Fixing and installing a Spa ?

[Bob]

Welp, My Dear o'l Dad gave me a Spa... Nice big one, he just had the pump re built again, and it finally quit leaking,but now the heater went out so he decided to replace the whole thing...
and gave me the thing... so I went up and got it and helped get his new one in place.
... I got the Big monster home and off the truck with the tractor and sitting by the back of the house
over looking the creek ...(that was fun!)
now to set it up and get it to work... should be neet...never had a spa before ! LOL
 I gott'a level it and get everything plumbed to it and then find out whats wrong with the heater... if the heater is shot I'll make a solar heater for it, probably will even if its still working good as they eat too much electricity!...
... I may wait till mid winter and fill the monster from the creek... its probably got a 700gal capacity ...its 7ftx6ft and is a self contained unit....has jets in it and all that, and should really help ease the aches and pains after a long days work.
...
 Thank you Dad ! HAHAHAHA
...
Bob.......

[hydrotinkerer]

Now put a table next to it, put the computer on it and your set. You might never get out of it. lol

[Bob]

I got the Spa filled today and got a 20amp plug on the heavy extension cord (big around as your finger!) plugged it in and turned it on and it burped and farted for a while till I discovered it wasn't full enough, so I filled it the rest of the way and it took off like it was supposed to !
except the heater... Like my Dad said its probably shot, I'll pull it off, plug the lines and see what I can do with it... I scrounged up some 1" PVC black pipe that I'd like to make into a solar heater for it...but there isn't enough pipe there for a good strong heater...so I'll probably go buy some 1/2" pipe and make a big coil and lay it in the Sun...and run the small heater pump on a morning to night light switch (Daylight to Dark)... (if I can find one)... that's bound to be cheaper than replacing the electric heater for the spa... I amagon those cost at LEAST $200 bucks...but that's hard to say!
...
Bob....

[crb]

Bob,
You could try building a metal wood burner that sets in the tub.
crb

[Bob]

that's a really good idea there CRB...Thank you !  it shouldn't be too hard to come up with...
like a metal tub and a few pipes along the side for an air supply.... I could just go buy one at the feed store ! HAHAHAHA   but then again I'd have to be careful not to splash the water...and that's no fun at all!....  LOL !
...
 I have an old Military Water heater..the kind that you can run gasoline, Kerosean, or oil in and it will run for about 4 hrs on one gal of fuel.... and it gets RED HOT too....  I could make a stand for it so it doesn't touch the sides and melt the fiberglass... reach over the side and plop it in the center of the Spa and light it up.... I bet it would get that Spa to the Boiling point before it runs through one tank full ! ... heheheheh
.... yah thats a good idea.... I could use it tonight ! HAHAHHAHAHA and my back needs it from all the wood cutting I've done lately ! HEHEHEHEHEH
...thanks for the insperation CRB.... LOL!
...
Bob......

[Bob]

Sense CRB made me think of the old Military water heater I have been Hording for years I decided to clean it up and put it in the Spa and see what it can do....
its been running for about an hour now and the temp of the water has definitely came up already.... not enough to get into yet...but its getting there !
... I had to make a bracket to hold it away from the sides and set it on a 4x4 on the bottom and then put a concrete block and a big hunk of railroad rail on it to hold it down... then I lit it up and its been going every sense.... making bubbles around the bottom every once in a while and rumbleing away very nicely! HEHEHEHE 
 Now when the wife gets home, I'm going to tell her "SEE !... I Knew that o'l military heater would come in handy some day ! Aren't you glad I didn't throw it away like you wanted me to ? HAHAHAHAHA !"
...(once a Pack Rat always a Pack Rat!)
...
Bob...

[Tink]

Hay, my packratness has gotten me out of a few jams in the past. I was born in the year of the rat so I'm very fond of packratting stuff.
Tink

[Lee Hazleton]

Hay, my packratness has gotten me out of a few jams in the past. I was born in the year of the rat so I'm very fond of packratting stuff.
Tink

Tink..1957?

