Slow leak in hot tub

LateralConcepts · 08-08-2010, 09:26 PM

I've done a lot of answerin', but this is my first question. I have a Tiger River spa (not sure if brand matters). It was a hand-me-down from my dad. It's probably 10 years old. He takes immaculate care of his things so it's like brand new in appearance, but has a small leak somewhere. It's drained now for the summer, but will fill it again when the weather cools. My wife and I use it a lot in the winter months (probably 3-4 nights week). It seems to lose 1-2" of water over a course of about 2 weeks. I have an adapter for my kitchen faucet, so just top it off with hot water every so often.

I spoke with a guy a while back at a local spa dealer and he was only concerned with selling me a new one which I have no intention of doing. He said they would charge about 1000 bucks just to "see" if they could fix it. Needless to say, I pretty much told him to get lost.

I'm curious however about that stop leak stuff. Similar to what you'd use in a radiator. I haven't really looked at any products yet or read bottles. I'm guessing you just dump it in and drain the tub. Has anyone ever used that? Does it work? Any experience, thoughts, recommendations?

I'm all about fixing things right, but this time I'm kinda lookin' for an easy way out. Not too fond of the idea of jacking up the tub, digging out foam insulation, and making a repair.

nap · 08-08-2010, 10:59 PM

are you sure it is leaking and not simply evaporating? I don't own a hot tub but water is water. If you keep it covered when not being used, I would say it isn't evaporation. If you leave it uncovered, then I would consider the possibility.

You also need to take into account splash loss and loss attributable to wet clothing and whatever clings to your body when you exit the tub.

the fact that you use the tub a lot, it would seem you could remove a considerable amount of water this way alone.

I just did a quick search for some hot tub stop leak and one site said more than 1/4" of water loss daily should be investigated. 1/4" per day figures out to,oh, 3 1/2" every two weeks.

While I can see a few situations where a stop leak might be practical, I just don't see it as being a cure all. I have a hard time figuring out how it would be very durable in any situation where there was not much pressure that would cause any sealant to be packed into the leak quite well.

LateralConcepts · 08-08-2010, 11:16 PM

Quote:

are you sure it is leaking and not simply evaporating? I don't own a hot tub but water is water. If you keep it covered when not being used, I would say it isn't evaporation. If you leave it uncovered, then I would consider the possibility.

You also need to take into account splash loss and loss attributable to wet clothing and whatever clings to your body when you exit the tub.

the fact that you use the tub a lot, it would seem you could remove a considerable amount of water this way alone.

It's always covered. I know it's not evaporation or my soppin' wet shorts. I can see the water coming out on the back side from underneath somewhere. Not a steady stream, but if I don't use it for a while, the deck is wet behind it. A 2" drop was kinda random. 4" is probably more like it after a 2 week time period. Using it or not. It doesn't seem to make a difference whether the pump is running or not.