Prevent cloudy water in your hot tub, use MPS test strips

One of our most frequent problems/concerns we hear from customers is, “how to I get my water to look as crystal clear as your’s does here in the store?” And it’s really very simple. Organic particles like skin cells, lotions and detergents can linger in the water and cause cloudiness. These particles, when untreated, can stick to the plumbing lines and clog your filter. Sure you may need to clean your filter more frequently in the summer because you probably have more lotions, sunscreens, bug spray, etc on you when you get it…but the other half of this equation is properly oxidizing your water!

When we say oxidizer, we are referring to a product that is also called “shock” or “MPS” (which is short for Potassium Peroxymonosulfate). It’s important to note that most “shock-ing” products do not contain chlorine…so when we advise you to shock your spa, we don’t want you to throw a bunch of chlorine in there.

There are actually test strips that can help you measure for the proper levels of MPS (shock). Three-way test strips are great for folks that have an ozonator and don’t need to maintain chlorine residuals in their hot tubs. A proper balance of MPS indicated that the shock has fully eradicated whatever organic particulates that would otherwise create cloudy water. If your MPS levels are low, that means you still have organics floating around in your spa, creating havoc and cloudy water!

So, the moral to the story is, start off by adding about 1 tablespoon per person of oxidizer to your water after each use. Run the jets on a clean cycle, about ten minutes, and then test for MPS. If the levels read low, then you need to add more oxidizer. There is never a one-size-fits-all solution to water care in hot tubs. But this is a great piece of advice that any hot tub owner can appreciate.