................................................................................................................................. 3
3. Filling & Draining Procedure .................................................................................................................. 3
3.1 Initial Filling Procedure ................................................................................................................ 3
3.2 Draining Procedure ....................................................................................................................... 4
4. Seasonal Use & Drainage ........................................................................................................................ 4
5. Avoiding & Fixing Leaks ........................................................................................................................ 6
6. Tightness of Bands ................................................................................................................................... 7
7. Preserving the Wood Finish ..................................................................................................................... 7
7.1 Interior Finish ............................................................................................................................... 7
7.2 Exterior Finish .............................................................................................................................. 8
7.3 Cover Finish .................................................................................................................................. 8
8. Control Adjustments ................................................................................................................................ 9
8.1
Temperature ............................................................................................................................. 9
8.3
Jets and Air Control Valves ................................................................................................... 10
8.4
Pump Hi-Lo Control .............................................................................................................. 10
8.5
Light On-Off Control ............................................................................................................. 10
8.6 Hi Temperature Reset .............................................................................................................. 10
9. Keeping Wooden Tub's Water Clear & Sanitary................................................................................... 11
9.2.1 Other Basic Tips ...................................................................................................................... 12
9.3.1 pH ............................................................................................................................................ 13
9.3.2 Total Alkalinity ........................................................................................................................ 14
9.3.3 Calcium Hardness .................................................................................................................... 14
9.3.4 Controlling Foaming ................................................................................................................ 15
9.3.5 Stain-producing Metals ............................................................................................................ 15
9.3.6 Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) .................................................................................................. 15
9.4
9.4.1 Bromine .................................................................................................................................. 17
9.4.1.1 The Use of the Two-Part System ......................................................................................................... 17
9.4.1.2 The Use of Brominating Tablets .......................................................................................................... 18
9.4.2 The Use of Metal Ions or Mineral Treatments ......................................................................... 20
9.4.2.1 Spa Frog Silver Mineral Cartridge ....................................................................................................... 20
9.4.2.2 Silver/Copper/Zinc Electric Ionization ................................................................................................ 20
9.4.3 Oxidation and Shock Treatment............................................................................................... 23
9.4.4 The Use of an Ozonator ........................................................................................................... 23
9.4.5 Algae, White Water Mold and Biofilm Control ....................................................................... 24
9.7.1 Tub without an Ionizer and Ozonator ...................................................................................... 30
9.7.2 Tub with an Ionizer and Ozonator .......................................................................................... 31
10. Controls Troubleshooting ...................................................................................................................... 32
11. Warranty Claims ................................................................................................................................... 33
Cedar Tub Care Manual
Rev 13 - Sept 2016

Table of Contents

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Summary of Contents for Northern Lights Cedar Tub

  • Page 1: Table Of Contents

    Cedar Tub Care Manual Rev 13 - Sept 2016 Table of Contents 1. The Advantages of a Wooden Hot Tub vs. the Acrylic Spa ..............3 2. Levelling ..............................3 3. Filling & Draining Procedure ........................3 3.1 Initial Filling Procedure ........................ 3 3.2 Draining Procedure ........................
  • Page 2 Rev 13 General Safety Instructions/Warnings FOLLOW ALL WARNINGS CAREFULLY!! o Do not permit electric appliances (such as a light, telephone, radio or television) within 5ft (1.5 M) of this hot tub. o Children should not use hot tubs without adult supervision. o Do not use hot tubs unless all suction guards are installed to prevent body and hair entrapment.

  • Page 3: The Advantages Of A Wooden Hot Tub Vs. The Acrylic Spa

    Rev 13 Cedar Tub Care The Advantages of a Wooden Hot Tub vs. the Acrylic Spa Although acrylic spas are by far more prevalent today than wooden hot tubs, it was the wooden hot tub that began the experience of social bathing in America. Whether to purchase an acrylic spa or a wooden hot tub depends mostly on personal preference and each individual situation.

  • Page 4: Draining Procedure

    Rev 13 since you don’t want air to be sucked into the pump. (If the leaks are significant, then you need to keep the pump and spa pack off, keep the staves moist by spraying water on them and then covering the tub. This way the wood will moisten and start the expansion process, without continuously pouring water into it.) After the above temperature has been reached wait until leaks have subsided significantly.
  • Page 5 These including having the floor insulated (a standard option available at time of order), and insulating the sides and pipes (see the Question and Answers section of Northern Lights Cedar Tub As- sembly Manual). We also offer an “artic cover” with 50% better insulation coefficient than our regular cover (R21 vs.

