Spa Problem

[bmick]

I have a Garden Leisure 8 person spa with jet control buttons # 1 and

1. #1 control works normally....push once for low and twice for high. The second jet area has started coming on by itself. It controls the lounger area and the fountain. When this happens I push the button to disengage the #2 area but nothing changes. Other than that the second area works normally when I push it. Anyone have an idea what is causing this? It has worked fine for several years until this has started occuring.

I hope to figure it out and maybe fix it myself. The nearest repair man is about 1.5 hours away and quoted a $50 an hour rate from when he leaves home until he returns. He did say he would come down a little if he had to make a second trip with any parts he doesn't normally carry on the truck.

Thanks in advance for any advice you have.

[salty]

Are you sure it's not coming on to maintain temp, or do an automatic filtering cycle?

[trader4]

Good point. If that's not the case, then it's probably time to take the cover off and start tracing it out. From the description, it sounds like the control you have is pneumatic. So, you should have a line/lines going from it to some widget that converts the pneumatic signal into an electrical one. Since you have two identical buttons, it may be possible to temporarily switch lines, components, etc to identify what's wrong.

[salty]

I figured the OP may not reralize that on many spas, the one or two daily filter run cycles are timed based on when power is applied to the spa. If there is a power failure, and you turn the spa back on at a different time of day than when it was turned on previously, the filter cycles will now run at a new time. When the filter cycle is running, you can usually switch a two speed pump up to high speed, but you can't turn it completely off. Same for when heat is being called for.

[bmick]

Thanks for the ideas.

Based on your ideas here is some more info.

The control panel is electronic.

I know that when the filter and heat cycles engage the only jets that kick on are in area 1. I think this is because the area jets can also be a fountain that shoots straight up out of the spa. If it kick on automatically it would be hitting the cover with quite a bit of force.

I can override the heat cycle by adjusting the temp. I have done this many times in our years of using it. Not sure I have ever tried to override the filtering cycle but we have had it kick on while we were in it. Only area 1 was engaged.

Thanks for the ideas.

[John Grabowski]

*Some of the new spas that I have seen are microprocessor controlled which is where the root of your problem may be. I would contact the factory and see what they say. They may have a replacement unit available for free or for a modest price.

[gfretwell]

These things usually use some kind of diaphragm switch and I bet it is bad. I was never exactly sure how these things got listed since switching devices need to be 5' away from the water. (NEC)

My neighbor has one and he is on his 3d control panel.