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Safety of Methanesulfonic Acid to Lower PH in Hot Tub

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HotTubLung:
Does anyone have any experience, or knowledge with Methanesulfonic Acid for reducing hot tub PH and total alkalinity?

I was sold this product by a local dealer recently, tried it out and experienced very bad results including skin irritation and breathing difficulties after bathing.  The company that produces the chemical is IPG International Pool Group.  The product is called IPG Spa PH - with the active ingredient methanesulfonic  acid. 


There is literally nothing written on the web about using this chemical for aquatic recreation and that's a little odd/scary.  Thank you to anyone and everyone that can help.

Jag8:
It is a product intended for pools not hot tubs. Did you buy it from a hot tub dealership or a pool supply store that sells chemicals for pools and hot tubs?

HotTubLung:
Thanks for your reply.  The bottle says on it that it's intended for spa use.  I bought it from a company that sell both pools and hot tubs.  They also sell chemicals for both as well. 

I contacted IPG directly and they said they've never had a customer have an experience like I did and again reiterated it's designed for hot tubs.  I am inclined to think it's possible they aren't telling the truth, but I dont really know.

Where did you read MSA is for pools only?  I literally couldn't find any sources online showing it's use in pools or hot tubs.

Thanks!

CanadianSpaTech:
Did you over use the required amount?
Did you enter the spa directly after applying.
Did you apply other chemicals all at the same time?

HotTubLung:
Good questions.

Since I wasn't familure with the product I under used it slightly.  I have very hard water around 8.5PH and 230ppm alkalinity.  I added around 160ml divided into 2 doses on separate days, which brought the PH and Alk to slightly above recommended levels.  I didn't dilute the acid in water before pouring into the hot tub, which I later discovered I should have to prevent wear on the tub.  Nothing was written on the bottle except to pour 60ml at a time.  No ingredients listed either so I had no idea what I was dealing with.

I didn't enter the spa for 4 days after putting in any product due to chlorine levels being very high.  Free chlorine was 6.9ppm, total chlorine around 7.5ppm and combined chlorine at 0.59ppm. These levels were recorded by the pool and spa store where I purchased the MSA.

 I had recently done a drain, clean and refill and put two chlorine pucks in a slow release floater. Also I added a water conditioning product called Aqua Finesse.  All the products were added within a few minutes of each other, which I've recently learned from research isn't safe. I did however wear a mask and gloves when pouring, so no vapors were inhaled during water treatment.

  I try to use as little chemical product as possible, so I didnt shock the tub to reduce the chlorine, but rather kept the lid open for several hours throughout the 4 day span of not using it and the levels went down on their own to around 4ppm or slightly below.  I use test strips, so exact readings are difficult to interpret.

For further reference my hot tub is a Beachcomber 360 and it's only 9 months old.  I use it maybe once per week, but would use it more now that everything is closed. When I empty the tub I never see any scum lines or anything nasty, it just looks brand new.  A credit to Aqua Finesse it seems to keep the tub clean.

In the past I have used sodium bisfulate and never had any issues.  I'm still having respiratory issues, so I've avoided using the hot tub until I can evaluate the cause of the irritation.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

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