Tips to Host the Perfect Winter Spa Party

Although most of us duck inside to the safety of warm blankets and thick socks at the first sign of cold, winter can be the perfect season for hosting a hot tub party for friends and family! Since we’ve gone over how to prepare your hot tub for winter, hot tub maintenance and selecting a hot tub cover, it’s time to put together the ultimate get together!
To throw a great winter hot tub party, nothing is more important than making sure you have the right party accessories.

Spa Accessories

Drinks: Baby, it’s cold outside! So make sure your guests have something warm to drink to keep them toasty while they soak in the spa. We recommend winter favorites such as hot cocoa and coffee, as well as some holiday classics, like eggnog or toddies. Nowhere to place them? Purchase a removable spa shelf so guests can easily reach their drinks.

Toys: Your family is snowed in and the kid’s school got canceled? Time for a hot tub party! Grab some waterproof playing cards and have some family time playing canasta or go fish.

Relax: Nothing is as relaxing as dipping into a hot spa on a cold day - add an inflatable hot tub pillow to maximize relaxation for your guests, or try to swirl in some soothing spa aromatherapy crystals to enhance the overall experience for everyone.

Safety: Don’t forget that sun damage can occur even in the winter! If you are hosting a daytime spa party, be sure to provide waterproof sunblock for friends and family.

Entertainment: Set up a portable DVD player by the hot tub – either on an attachable spa shelf or a table nearby – and pop in your favorite film for a perfect afternoon. If you’d rather keep things more social and conversational, plug your iPod into a portable stereo on a nearby table to enjoy music while socializing with friends and family.

Prepping for the Party

Scenery: A winter spa party set against a crisp white landscape can relax, soothe, re-energize and completely clear your mind. Soak up the surroundings by making sure any unsightly gardening tools or hoses are kept out of site. If you are hosting guests at night, be sure to switch on any holiday lights outside as well as the hot tub light to really enhance the mood! To keep guests warm once they are out of the tub, you can even build a bonfire (purchase a chiminea or fire pit to ensure safety).

Cover Ups: Avoid discomfort by preparing for your guests ahead of time. Suggest that guests bring a robe for after the hot tub and provide everyone with a warm towel once the hot tub portion of the evening is complete. Be sure to lay out mats by the door to keep water from dripping inside the house. Keep guests safe and healthy by providing a warm retreat from the cold in addition to towels, robes and/or socks.

Indoors: Now that you and your guests have enjoyed the invigorating mix of brisk winter air and hot, soothing water, it’s time to relax in the living room with a glass of brandy for the adults and a movie for the children. Light a fire and enjoy the cozy environment, it’s the ideal way to wrap up a winter spa party!

Hot Tub Warehouse is a supplier of quality, name-brand spa maintenance products and spa parts. As an online resource for the very best solutions for all your hot tub needs, Hot Tub Warehouse offers you the best selection of products.

Take a Load Off With a Hot Tub Cover Lifter

It’s been another long work week and you want to enjoy a soothing soak in the hot tub. The only thing standing between you and the most relaxing part of your evening is that massive spa cover.
Make life a little easier with a hot tub cover lift – easy to use, affordable and great for protecting your spa from the elements, cover lifters will give you the little extra helping hand that you need!

Spa Cover Protection

In addition to eliminating back strain and aches, a hot tub cover lifter can lengthen the life of your hot tub cover. Using a cover lift reduces the wear and tear on your spa cover caused by constantly dragging it on and off. With constant pulling, tugging and scraping along the floor, your spa cover will not last very long! Diminish the damage to your spa cover by installing a spa cover lifter that will keep the cover from dragging on the floor and potentially getting torn.

Insulation

Increase your spa cover’s insulating capabilities with a spa cover lifter which provides another layer of heat retention during the brutally cold winter months, thereby reducing the time and energy needed to reheat the water for use and minimizing the potential for any water freezing.

No Water Logged Covers

If your spa cover is a little older, changes are that it has been water logged and is heavier than normal! Heavy spa covers are cumbersome to remove and can cause back pain, not to mention, water logged spa covers can actually diminish in efficacy as the water may seep into the foam lining and damage it. Eventually, every rigid foam spa cover will saturate with moisture and become ineffective.