  • Page 6: Avoiding & Fixing Leaks

    Rev 13 running. If this is not an option then consider the Frog Mineral cartridge. If keeping water in the tub is not practical, for some reason, and the tub must be drained and will dry out frequently, then your conditions are such that a liner is the most practical solution.

  • Page 7: Tightness Of Bands

    Rev 13 Remember to not over tighten the straps. They only need to be tight enough to prevent a leak. The gaps between the top straps should be no less than that ¼” (6mm) of the gap in the bottom strap. Excessive pressure will squeeze the staves such that the width will be reduced and the thickness will increase.

  • Page 8: Exterior Finish

    Fantastik. Use a soft brush to help lift the dirt and grime. The photo shows the cleaning in progress. A pressure washer also works very well. A cover protective solution, that provides uV protection, is available from Northern Lights.

  • Page 9: Control Adjustments

    Rev 13 Control Adjustments Temperature The spa pack will be equipped with a digital control panel. It can take over a day to bring a large tub up to temperature, especially if the water coming out of the faucet is very cold. The digital temperature control system eliminates the trial &...

  • Page 10: Jets And Air Control Valves

    Rev 13 Jets and Air Control Valves The air to the jets is turned on by twisting the air jet control valve knob. Be sure to turn air off when not in use. Air will cool the water faster, so to avoid excessive energy use, turn the jet air only on when the jets are being used for massaging.

  • Page 11: Keeping Wooden Tub's Water Clear & Sanitary

    Rev 13 Keeping Wooden Tub’s Water Clear & Sanitary 9.1 The Hot Tub and Spa Challenge There are several aspects to a hot tub or spa that make it a challenge compared to a pool. The high water temperature causes pores on people’s skin to dilate allowing the water to carry away the oils in the pores.

  • Page 12: Other Basic Tips

    Rev 13 the thick liquid disperses well in the water. By the next day (12 or so hours) the water should be clear again. Accumulations of body oils, cosmetics and other bather wastes will result in the build-up of these materials along the waterline and in pipes and filters.

  • Page 13: Water Balancing

    Rev 13 9.3 Water Balancing While there are many products to greatly help reduce the amount of “chemical” use and maintenance time, NOTHING will make your spa totally maintenance and chemical free. If the truth were told everything we breath, touch and eat is chemical, be they simple elements or compounds or complex organic chemical compounds that form biological life.

  • Page 14: Total Alkalinity

    Rev 13 9.3.2 Total Alkalinity Changes in pH can be caused by many factors and one significant cause is sanitizer use. Halogen sanitiz- ers can have a significant impact on pH and water balance. However, changes in pH, due to such sanitizers or shock, can be minimized by controlling the total alkalinity.

  • Page 15: Controlling Foaming

    Rev 13 Water that is either too low or too high in calcium will be out of balance with the following consequences: Calcium Hardness - Normal 200-350 ppm High Hardness Low Hardness • Cloudy water • Corroded metals/equipment( early heater •...

  • Page 16: Micro-Organism (Bacteria) Control - Sanitation And Oxidation

    While a wide variety of methods exist, for sanitizing a spa/hot tub, Northern Lights has limited the choice of what we supply to bromine, metal ionizers, ozone and none-chlorine oxidizer known as MPS. This is still a large variety and which combination a customer should use is governed by factors such as effective- ness, convenience and cost.

  • Page 17: Bromine

    Rev 13 name some. In the hot tub situation, the important thing to note is that organic compounds, including oils, lotions, as well as living microbes, contain hydrogen and carbon. Depending on the oxidizer, its concen- tration and factors like contact time, temperature and pH, these organic compounds are susceptible to being broken up or destroyed by the right oxidizer.

  • Page 18: The Use Of Brominating Tablets

    Rev 13 MPS, a chlorine free oxidizer) in the amount of 125 gms/1000 Do not use the tub for 12 hours after adding these two. The NaBr, when added does nothing by itself until the oxidizer (part 2), MPS (Oxy-Pur), is added. The MPS acts both as an oxidizer destroying dead organic compounds that came with the fresh fill water and also reacts with the NaBr to produce the HOBr (sanitizer) and OBr (weak oxidizer) killing any live micro-...
  • Page 19 Rev 13 od produces will be used up and you should treat the water with MPS (Oxy-Pur) to destroy the organic bather’s wastes and give the bromine dispenser a chance to re-establish some bromine reserve. With this method, it does not hurt to have some NaBr (Mineral-Aid) present in the water, so that when adding the MPS, bromine will re-establish itself instantly.