[Bob]

Ah Phittt ! your only as old as ya FEEL !(so I guess you should feel a bunch of yungins eh ?)
I was born in 1952...and way back then the planet was all green and and nobody worried about global warming .... till all the Dinosaurs kicked the bucket, and they had to come up with an excuse to tell the younger generation...they did to !   LOL !
...
Anyway... that Old Military heater heated up the Spa just fine... in fact a bit too warm ! after 20 minutes I had to get out...  (it makes ya worry when your wife is standing there chopping up carrots and potatoes and tossing them into your Spa!) HAHAHAHAHHAHAHA
....
seriously, it was really nice...a bit too warm for my tastes, but boy do I feel CLEAN ! that thing beat the dirt off me ... those jets work really good ! LOL !
 I have some doubts that a SOLAR Heater of the type I'm thinking of making will reach the temp the old military heater did.... but then again I ain't "cooking Soup" either !
....now I need to make a sail boat for the Spa ! .... no bathtub is complete without one ! (I never had a rubber ducky ya see!)
...
hehehe
Bob.....

[Tink]

Lee,
Try 1948!
Tink

[crb]

Bob,
Glad to see it's cooking, I made a aux. wood heater for my hot tub,
cut the heat time to 2 hours instead of 4 hours.
Unfortunately I haven't used mine in about 10 years.  Maybe longer.
crb, 1947

[Tink]

crb,
I see I'm not the only old man here.
Tink

[Lee Hazleton]

Lee,
Try 1948!
Tink

Sorry Tink. I know that I'm the same as far as that calendar goes, but I'm '57

[Bob]

HA ! I got the Wife to join me in the Spa last night...that was really nice... more fun than by yourself for SURE !....
that Spa held the heat all day and was just right when we got in it at dusk....
she says we definitely need a "Rubber Ducky" though !  LOL
...so it seams that the military water heater worked a treat ! but I'd rather it be set up automatically to maintain its temp....so I'll see if I can get that little heater working in it !
....if nothing else I'll pick up some black pipe and some fittings so I can run a solar heater fer it.... to help maintain the temp !
...
Bob..........

  

[Tink]

Lee,
Us rats are good at business. I've made a lot of money but could never hold on to it. I think that is because I'm a Leo.
Tink

[Lee Hazleton]

Same here Tink. As a Leo, an extra fifty bucks falls in my lap & 'bingo', another 10lbs. of KOH gets ordered.

[Bob]

I'm a Sagittarius and can't hang on to money even if I glue it to my wallet !
but I contribute that to never having had any in the first place ! LOL !
...
I got to looking at the Relay that I found was Kapoot in the Spa...and I've seen many relays but Never one that you could take appart ! but you can this one ... so I took it appart and started to unwind the coil on the Electro-magnet that both ends were melted off... and discovered about half way through that the entire windings had fuzed togather inside... anyway after I got it all cleaned up I am very confident that I will be able to re-wind it when I purchase some magnet wire....
although I don't think I'll use the same super thin wire I'll probably buy #22 wire and wind all I can on it and see if I can get that to work...the electromagnet just pulls down a slug that makes contacts connect, so its nothing special, but I am wondering about it being on 24/7 if I use larger wire...
it will probably burn up ... but I have no way of knowing what the internal resistance to the coil was... but on the side of the relay it says "Joshlyn Clark"  volt=277/LRA=125/FLA=25/RES=30....
(it also has 2 more sets of numbers for higher voltages, (I assume) 400v and 600v ...)
on the bottom frame a number is ink stamped on it 058B  (part number perhaps ?) closest I can find to a part number is on the faded sticker and I wonder about the "8" in the number!...A9-308647
I'll see if I can run the part down on the web,after I post this...
but if my guess is correct the internal resistance should be 30ohms.
this Relay looks to be made for 220vac but it operates on 110vac... although I believe it can be wired for 220vac, it never has been. (My Dad bought it new)
the relay is used to turn on and off the water heater and a small circulation pump....the thermocouples that control the on and off are on a different set of relays.
...
My 200ft of black hose doesn't seam to be doing much in these chilly tempitures I turned it on today and the incomeing water was colder than the water in the tub so I turned it off !...its not really supprizing because I don't have the pipe enclosed in a box or anything...its just laying on the ground HAHAHAHAHAHA ... the warmest the thing got today was tepid in temp... not realy good enough for a solar heater...if I'm going to use it I have to put more effort into it and make a honnest and for REAL solar heater ! LOL !
...
Bob.......

