How Often Should You Shock Your Hot Tub?

If you are reading this post, it’s safe to assume you have a hot tub. Or maybe you’re thinking about getting a hot tub but are looking to see how much upkeep they require. Hot tubs come with a plethora of benefits including the ownership of a relaxing, luxurious item. However, as with most things in life, hot tubs require periodic maintenance and will call for your attention from time to time to keep them safe and clean. One necessary method of upkeep is called “shocking” your hot tub. This is the process of adding a high dose of oxidizer chemicals in order to minimize the number of bacteria and impurities within the hot tub. We recommend you shock your hot tub once a week.

Why You Should Be Shocking Your Hot Tub

As mentioned before, shocking your hot tub lessens the number of potential bacteria and impurities that will naturally exist in your hot tub. When you use chlorine-based shock treatment, it combats bacteria and ultimately will sanitize the water which keeps it safe for anyone entering the tub. Waterborne organic compounds are also bound to exist in a hot tub, so when you shock it, you’ll prevent these possibly dangerous compounds from floating around. Lastly, the shocking process will get rid of reactive sanitizers. In order to not get too scientific on you … just know this is significant because it will allow the chlorine to do its job in killing bacteria.

What You Should Use to Shock Your Hot Tub

Dealing with chemicals of any kind can be a little scary. You don’t want to injure yourself or others and want to avoid potentially ruining your hot tub. However, shocking your hot tub is a lot easier and a lot less terrifying than it sounds. There are two different types of shock you can use:

• Chlorine Shock – If you’re using the hot tub often or have just done a water change, you’ll want to go ahead and do a chlorine shock on your hot tub. Naturally, this will increase the chlorine levels in the tub, so you want to make sure that you are using it after they go down. Your hot tub cover should be off for around 20 minutes and a regular jet cycle should be running post-shock.
• Non-Chlorine Shock – It’s important to know that non-chlorine shock will not disinfect the water in your hot tub. This type of shock is primarily used to oxidize the water and clear any sort of cloudy hues that may be existing. If possible, it would be great to use a mixture of both chlorine and non-chlorine shocks if you are using the tub often and your water type allows for it.

The Professionals Are Here to Help

Still reluctant to shock your hot tub on your own? Not sure exactly what you should be doing or how you should be doing it? That’s okay. You’re not alone. Taking care of such an expensive item can be incredibly intimidating, especially when chemicals are involved. You don’t want to be an accessory to a disaster and want to ensure that you and your hot tub users are safe. Luckily, at Recreation Warehouse Michigan we offer top-of-the-line hot tub maintenance services. Our technicians and factory-trained workers would be glad to assist you with all your hot tub shocking needs. If you find yourself struggling to get that tub clean, don’t be embarrassed! Contact us so we can lend a helping hand when it’s time to shock your hot tub.