Hot Tub Safety Tips
If you are going to own a hot tub there are certain safety tips that should be taught to yourself or anyone who intends to use the hot tub.
The very first item, as far as safety goes, is to never let a child near the hot tub without adult supervision. It is the first point of critical knowledge that is needed for hot tub safety. Even if you know the child to be an Olympic swimmer, please, do not ever, for any amount of time, leave the child alone within the area of the hot tub, it’s just too dangerous and preventable to take the risk.
Drowning, like in any pools or bodies of water, are the number one causes of fatalities in regards to hot tubs. Because the effects of a hot tub are to induce relaxation, awareness of how long a person should stay in the tub is important to mention. Too many times there have been people, even adults, who have relaxed to the point of falling asleep and drowning as a result. Always keep in mind that the effects of soaking in the hot tub and the benefits they bring can also cause dizziness, light-headedness and sometimes confusion so it is best to be aware of these possible side effects whenever you or someone new comes into your hot tub.
Two of the most dangerous problems with hot tubs are these: body part entrapment and hair entanglement. When a drain is working properly, its function is to suction the water from the bottom of the pool and circulate it through the heating units and back into the hot tub. Because these drains can be powerful, it is worth noting that there have been instances where a body part has become sucked into the drain, which has caused the person to be held under water. As you may know, if a drain is partially blocked, it will work extra hard (producing more suction) in order to get the job done and this just endangers someone who may not be aware of it. It is best if there can be two drains working together so if one becomes blocked, it will allow the other to pick up the slack and there will be a much less chance of causing a part of someone’s body to become entrapped in the drain.
The other safety issue is hair entanglement. This is particularly dangerous when someone with long hair falls asleep or becomes too relaxed to untangle themselves quickly enough and the end result is usually drowning because their hair has caused their head to be held under water for too long. One safety measure that can be helpful in this type of situation is being aware of the emergency cut-off switch is located and responding immediately to turn the power of the drains off, in order to allow the hair to become untangled.
It really doesn’t take much more than good common sense to keep everyone safe in a hot tub but it does require some understanding of what can go wrong; and what to do if it does.
Maintaining Your Hot Tub
If you own a hot tub, you know the great benefits it can afford anyone who happens to use it, you know what it cost, and now you need to know how to properly care for it. One study by the Association of Pool & Spa Professionals, found that an overwhelming 77% of hot tub and spa owners believe that cleaning and maintaining of their unit was easy.
With just a few steps, your hot tub can last for years, and any effort to keep it around for a few more years is worth any time that is needed to assure the longevity of your hot tub.
If you have a hot tub from a few years back, or one that is new but made of wood, the most important thing you can do to stretch its life longer is to spend time, once a year, refinishing the wood surfaces. If you live in a climate with varying temperatures and weather patterns, you probably already know how much damage can be done to wood, when it is left unprotected. The skirt which covers the outside of your hot tub is no different and a quick trip for some supplies to your home improvements store will be well worth the effort when you tub lasts for years, and still looks good, too.
One part that is common in every hot tub is the filter and that should be cleaned with a hose every three to four months. It will normally just need the water from the hose, but if you find that it’s not coming very clean, there are filter cleaning solutions that you can use that will take care of that for you.
Another feature on a hot tub that needs your attention is the safety cover. An inspection each month of the cover will ensure that you are aware of any wear and tear that may need to be addressed, which is a big safety issue, especially if there are children around. The other maintenance required of the safety cover is to be sure to wash it down, at least, once a month. Again, the longer your hot tub lasts, the more you’ll get out of it and by these few ideas of cleaning and maintenance, you can be sure that it will be around for a long time.
As far as draining and refilling the hot tub itself, the best advice is to be sure to read any directions that come with the unit and/or talk to the dealer where you purchased the product, they will always provide important information that should be read over or followed, pertaining to the re-filling of the hot tub. Depending on the size of the hot tub and how diligent you are about keeping the chemicals balanced will also play into the time frame of when to drain and refill the tub.
It’s imperative to remember to perform a quick water test before each use of the hot tub, and to have on hand the supplies you may need to balance and most manufacturers recommend using some kind of sanitizing or chlorine tablets once a week. That will keep everyone safe who is enjoying the hot tub and is one more small way you can stretch out the lifetime of this great resource!
What You Need To Know About A Home Hot Tub
First, you need to know that the purchase of a hot tub will be worth more to you than you’ll ever know and if used properly will allow for more benefits to your family than you can even imagine.
Safety is the very first point to be made. Because of the risk of drowning in a hot tub, if you are going to have one, you must invest in a locking cover. Children cannot fall into a hot tub is there is a locking cover on it. A cover will also do two more things; it will keep the debris that is in the air, whether the hot tub is indoors or outdoors and will lengthen the life of the filters but it can also act as a heat-keeper of sorts. By placing a cover on the hot tub when it is not in use, in many cases, the heat will not be able to escape and it will be much easier to maintain a balance in the water temperature.
Hot tubs of today are much more energy efficient than they have been over the past 30 years and what used to take a sizeable amount of money to keep heated and operating now takes a fraction of that cost. The other option for heating a hot tub is in the solar powered models. Because these tubs are heated by the sun’s own power, the use of electricity is not needed and will not impact your energy bills whatsoever.