 

[Bob]

Well, I found the part... had to match up numbers,but... that got me a catalog number and modle number...and the price is $39.00 ...which isn't too bad... problem is they only have Contact info, no ordering stuff, so they probably only sell to businesses,...hummmm
....
I was AMAZED at the price of some of the controls they sell at "Joslyn Clark Controls" $17,000.00 for something that would fit in the palm of your hand ! ... surely they Jest !  (shakes head) Unbelieveable!
solid gold isn't worth that much ! Gadzooks!
...
Bob.......

[WyndFryst]

Actually, that sounds realistic. There is a lot of work that goes into the schematics and building of some controls. Trust me, I did it for a year my freshman year, and again my senior year. Some of the schematics I worked on required a magnifying glass to work on, as did the final part. Some of the parts ARE solid gold, as well. Value is not always directly constant with size. And usually the companies that purchase such parts can easily afford it. I wouldn't be surprised if they sell only to companies, but you might want to give them a call/send them an email/check their website anyhow.

I'm a Capricorn, and if I didn't have all this stuff I wanted so badly I'd probably be able to hang onto money. As it is there are many, many things I need, but they're only available online. So lacking a credit card I'm pretty much lost. I wish they'd bring back the old open-air markets. Oh, and that online businesses sold their stuff at them.

[Bob]

Yah your Right, they don't sell to the public... so I did a search on Spa Parts and "bingo" found one that sold the relay I wanted for $17.00, and that included shipping, although they didn't tell me the arrival date, I expect it to be here by Friday.
 that way I don't have to go into town and run all around trying to find the magnet wire and then spending all day re winding the electromagnet and still not knowing it it will last a 24 hr run time.
.... the new one is almost identical but it looks like they improved it by covering the moving parts to keep out debree... a needed change I think!
....
so IF I ordered the RIGHT part The problem should be solved for the Spa ...I Hope ! HAHAHA!
...
Bob....

 

[Bob]

Your in Luck... I saw the other day at Walmart they sell Master card's and Visa Cards that are good for the amount you "LOAD" them with... and your not charged a monthly bill like the credit card companies do
(at least they said so, there is probably a catch to that!),they were bragging that you can buy all the things ON-LINE that you've been wanting!<GRIN>
 so now all you need is a big bank roll and you can get all those things on line that ya want !
...hehehehe
...
Bob........

[WyndFryst]

I saw a setup for a pool a while ago while looking through a pool supply magazine a while ago. It's like a solar panel, but with some tubes running through it to absorb the heat, or something like that. Perhaps a pump on one end to pump it inside, then pumping into the hot tub? Or would that cause flow issues?

[Bob]

oh all I have to do is actually build a solar heater instead of laying the pipe on the cold wet ground
hahahhah its a matter of not having the materials at the moment and not real concerned with getting them... I have too many other projects going on now to be real concerned about it! LOL
....
a plywood box, with 2"x4" sides or even 2"x6" sides for a bit more height with the black piping coiled up as tight as you can get it,and as much linear footage as possible ,and a clear plastic cover for the top... makes for a dandy solar heater that will make 150~180 degree hot water with no problem
...all you need then is to circulate the water through the coiled pipe and you got it made.
fortunately, the Spa has a small circulation pump in it ....much like the one in the Bus, not much volume or pressure but enough to get the job done !
So actually I already have a plan ...but I'm too lazy to put it into action ! LOL !
...
Bob...

