Regular hot tub cleaning is something every hot tub owner needs to do. It ensures you keep your water crystal clear and also helps your hot tub last longer with less problems.

Let's take a look at simple steps to cleaning your hot tub.

Drain the Hot Tub

To properly clean your hot tub, the first thing you’ll need to do is fully drain the unit. 

Draining the water has two main benefits:

• Allows you to add fresh water

• Allows you to clean the shell of the spa

This process is fairly simple but might take some time to complete. Here’s what you need to do:

How to Drain Your Hot Tub

1. Unplug your hot tub or turn off the circuit breaker to ensure no power is running to the spa.

2. Drain the water by removing the drain plug and opening the drain valve. You can either use a sump pump to accelerate the process or let the water drain naturally. Depending on the particular model, you may even be able to attach a garden hose to the drain plug to facilitate easier drainage - although this method takes a little more time.

3. Once most of the water has been drained, use a shop vac to vacuum up any remaining water in the unit.

Clean Your Filters

You can also use this time to take out your hot tub filters. Simply remove the filter and spray with a garden hose to remove any debris. Soak the filter overnight in a bucket of diluted filter cleaning solution and repeat every three to four months.

Clean Your Hot Tub Cover

You should also consider cleaning the hot tub cover. All you need to do is spray the cover with your hot tub cleaning solution and wipe it away with a rag or paper towel. Pay close attention to creases and nooks where mildew can grow. 

Clean the Shell

Now that the hot tub has been drained, you can clean the shell of the spa. 

1. Spray the entire shell with a non-sudsing hot tub cleaning product, then wipe away with paper towels or a cloth. 

2. Be sure to wipe around the spa jets, retainer rings, and filter case. Just take care not to spray any cleaning solution directly into the control panel or other electronic components. 

3. After you’ve cleaned the surface of the hot tub, close the drain valve and replace the drain cap and begin refilling the spa. 

4. Place the fill hose into the tub. Depending on your manufacturer’s recommendations, you may need to place the hose in the filter housing in order to reduce airlock issues when you turn the tub back on.

5. When the hot tub is fully filled, turn the power back on and let the unit heat up.

6. Once the water has reached 70 degrees Fahrenheit, add in your water treatment chemicals. 

Clean the Plumbing

For the cleanest possible hot tub, you’ll also need to clean out the plumbing. As you use your hot tub, bacteria known as biofilm build up in your spa’s plumbing and create a layer of slime. 

This biofilm slime reduces the effectiveness of sanitizers and may cause water to turn cloudy. And as effective as the standard drain and clean method can be, it doesn’t address bacterial slime in hot tub plumbing.

You can clean your hot tub’s plumbing in as little as a half hour before cleaning the rest of the spa. Here's how:

1. 30 to 60 minutes before you drain your hot tub, add a hot tub plumbing cleaning product, like spa purge into the water. Follow the directions on the bottle.

2. Once the foam turns white, the biofilm has been removed and you can begin the process of draining your hot tub.

3. A lot of the time refilling and draining the spa again is necessary to fully rinse and remove the spa purge and dirty water from the spa.

If you want the cleanest hot tub possible, Clover has everything you need from supplies and professional advice. Remember, you can always bring in a sample of your water and we can test it for you!