  • Page 20: The Use Of Metal Ions Or Mineral Treatments

    Rev 13 9.4.2 The Use of Metal Ions or Mineral Treatments Metal ions, such as Silver, Copper and Zinc, have long been recognized for their ability to keep water fresh for drinking. Pioneers used to place copper and silver coins in their barrels of drinking water as they travelled west.
  • Page 21 Rev 13 Operating Instruction To successfully use the ionizer the water does need to be balanced properly. This means you should measure the water’s properties with a test strip and then adjust the total alkalinity in the 80-120 ppm range and the calcium water hardness in the 150 - 300 ppm range.
  • Page 22 Rev 13 Follow the instructions in section 9.2 regarding turbidity control using a flocculent (Sea Blue) and in con- trolling scum build up, if scum becomes excessive. Large Dose Operation – Hours (theoretical) Needed with Highly Conductive Water Theoretical Hrs to Tub Size Liters US Gallons...

  • Page 23: Oxidation And Shock Treatment

    Rev 13 Trouble-shooting: -If the cell is not conducting the ionizing light will not be on. It should be on steady while in large dose mode and blink proportional to setting when in Ion/Action mode. -You can test the ionizer’s operation by placing the electrodes in 1 Litre of water and testing the copper concentration after 30 seconds of immersion time.

  • Page 24: Algae, White Water Mold And Biofilm Control

    Rev 13 9.4.5 Algae, White Water Mold and Biofilm Control Problems with certain algae growth can occur in a hot tub. Slimy round milk scum like deposits developing on staves or seat surfaces are a form of algae. If rubbed they will come off and float in the water in different size flakes.

  • Page 25: Too Many Choices- Just Summarize What To Use

    Rev 13 9.5 Too Many Choices- Just Summarize what to Use! The topic is no doubt complex as the previous sections will suggest. Many customers just want to have something that works. They know spas and hot tubs have been around and that the water can be controlled. “Give me what everyone else uses”, is all they request. Others are under the belief (real or imaginary) that chemicals are bad for them, especially chlorine or even bromine, and they wish to be “chemical free”.
  • Page 26 Good Better Best Use Std Bromine Chemicals Use Std Bromine Chemicals + Use Ag/Cu/Zn Metal Ionization Ozonator + Ozonator Bromine products are not to be used. Chemical Kit Chemical Kit Limited Chemicals Cu Test kit + 4-way Test kit 4-way red Test Strip 4-way red Test Strip (pH , total Alk &...

  • Page 27: Water Trouble Shooting

    Rev 13 9.6 Water Trouble Shooting POSSIBLE PROBLEM SOLUTIONS CAUSES Dark Brown New Tub Allow for 3 fresh water fills, each lasting at least 2 week to remove the tannin that first comes out of the cedar wood and colours the water. Water When using the water maintain proper sanitizer levels.
  • Page 28 Rev 13 Fibres in Solu- Loose white fi- Interior wood surfaces have become soft and pulpy, likely because of steady use of products containing chlorine. Drain tub and with a scour- brous material tion ing pad, remove pulpy material from wood surfaces, including benches. pulp floating The wet scraped-off material can be removed using a wet and dry shop in water and col-...
  • Page 29 Rev 13 electronic ionizer. Also deploy an ozonator to keep air space above water enriched with ozone which will kill the mould or algae that may wish to deposit above the damp water line. Unstable pH Low total alkalin- Test total alkalinity levels with an accurate test kit and if necessary ity levels increase with an Alka-Rise.

  • Page 30: Quick Water Treatment Summary Instructions

    Rev 13 Quick Water Treatment Summary Instructions 9.7.1 Tub without an Ionizer and Ozonator...

  • Page 31: Tub With An Ionizer And Ozonator

    Rev 13 9.7.2 Tub with an Ionizer and Ozonator...

  • Page 32: Replacement Chemicals

    Rev 13 9.8 Replacement Chemicals Northern Lights Cedar Tubs offers replacement chemicals that are approved for use in wooden hot tubs. These come in various sizes. To order, phone or go to the web page: Cedar Tubs Direct 204 977 1674 Ext 221 visit http://direct.cedartubs.com/...

  • Page 33: Warranty Claims

    11. Warranty Claims Northern Lights Warranty is described in the Assembly instructions for the hot tub and in the plumbing installation instructions. The warranty covers manufacturing defects only for the wooden parts and the manufacturer’s warranty on the electrical parts.

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