Did you know that there is calcium in the water you use to fill your hot tub? Every water source has it but some have higher levels than others. You may not think you need to worry about it, but it’s pretty important to keeping your water clean and clear.

Calcium Hardness, sometimes referred to as Total Hardness or just Hardness, is basically the amount of calcium and magnesium dissolved in the water. If you find it really cumbersome to get your water balanced when you first fill the hot tub, it’s most likely because your Total Hardness is too high.
Using your FROG Test Strips (or any strip that has a Hardness reading), you should check your source water before you fill the hot tub. If it shows a reading higher than 250 ppm, the water is too hard. That could lead to scale and difficulty maintaining the right pH and Total Alkalinity levels which will result in your sanitizer being less effective.
The ideal solution is to find a soft water source to fill your tub possibly from inside your home or there are companies that truck in balanced water. One solution that works fairly well is a hose filter. You attach it to the end of the hose and it filters out most of the calcium so it doesn’t enter the hot tub. You may still need to add a scale inhibitor to finish the job which you can find from your local dealer.
If your calcium levels are below 150 ppm, you could experience corrosion of hot tub surfaces or jets leading to costly repairs. Thankfully, increasing your calcium is much easier than lowering it. You simply add a Hardness Up or Calcium Increaser product to the water. Remember to follow the directions carefully so you don’t end up with high hardness levels.
Periodically test your hardness levels. If it starts to creep up, you may have to add more scale inhibitor. Keeping your calcium levels in the ideal range of 150-250 ppm will ensure that your hot tub is protected from damage and your sanitizer is working to keep the water clean and clear and ready for a good soak.