9 Things You Didn’t Know About Hot Tubs

1) Hot Tubs Have Been Around For Well Over 2000 Years

Hot tubs are far from a modern invention. In fact, people around the world have been known to utilize natural hot springs for therapy for centuries, such as the Japanese “onsen” which have been use since the early 700s AD. Some ancient cultures like the Romans even created rudimentary hot tubs by adding heated stones to a cauldron of water as early as 200 BC. Later on, the Romans even developed piping systems to carry hot water from a furnace to a pool or other contained body of water.

“Modern” hot tubs began in the US in 1903 when the inventor Candido Jacuzzi came up with the idea of placing an aerating pump into a bath as a way to provide relief to his 15-month old son who suffered from rheumatoid arthritis.

2) Humans Aren’t The Only Animals That Like Hot Tubs

The wild Japanese macaques (better known as snow monkeys) of the Jigokudani Monkey Park in Japan are world famous for their love of taking a nice hot bath in the natural hot springs found in the park. In the winter months these monkeys descend from the steep cliffs and forest during the day to sit in the warm waters of the parks hot springs, returning to the security of the forests in the evenings.

3) Hot Tubs Have Been Shown To Relieve Symptoms For A Variety Of Ailments

While hot tubs are great simply for relaxing or unwinding after a long day, they can also provide relief from many common ailments like headaches or back pain. They do this with a combination of heat, buoyancy and massage.

• Heat. Heat opens up (“vasodilates”) your blood vessels, allowing blood to flow more easily throughout your body. This increased blood flow also means an increase in the flow of oxygen and nutrients to the muscles, which helps heal damaged tissue.
• Buoyancy. When you’re submerged in water, the effects of gravity are reduced by 90%; reducing stress on your muscles, joints, tendons and ligaments.
• Massage. Massage not only feels good, it also helps increase blood flow to the areas being massaged. This increased blood flow also helps clear out toxins that build up due to insufficient blood flow and can reduce pain and inflammation.

When combined these three factors come together to help relieve symptoms of common ailments such as insomnia, diabetes and arthritis.

4) Studies Have Shown That Hot Tubs Can Reduce Stress & Anxiety

Hot tubs are the perfect stress and anxiety reducers. This is primarily because they take you away from the daily grind; giving you a space where you relax and clear your mind after a long day.

Not only that, their combination of heat, buoyancy and massage help to relax your muscles and relieve aches and pains; taking away tension in your body and allowing you to relax further.

5) Too Many Jets Can Actually Be A Bad Thing

Designing a hot tub that delivers a great massage is a complex task. While many people assume that simply increasing the number of jets will lead to a better massage, this is not always the case. This is because every jet you add to a hot tub takes some of the power away from the rest of the jets. Adding more jets than your pumps can properly power will therefore lead to an underpowered massage.

The size of the jets also affect the quality of the massage that the hot tub will deliver with large jets being better suited for larger muscles and deep tissue massages. Smaller jets are able to deliver a more targeted massage, making them more suited to relieve pressure points.

Jets are only one piece of the puzzle however. You also need to consider the pumps and plumbing. Too little flow from the pumps and the water will barely trickle out. Poorly designed plumbing will also rob the pump of most of it’s power.

To create a truly top class massage experience requires a balance between the number of jets, the size of the jets, the amount of water flow coming from the pumps, and the plumbing’s ability to efficiently move that water to the jets.

6) Modern Hot Tubs Can Be Controlled With A Cell Phone

Most major hot tub brands now allow for their hot tubs to be fitted with control systems that can be run from a mobile phone app. Hydropool Hot Tubs, for example, are all able to be fitted with the iCommand system. This system allows you to fully control your hot tub from your phone, including:

• Operating the hot tub jets and lights.
• Setting the water temperature for your hot tub.
• Programming your filtration and enable/disable economy mode.
• Displaying alerts if there is a problem with your hot tub.

7) Hot Tubs Can Also Be Used As “Warm Tubs” In The Summer

While most people typically set their hot tubs water temperature between 100-104 degrees Fahrenheit, modern hot tubs can actually be set as low as 70 degrees Fahrenheit. This flexibility in water temperatures allows you get creative with how you use your hot tub in the summer. You can either:

• Turn it down to something like 85-90 degrees for use as a relaxing “warm tub” for longer soaks.
• Turn it down to around 75-85 degrees for use as a small “cool down” splash pool.

8) You Can Do A Partial Water Change In The Winter

Nothing is worse than having to drain and refill your hot tub in the dead of winter. Not only is it a cold job, if you’re not quick enough refilling the hot tub you risk the leftover water in the pipes freezing and potentially damaging the plumbing or the hot tub equipment.

While we usually recommend draining and refilling your hot tub in late November / early December to avoid having to drain and refill your hot tub during the coldest months of the year, this isn’t always possible. If you miss this time window and the weather outside is too cold to do a full drain and refill of your hot tub you can simply do a partial drain and refill. Remove around 1/2 to 2/3 of the water in the tub and refill with fresh water from a tap in your house.

While not as good as a full water change, this partial change will still improve the quality of the water enough to get you through until the weather gets a little warmer.

9) Many Hot Tub Owners Are Using More Chemicals Than They Need To

If you’ve never used a biofilm removing product in your hot tub, chances are you’re using more chemicals than you need to to properly maintain your hot tub.

Biofilm is any group of bacteria and other micro-organisms that stick themselves to a surface which is in regular contact with water. These micro-organisms will cover themselves in a protective layer of slime that is resistant to disinfectants (like chlorine or bromine). Biofilm forms on any surface that is in contact with water and thrives in warm, dark areas. The plumbing and filtration system in hot tubs therefore provide an ideal environment for biofilms to grow.

Biofilm buildup increases your chemical usage in a few ways:

• It greatly decreases your sanitizer’s (chlorine/bromine) effectiveness, leading to an increase in the amount of sanitizing chemicals that you need to use in order to keep your water clean and clear.
• Adding more sanitizing chemicals will also throw off your water balance slightly, increasing the need to use water balancing chemicals.
• Biofilm can also cause foam and water clarity issues, leading to an increase in defoaming and clarifying chemicals.

For more information on how to remove biofilm in your hot tub, consult our biofilm blog or talk to one of our water care specialists.