Hot tubs are self-contained and once they have been filled with water, they will reuse that same water until it is drained and refilled. That being said, it is important to keep the water clean in your hot tub. Water is pulled through a drain and then is processed through a filter and eventually makes its way back into the tub. Therefore, filters are very important to this process and must be maintained regularly and it is even suggested to physically remove filters and wash them off with a hose until they are clean on a weekly basis. If the filter doesn’t seem to be getting clean, there are filter cleaners that can be used, but with the weekly maintenance, that should not be needed. Filters do wear out eventually and a complete filter change every three to six months should keep your hot tub clean.
Along with the filters doing their job to keep things clean, a hot tub owner must understand that there are always particles that will end up in the tub, no matter how clean you are, and if not treated, they can cause harm. So, what do you do about them? The hot tub will need a chemical treatment that will consist of chlorine tablets and an anti-foaming agent that is important for the extended use of your hot tub. If you live in an area where the water is considered hard, it is best to add an anti-scaling chemical which will help prevent the build up of calcium deposits that could permanently stain your hot tub.
The Wonders of Hot Tubs
As you may know, there’s nothing better than sitting in a hot tub, after a hard day’s work or a long day of driving the kids from one place to the next, grabbing dinner on the run and ending it near complete exhaustion. No, there is nothing that can get you physically and mentally relaxed like a long soak in a hot tub, that’s for sure. So what is it about sitting a hot tub that helps take all of the worries of the day and makes them disappear?
Seriously, it sounds almost magical, doesn’t it? Is it the steam from the hot water that grabs hold of the tension in your body and then floats it all away that does it? Is it like the feeling you get when you walk into Disney World, for the first time (or for the first time on one visit) and your eyes get HUGE when you look down Main Street to Cinderella’s Castle and you realize that you’re standing in the most magical place on the planet? It doesn’t matter if you are 5 years old, 60 or 102; that feeling is there and it is a wonder to comprehend.
The thing is, there aren’t any magical answers, there are just tried and true, scientifically proven reasons as to why, when you step into a hot tub at the end of a long day, that you are able to release all of the days worries and tensions.
All day long we walk around and our bodies are pounded, with each step we take, by gravity. We wouldn’t notice it unless we were concentrating specifically on the force of gravity and how it affects every step we take; but it’s there, and it is constantly putting a huge amount of pressure on your entire physical self, every single day. So, what does that have to do with the wonders of a hot tub? When you sit in a hot tub, your body becomes buoyant and you are relieved of up to 30% of the natural gravitational pull that stresses your physical self all day long. As if that weren’t enough, because we could all spend a couple of minutes in a swimming pool for that effect, but there’s more to a hot tub’s wonder.
As you submerge your tired old self into the hot water, your body naturally begins to warm and warmth brings about relaxation. It all happens because your blood flow is in high gear, while your veins and capillaries are also in a relaxed, not tense, state of being. So, it all works like this; blood does the flowing, your heart works better, and you are not being driven to the ground by 100% force. Is that all there is to it? Well, basically yeah, that’s the tip of the ice berg and the basic understanding of why, after a day spent totally on the hamsters wheel, all it takes is a soak in a hot tub to completely rejuvenate the body and mind. Amazing, isn’t it?
Help for Arthritis Sufferers in Hot Tubs
If you’ve ever experienced the pain of arthritis or have had to watch someone you know and love suffer with it you will be pleased to know the Arthritis Foundation highly recommends the healing properties of hot tubs for its afflicted. People with arthritis have a very difficult time moving and by being submerged in warm water, they are alleviated of some of their discomfort and are even able to get the unimaginable done; they are able to exercise with little discomfort.
As always, with any new activity, if you are an arthritis sufferer and would like to start enjoying the hot tub, please first check with a physician before you begin.
When your doctor has said its okay for you to begin exercising in a hot tub, start off by allowing your body to warm up for several minutes before starting any exercises. This is one of those miracle uses of the hot tub for people with arthritis because not only will they be able to get some exercising in, they will be able to gain muscle by doing so.
It is extremely important to take things slowly when exercising in a hot tub for several reasons; one is because you can strain muscles if you are not properly warmed up before starting, two is the fact that it is possible to over exert yourself in a hot tub by doing too much or doing it for too long to where you become lightheaded and dizzy. Getting to that point won’t help any exercising, and it can be detrimental to your over-all health. The third reason to take things slowly happens after you have exercised, keep in mind that now that your muscles have been stretched and worked, it is important to keep them warm for several minutes before getting out of the hot tub to allow your muscles to relax before hitting the cooler air.
For the person who suffers with arthritis, the mere fact that they are able to move with less discomfort in a hot tub or even a swimming pool is nothing shy of miraculous. Those with arthritis are in constant pain and a lot of it has to do with the simple fact that there is a gravitational pull to the earth we live on and that is greatly alleviated if they are submerged in water. Warm water is an added benefit because it will also cause the blood vessels to dilate, which will allow for more blood and oxygen to flow to muscles and skin not to mention the heart.
But it is an activity that if not followed and practiced properly could bring on more problems than were there before. So if you are thinking about getting some exercise in a hot tub where your arthritis will be lessened, don’t forget to talk to your doctor first and follow the guidelines that have been presented in order to take the best care of you. A little warm water exercising will go a long way on the road to better health.