[WyndFryst]

What kind of black piping? The corrugated drain type or the flat type painted black or something? Because the corrugated drain type can hold water and cause turbulence, so I believe if you want constant flow the flat type would be best. Perhaps in an 'S' type method, but tightly? And would the box merely be on the ground?

[Bob]

its PVC pipe 1/2" on o.d. and is smooth on the inside and outside.
 I've arranged the COIL of long water hose into a 20ft circle for now laying it on the ground, but that's not working out at all...for obvious reasons <grin> mid summer it would work but not right now!
...
so a 8'x8' box with the hose coiled up on one side facing the sun (propped up and leaning in the southern direction) ...and covered with clear plastic to keep out the cold... and the plywood painted black to absorb the heat of the sun.
...that should work anyway.... dunno' if I'll ever get the building meterial to work with though !
HAHAHHA
...
Bob.......

[WyndFryst]

Perhaps a type of system like some of the solar power plants have, rotating the solar box as the sun moves? Just an idea, get you hot water all day!

[Bob]

without the "Tracker" that's really hard to make up...
but a Solar Still is what those are called and they work very well indeed... in fact they will boil the water easily.  they can be made so they do not have to track the sun however, with a parabolic troff and a pipe set at the focal point and the whole unit is angled to the sun.
but that is much more than I wanted to do for the Spa !...although it would boil the water if I wanted it to ! <GRIN>
I have a 10' parabolic sat. dish that I could put a small tank at the focal point and circulate water through it.... but again I have the problem of tracking the sun, and I'd want it to be done automatically or a close facsimile . although the base of the sat dish can swing in the correct arc
needed to track the sun I'ed have to come up with some photoelectric eyes that throw relays or something to turn it a bit to keep it in focus... the dish turning mech. would handle the turning of the dish fine.. for winter and summer latitudes I'ed have to change by hand... but thats maybe every 2 months or so so its no big deal....
I was thinking of making that up to power hot water for the house and make steam for a steam generator... but it stops working when the sun goes down

...
... I finally got a Tracking number for the part I ordered .... instead of 2 days it should be here in a week.... so maybe Monday it will be here I dunno
...
Bob.....

[Bob]

Ok this afternoon the UPS truck came, delivered the new relay...
I put it in the spa control box and put it all back togather and plugged it in... and Nothing!
so I took it all back apart and started testing to see why the heater and recirculation pump wasn't getting power....and I remembered that one of the small wires that went to the on off switch to the
jets was off a while back... so with it plugged in I started hunting down where it SHOULD go....because obviously it wasn't supposed to go where I put it !
...
after a few minutes I tracked it down to the 3rd post on the switch , un pluged the unit , changed the wire and turned it back on and Walla'  the little recirculation pump was running ! Success !
because I know that the relay I just installed controls both the recirculation pump and the heater!
.... every once in a while the heater would girgle... but other than that no real sign that the heater itself was working... so I ASSUMED that it was working and tested the rest and found out that when the jets are on the heater is OFF.... I guess that is so it doesn't draw too much power...a good thing ! LOL!
...
the water temp was at 59degrees when I left it.... went inside and took a nap and then checked the temp again and it was at 80 degrees ! and getting warmer!  so I bundled it up for the night and set the thermostat to 6 on the dial and hope to have a hot spa tomorrow! WOOOO HOOO!
....
it gained about 20 degrees in 7hrs so by 7:00am at that rate it should be at 100degrees! we'll see!
...
I am suspicious that the on off of the heater is set way LOW but didn't see any way to adjust that at all on its temp. sensors... so its one of those you get what it gives you, things...
...
if I remember correctly My Dad said it took 2 to 3 days to reach temperature.... and that looks to be what its doing , so it must be working right!
...
so it LOOKS like I got it working for $14.95.... a bargain instead of having the Guy at the Spa shop come out and fix it !...
...
we'll see how long it lasts though ! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
...
the part they sent me was not what I ordered I ordered a SPST relay they sent a DPST relay that other wise had the same stats... so I just hooked up one side is all. easy peezy!
...
AND I got it all back together with out ANY extra parts ! .... HAHAHAHA!
...
Bob.....

