I was thinking of buying a whirlpool/ spa bath. My wife went to a bathroom shop the other day and the sales guy advised against having one (unless we are going to buy a top of the range one - which he didn't sell!) because the water stagnates in them and smells if you don't put them on a hour cleaning cycle each time you use it. Apparently, his parents had one and wished they never did - he sited an example of them going away for 2 weeks and when they came back, it took days for the smell to go.
This all sounded a bit odd to me but since it came from someone who "sells" them, thought I best take notice. Has anyone else heard of this? Is there a way around this? Does this only happen when you use the jets as opposed to using it like a regular bath?
And yes, water does stagnate in the pipes, and after a year or 2 of weekly of use, (showers on other days!) there was some scum build-up in the pipes, so we bought some commercial cleaner and gave it a go... Lots of slimey stuff came out. Now (after reading what the active ingredient in the commercial cleaner is), I use a few tablespoons of ordinary caustic soda in a bath of warm water every few months. Fill it up, run it for
5 minutes with the bubbles turned off, leave it until I remember to come back to it, run it again, then drain it, fill with cold and rinse everything down.
As far as I can work out, it's exactly the same as (eg) the Sink or Bath waste pipe - you get a gradual build up of a slimey residue over time - it doesn't really smell that I've noticed, it's just a bit unplesant.
The commercial cleanner was blue, so it was easy to see if it had splashed, but if you use caustic for anything else, you'll know the precautions, etc..
If there was a way to flush it out by connecting the cold tap into it, then that would be ideal, however... I also suspect that if I just filled the bath up with cold water (after a hot bath) and ran it, then it would be just fine too.
I suspect it boils down to what else you put in the water - we just use nice bubble bath and ordinary shampoo/shower gel. Maybe some of the "posher" oils, bath bombs, etc. might cause the pipes to slime up quicker, who knows...
So go for it, I say. It's absolutely brilliant after been out walking, wood cutting, gardening, etc.
We have two in out house, one that is about 20 years+ old, and a much newer one that is only a few years old.
The older one has the problem you describe, as the pipes between the jets are straight. The newer one has curved pipes between the jets (so the middle of the pipe between two jets is higher) this means all the water drains out, and we don't get this problem!
So, if you get one that has self draining jets and pipework, then you shouldn't have a problem.
Yes, if left after use they do either have the pipes fill with mould which then comes loose and floats around in the water or it smell awful. I gave up using mine until I came up with a way to clean it! Cleaning by "put them on a hour cleaning cycle each time you use it" is rubbish. I was told this and tried all sorts of cleaners - expensive ones sold by bathroom shops - dishwasher tablets - bleach etc. None worked in the long term.
The solution was simple. When you finish using it wait till it's empty then use the shower pipe, without the head, poked in the air inlet and flush till clean water comes out of all the jets. If you have many jets you may have to 'cork' a few of them to the flush the ones you don't see water coming out of. I've been doing this for three years now without any problems.
Though you will have to give it a good clean to get the crap out in the first place. For which I suggest Harpic.
To be honest I don't know as I only use the bath with the jets running. I shower most of the time in a separate unit. I would 'guess' that the idea would be to flush the pipes often enough to prevent mould forming. Say twice a week...?
To simplify, imagine a bath with a double-skinned bottom, enabling air to be blown out of perforations.
After each use, the air system blows out any water.
Once a week we use their sterilising tablet. This is simply put in when the water is down to about 50 mm, left to soak for a few minutes and then emptied.
Once a month the stronger cleaning solution is used. This soaks for a couple of hours, and is then emptied.
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