Pink slime, white water mold, bio-films questions & answers

We are trying to get rid of the water mold in our hot tub. Read your site.

Our area: Eugene, Oregon. [local dealer] -- giving us chlorine and bromine shocker. We are on our second go-round.

Have washed, rinsed all....... It still comes back. Is there anything strong enough to keep it out of the tub water? Local dealer has us using Baqua hot tub chems.

We have to use chlorine to shock for the water mold. How can we possibly re-clean and re-shock this tub every few days, going thru the process of draining, scrubbing, vac-ing.... only to have it back in 2-3 days??????

Do we just get rid of the tub? It's a nice one, which we bought second-hand. In great condition, everything works, we spend lots of $$$ getting the proper electrical hook-up, etc. Now what?

Response:
Hi Lois,

Sorry to hear you're having a rough time with white water mold - WWM. The fact is shocking with chlorine WILL NOT do a good job killing it, never mind removing it.

WWM grows & thrives on an underlying "bed" of bio-film. And even bio-film is VERY chlorine/bromine resistant. The only way to deal with the WWM is to use a product such as Spa Purge or Swirl Away or AquaFinesse Spa Clean Tablet or SpaBoss Whirlpool Rinse to attack & remove the biofilm. Here's some further information regarding bio-films & white water mold.

The best thing to do is:
1. Add the Spa Purge, Swirl Away, AquaFinesse Spa Clean Tablets or Whirlpool Rinse to the spa. Allow to run overnight, about 12 hours or so.
2. Drain & clean all fittings, pillows, skimmer & filter areas, etc.
3. Refill the spa.

Since you have a bad case, it may be a good idea to repeat the procedure. That way you can start off clean. Biofilms will re-grow, so whenever you drain & refill the spa, you'll need to purge the plumbing lines where all of that stuff grows.

There is no real way to prevent bio-film growth, unless you are supplementing the spa care with AquaFinesse or SpaNaturally. Both products have good field & clinical proof of preventing & removing bio-films. Chlorine, bromine will both be absorbed by the bio-films. Ionizers like Spa Frog or Nature 2 have no effect. Biguanides like Baqua Spa or Soft Soak will only "adhere" to the bio-film.

There is no easy fix and you've got to be aggressive against it. I hope that helps. Let me know.
Ron