[Bob]

Yep by golly it works great ! THANK YOU POP !!!!
that Spa is wonderfull ! I think I'll take my pillow out there and camp ! LOL
first time I ever had one and you know... I think I'll use the heck out of it now that I got one !
.... now all I need is a swimming Pool.... gott'a have a diving board though.(just what I need I'll break my neck trying to be a Kid again ! LOL)
....
And.... And the thermostat works too... it turned itself off at 110 degrees !
I'm going to go soak up some of that nice heat tonight HEHEHEHE
...
now all I gott'a do is figure out how to put the chemicals in it and all that... its been so long sense I worked on a swimming pool I've forgotten how to do it !.... but I  found a web site and when I get time I got more reading to do !
...
whatt'a mean ya can't teach old Dogs new tricks !!!!!
....
Bob........

[Manta]

You youngsters need to get some time in.

...Us rats are good at business. I've made a lot of money but could never hold on to it. I think that is because I'm a Leo..

But a true Leo won't worry about that. He will know that there is always money to be made if he really wants to make some.

Manta.

A Leo and a Monkey.

[Bob]

hehehe
 I'm a Sagittarius... (thank god for spell checkers on that one!) and my Birthday is TODAY!  LOL
I'm officially 58 years old and I feel no different from when I turned 40...
... I've been  dirt poor from the start and unfortionately I've managed to keep it that way dispite my best efforts ! HAHAHAHA
one time in my life when My wife and I were both working full time in Reno we got 31k for the year
and last year my wife brought that much almost by herself !  go figure!....
Money is something you never have enough of.... and it is vital to your exhistance do not underestimate its importance ! ... I was told constantly while I was growing up that money wasn't important... so Making money has never been a top priority for me...I have better things to do with my time than give it away to some slob !  LOL
...but through the years I have learned that contrary to what I was taught Money is very important if you want to live good.... Had I the chance to do my Life over again I would get a Carrier early on and stick with it (probably in the computer field)...and Amass a pile of money and then retire to a big chunk of land with no one around!...
but then again, I wouldn't be me at all either, so its hard to say what would happen!
...
 I am Happy in our Meager exhistance, (and that's probably why it stays that way)...Now that I am retired I am Happier than I've ever been before ! I have the time (if not the money) to tinker and do the things I have always wanted to do... 
 so in that sense I am a success... I know I am much happier than many people out there making 10 times the money we get... and that is indeed a measure of Success...
...
...so technically I follow the Roll of a "Sagittarius" to the letter LOL
I even love archery and am damn good at it too ! HA !
...
Bob.....

[Manta]

Happy Birthday Bob.

Let's hope your around for many more to come.

Get out a bottle of wine,  fire up the tub and relax.

Manta

[Manta]

Just noticed that bit about you being retired.  I retire in three week (should have been in August but I opted to stay on a bit) So at 65 I get my chance to do my own thing. Wish it had been ten years earlier;  but there you go. As for the archery, I'm a member of a local bowman society,  but haven't been there recently.

Enjoy.

Manta

[Bob]

Hay that sounds like a Capital idea ! I have a bottle of my favorite Wine I've been saving for a special occasion.... HA !
...been puttering with the Woodgas burner on the truck most of the morning and having a good time !LOL
....
Bob.....

[Lee Hazleton]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BOB! HOW'S IT FEEL TO BE 30?(AGAIN)[/glow][/b]

[Bob]

What in the world ? .....  HAHAHAHAH NO I don't want to know !   Thanks guys for the happy birthday wishes !   hehehehe 
Lee your definitely a person that has too much time on his hands ! LOL !
...
Bob...