Do you have to empty your hot tub every year? The short answer is, yes. For some hot tubs, you actually have to empty your hot tub multiple times per year. For other hot tubs, you only need to empty it once per year. Whether you have to empty it once per year or multiple times per year depends on a few things. If you’re going to empty your hot tub because you’re not using it for the winter, please check out our How To Winterize A Hot Tub Article to make sure you do this properly. So, let’s dive in!
How Often Do I Need To Empty My Hot Tub?
This all depends on the type of watercare system you have in your hot tub.
If you own a salt water hot tub, you’ll be happy to hear that you only need to empty your hot tub every 12-16 months. Why is this? Because you’re not adding in regular chemicals every few days, your hot tub water stay’s cleaner, longer.
When you add in chemicals to a hot tub regularly, you’re adding in other particles to the water that build up over time.
With standard ozone systems – you’ll have to replace the water 3-4x per year because of this. Your water can only handle so many particles from added chemicals and typically reaches its breaking point at 3-4 months.
If you have a UV system or strictly chlorine with no added sanitation system, you’ll have to empty your water more often because of the increased amount of sanitizing chemicals you’ll be adding into the water. You may need to replace your water up to 6x if your hot tub doesn’t have any sanitation system.
Reasons You Have To Empty Your Water
As explained above, regular maintenance requires you to empty your hot tub water. Again, the frequency depends on the type of sanitation system you have for your hot tub.
You haven’t used your hot tub in months. If this is the case and you do not own a salt water system, you may need to empty your water to give it a refresh. Often times, if your hot tub water is too far gone, it’s easier to just empty & start over. If you have a salt system, you’re able to go months without hot tub use because of the constant sanitation.
Your water chemistry in your hot tub just will not stay balanced. Whether it’s your pH levels, alkalinity levels, or your chlorine level – you just can’t seem to get it where it needs to be. This is often a sign that your hot tub water needs to be changed.
You had a party & things got a little crazy. You wake up after a big party and go out to the hot tub and you can’t even see the bottom of the hot tub. This is a sign to just pull that drain and start over. Although you may be able to re-balance the water chemistry, it’s going to be easier to just give it a good refresh. We don’t know what has spilled into the hot tub & it’s just a safer bet to start with some clean water.
You won’t be using your hot tub for the winter. If you are a snow bird or you just simply aren’t a winter hot tubber, you’ll have to empty your hot tub if you’re not going to be using it. However, this isn’t just your average pull the plug & walk away. Your hot tub must be winterized properly. To learn how to properly winterize your hot tub, visit our article on How To Winterize Your Hot Tub.
