Spa Pumps - Recalculating The Water In Your Spa Is Not Only A Comfort FactorSpa and hot tubs are very complex systems, and any expert knows that they are very important to the owner's comfort. Because most of the internal mechanisms are hidden away under the spa's shell, you are not able to fully see them all. A spa must have a water pump (if the spa has water jets, in some cases heated water) or compressed air jets (if the spa uses air jets), a series of filters (they are used to filter all impurities found in the water), the necessary hoses and many connectors. In fact, most of the spa's price is made out of the mechanism hidden under the spa. One of the most important elements in any hot tub is the spa pump. Remember, the pump is electric and it operates with very high voltages. Therefore, you should only work or change the spa's pump after you have disconnected it from the power network. The pump is isolated so no water will be able to reach it. A spa pump is usually made of two components: the wet end and the dry end. These terms may sound weird, but the wet end contains the impeller used to move the water, while the dry end is represented by the electric motor that turns the impeller. You see, the process of a spa pump is very important because among other comfort factors it offers, it will also work by recirculation the water in your spa. While hot tub pumps are designed to function properly for many thousand of hours, you may have certain problems with it and in some cases, you might need to replace it. Because the wet end of the spa's pump is in constant contact with the water, it is very sensitive to any impurities. Calcium especially is one of the pump's main enemies, as it deposits itself on the impeller. In time, the calcium accumulates in very large amounts and it will prevent the impeller from properly rotating. This will burn the engine. You can prevent this by using special solutions meant to dissolve the calcium from the tubes and the pump's interior so you avoid any future problems. Of course, experts recommend spa pumps by manufacturers such as Laing, Coleman or Cayman mostly because they do are more resistant in time, and you do not to stay and always take care of them - again a plus towards the owner's supreme comfort. Before the spa pump failing, it will give you a series of signs telling you that something is wrong. For example, you will hear the pump trying harder to push the water, This means that some malfunctions are preventing it from properly spinning and this leans to a humming noise. If you are hearing a whining noise coming from the spa pump, there may be a series or badly worn bearings. If you notice water leaks around the pump, than you are dealing with the failure of the pump's seals. Many times, you will not have to replace the whole pump. You can as well replace the individual component that has failed. This is the cheapest solution and if the changing operation is performed by a specialist, your spa pump will function as new for a long time. Another important factor you have to take into consideration when buying a new spa pump is the pump's plumbing size. Many people often buy spa pumps that have the wrong plumbing size and they will have to buy another proper one. Most hot tub pumps are either 1.5" or 2" in diameter and you can measure this very easily once you have removed the pump (all you have to do is to measure the pump's outside thread). Most pumps will also have this measurement printed on a sticker attached to the pump itself, so you can replace the old model with a new one having the same specifications. Always test the new pump before putting the spa together again to see if everything has been done properly. Remember what I said about Coleman or Cayman above and make sure to buy exactly the best so you will not have to always repair it and be concerned about your spa's pumps. |