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As summer draws to a close and we look ahead to the colder weather of autumn and winter, you may well be thinking about how to prepare your hot tub for the coming season. The biggest concern that many hot tub owners have over winter is that their pipes will freeze. This is a very valid concern because water expands by around 10% when it freezes and if this happens in a tight space, such as a pipe, pump, or filter, the pressure of this expanding ice can cause significant damage.
However, don’t worry because there are precautions you can take to make sure this doesn’t happen and it’s all part of your winter hot tub maintenance which will ensure your hot tub will not only make it through the winter unscathed; it will be good to go again come spring.
Preventing frozen hot tub pipes
There are several ways to protect your hot tub from freezing over the winter:
1. Keep using it through the winter
A hot tub that is being regularly maintained for use, running the pumps and heating the water won’t freeze up so if you plan to keep on using it you can just continue as you are. If you don’t plan to use it over the winter though, there are other ways to safeguard it that are more cost-effective and less work than keeping it running.
2. Winterise it
Winterising your hot tub is just as it sounds: preparing and packing up your hot tub for a period of non-use over the winter. It’s not that difficult to do but it is a multi-step process that can take a few hours. It involves fully draining all parts of the unit and pipes, so you need to wait until you’re sure hot tub season is over before embarking on it. Because the process eradicates water from all parts of the unit, there is nothing left to freeze that will cause any damage.
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Winterising is not just recommended for freeze damage prevention, it prevents mould and bacteria cultivating, and it also gives it a thorough clean up, minimising the work you’ll need to do to get it up and running again in the spring.
3. Use freeze protection mode
Many modern hot tubs come equipped with a freeze protection mode. When engaged, it has a sensor that detects when the temperature falls below a certain level. Once this happens, it’ll run the pump to get water flowing through the pipes. As long as the water is moving, even if it’s cold, it won’t freeze (it is technically possible for moving water to freeze, but temperatures almost never drop low enough in this country). If your spa has this, you should see it as an option on your control panel.
4. Run the pump manually
If your hot tub doesn’t have freeze protection, you can replicate the benefits yourself. As stated, water won’t freeze as long as it’s moving so you can run the pump at a low speed without needing to heat the water, as long as it’s moving through all parts of the hot tub. If it’s very cold, you can leave your pump running continuously. If it’s not quite so cold, use your timer to turn the pumps on for a few minutes every hour.
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Winter hot tub care tips
There are a few other things you can do to care for your hot tub over the winter period:
- If following items 3 or 4 above and, therefore, leaving water in the hot tub over winter, add a Winteriser chemical that prevents algae and mould from developing while not in use
- Secure the lid properly. The lid will protect your hub tub from dirt and debris and from the worst of the weather as well. Before you pack it all up for the winter conduct any necessary repairs and make sure it’s a good fit. Secure all straps as these will prevent it from blowing open in strong winds.
- Check it periodically over the winter. It will most likely be fine if you’ve followed all the advice to get it ready for winter, but it doesn’t hurt to conduct a few visual checks. Any small issues you may find can then be dealt with before they become big ones.
