Sometimes people lower the water temperature set point dramatically, usually to cool the water in the summer. The next thing they know, they are struggling to maintain water purity, and they think something is wrong because their spa no longer filters.
Here’s what’s going on. The filter cycle is programmed to prevent overheating. Remember, an Arctic or Coyote spa is so thermally efficient that the heat from the motors running the filter cycle will warm up the water. In order to keep the water from getting hotter and hotter, the filter cycle is suspended until the water temperature falls below the setpoint.
So if you drop the set temperature by a large amount, this has the side-effect of turning off the filtration for a long time, until the water temperature drops below the setpoint again. In warm weather, this might take several days.
Hot weather, hot water, suspended filtration — not a good thing! That’s why we recommend a gradual cooling, to ensure proper filtration during the process. For further information on summer cooling, search the FAQ for one of those terms.
This information first appeared in the Summer 2007 of Arctic Splash, our magazine for Arctic customers. To subscribe, go to “Newsletter Sign-Up” in the Quick Links menu in the top right corner.