A damaged cover will not be effective in insulating your spa and can actually do more harm than good. We recommend implementing a hot tub cover lifter to keep that cover up and off the water.

Ease of Use

This simple mechanism allows one person to remove the spa cover quickly and easily and without the aid of another person. Eliminate strain on your back by using a cover lift to do the heavy lifting for you!

Hot Tub Warehouse is a supplier of quality, name-brand spa maintenance products and spa parts. As an online resource for the very best solutions for all your hot tub needs, Hot Tub Warehouse offers you the best selection of products.

Hot Tub Water Testing

Much like a car or a perfectly landscaped yard, owning a hot tub requires a certain amount of upkeep to ensure longevity and usability. Maintaining your spa’s cleanliness and equipment will ensure years of use and enjoyment and keep overall cleaning time to a minimum as problems will not be able to build.

The most crucial element of spa care is the chemical balance of its water which, when well maintained, will reduce the negative effects of regular usage. When people use the spa, residual soap, perfume, cosmetics, lotions, deodorants, perspiration, and other natural body oils may be released which can contaminate the water and mix with the spa’s chemical balance.

It is important to be aware of the frequency of spa usage in your home so you can create a cleaning schedule accordingly, and to use products specifically formulate for hot tubs exclusively. However, how do you know what to do once the water is no longer crystal clear? You delve into your owner’s manual only to be bombarded with a slew of terms you have never before heard – calcium hardness? Alkalinity?

Don’t panic! Water testing is easy and quick and will ensure a longer life for your spa and its equipment.

Glossary

PPM: stands for “parts per million” and is a measuring unit used to indicate quantities of chemicals that ought to be introduced to the water.

Alkalinity: total alkalinity must be correctly balanced prior to measuring pH otherwise the pH readings will be incorrect. Total alkalinity needs to range from 80 to 120 PPM to be considered acceptable. Remember that pH-lowering chemicals will also affect the total alkalinity of the hot tub.

pH: remember bases and acids in high school chemistry? pH is a measure of how acidic the water is which can impact the state of your equipment. This is one of the most important factors in water balance because extreme acidity can cause serious problems including corrosion on your spa parts and skin irritation for users. On the other hand, a high pH reading (meaning the water is basic) can cause cloudy water and scale formation. The right balance of the two would result in a pH reading between 7.2 and 7.8.

Calcium Hardness: a measurement of minerals (calcium, magnesium) in your spa water, this is sometimes referred to as “overall hardness.” A certain amount of calcium hardness is good as without it, the water will draw from other minerals (copper, iron, aluminum) which can cause corrosion on your hot tub equipment. Calcium readings ought to measure between 100-250 PPMs from acryclic tubs and 250-450 PPMs for plaster.

Sanitizer: Like any other item we use, hot tubs too can get dirty! Sanitizers keep bacteria and viruses from growing and spreading as they are want to do in hot water. These products keep the water clean and fresh. The two most popular sanitizers are bromine and chlorine – which one you use depends on your spa so be sure to check your owners guide.

Testing Kits: Liquid vs. Strips
In the past, liquid test kits have been considered more accurate in determining hot tub water quality. However, these tests can be complicated and cumbersome and with advancements in hot tub testing kits, modern strips are just as capable of accurately and precisely calibrating water quality. Plus, they are easier to use and more economical!

Adjusting the pH
If you tested your pH and the result was too acidic (reading below 7.2), correct is by adding the SpaPure pH Up liquid. Alternately, a pH reading above 7.8 indicates that the water is too base and needs to be decreased by using the pH Down product.

Before adding any chemicals to adjust the pH, be sure to test total alkalinity levels!

Adding Sanitizers
Chlorine readings need to register between 1.5 and 3.0 PPMs while for bromine the levels ought to be 3.0-5.0 PPMs.

Adjusting Calcium Hardness
Since there is no way to chemically lower the calcium level in your hot tub, the best way to avoid it is to prevent it from happening. However, low calcium hardness can be adjusted with the SpaPure Calcium Hardness Increase product.

Hot Tub Warehouse is a supplier of quality, name-brand spa maintenance products and spa parts. As an online resource for the very best solutions for all your hot tub needs, Hot Tub Warehouse offers you the best selection of products.