Hot Tub Forum

Original => Hot Tub Forum => Topic started by: Shell67 on July 03, 2015, 01:02:55 pm

Title: Brown foamy scum line after just two days of new hot tub arriving help
Post by: Shell67 on July 03, 2015, 01:02:55 pm
Hello please can anyone help,we had a new hot tub delivered wed am and all fine set it up and was in it wed night,thru morning hubby checked ph level and showed high so he put a ph decreaser in,on the first day we added a bromine tablet in a mushroom to water.since hubby did that a brown foamy oily substance has collected all around the edges and continues to every time the jets go on.could anyone tell us what we have done wrong,we live in a hard water area.many thanks Michelle
Title: Re: Brown foamy scum line after just two days of new hot tub arriving help
Post by: kporter on July 03, 2015, 03:00:04 pm
I am going to go out on a limb here and say lack of sanitizer.

Do you have means of testing your bromine levels?

Title: Re: Brown foamy scum line after just two days of new hot tub arriving help
Post by: Quickbeam on July 03, 2015, 04:05:09 pm
It could be just "gunk" inside the tub's plumbing. It is not unusual for a new tub to have gunk still in the plumbing. If the problem is not the water itself, try using some Ahh-Some to clean the plumbing.
Title: Re: Brown foamy scum line after just two days of new hot tub arriving help
Post by: Dr. Spa™ Ret. on July 03, 2015, 08:19:17 pm
Could also be a combination of things. Such as gunk in the plumbing from the manufacturing process, high iron in the water that the bromine caused to rust (I doubt low sanitizer levels caused this), make-up and/or hair care products.
Title: Re: Brown foamy scum line after just two days of new hot tub arriving help
Post by: kingdarb on July 03, 2015, 08:57:24 pm
I also got a new tub recently and noticed the same thing the first time I filled it and ran the jets a bit.  I think it was residual gunk in the lines and crap from the tub being wet-tested at the manufacturer.  Basically the first time I filled it I added a product called EZ Flush from Sani Marc then ran the jets for three cycles per the instructions.  I then drained the tub, refilled and it was fine after that.  I did super-chlorinate when I first filled the tub with the water that I was not going to drain.
Title: Re: Brown foamy scum line after just two days of new hot tub arriving help
Post by: silverbullet on July 05, 2015, 11:39:03 pm
IMHO if your new to this. You should work closely with your dealer to help you find your learning curve with water management A good dealer that knows their stuff is worth their weight in gold.

Every time I fill my tub I take a sample to him to see what it needs to start out the next 3 to 4 months.
Title: Re: Brown foamy scum line after just two days of new hot tub arriving help
Post by: Quickbeam on July 07, 2015, 07:01:52 pm
IMHO if your new to this. You should work closely with your dealer to help you find your learning curve with water management A good dealer that knows their stuff is worth their weight in gold.

Every time I fill my tub I take a sample to him to see what it needs to start out the next 3 to 4 months.


Not really sure I agree with this. I have a great dealer who has a computer water testing system, that gives fancy computer print outs of the water chemistry. He told me some time ago that my Taylor test kit would probably give me more accurate results than his equipment.

My advice would be to get yourself a Taylor test kit and learn your own water. That way you are not relying on someone else for your information. There is a bit of a learning curve, but it really is not all that difficult. And there are a lot of different resources on this website and others as to how to balance and maintain your water.