Water in a Hot Tub Air Blower – help!

Water in a hot tub air blower is the last thing you want. In short, if you have found this page, you have already seen the consequences. Your breaker will trip. We all know that water and electricity do not mix so in this article, we will explore some of the reasons you have water in your air blower and how we can fix this. I have lots more information like this on my YouTube Channel too – check it out.

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Dry out your hot tub air blower

The first thing you are going to need to do is dry out your hot tub air blower. To do this, the best way is to physically remove and unplug it from the hot tub. You should be able to screw of the font of the blower to detach it from the air lines, and then you will need to unplug the LokNMate, AMP or Molex connector as they are known from the spa pack.

Next, physically empty any water that is in the blower, then you need to put the blower in a nice warm location for a couple of days – the airing cupboard next to the boiler is a great place for this.

Drying out the blower completely can often save the blower so you don’t need to replace it. It will also stop the blower tripping the breaker – no water, no breaker tripping.

Water in hot tub air blower? Air and Water Lines Actually Mix!

If you have a blower on your hot tub, then you have separate air and water lines going into the tub itself. Usually, these two lines will meet in the “Jet Bodies” and this is where the air and the water will mix. This gives a stronger jet and a more “bubbly jet”

Why is this important? Well, when the pump and the air blower stop working, the water returns to its normal state under gravity. As there are no “valves” inside of the jets themselves, the water can freely pass into the water lines. This is normal.

We need to know this as we need to prevent the water entering the blower.

What can Happen if we don’t prevent water entering the blower?

We’ve already touched on the first point which will be the fact that the electricity breaker will trip. The second point is that you can actually end up draining your hot tub through the blower if you don’t have the right measures in place.

What do I need to stop water entering the blower?

The first thing that you absolutely must have is a one way check valve. This check valve only allows air to travel one way down the pipes and opens when the blower is switched on. When the blower stops, the valve closes and this should stop water entering the blower.

When you turn off your pumps and blower, you will see if it is a clear valve the water back up down the pipes.

What happens if you have too much weight of water head?

If you have too much weight of water head on your blower lines, then your check valves can leak. Depending on the check valves that you have, you might need one with a stronger spring to ensure that the valve fully closes and makes a good seal.

Over time, small debris can get into the valve and prevent it from closing properly, this then means that water can pass through and cause problems in your blower.

Use physics and not new parts

The last solution here if you have tried changing the check valve and you have even put a stronger valve or a stronger spring in the valve, is to use physics. Physics and gravity dictate that the water will always travel to the lowest point in the system if it can.

Therefore, if your blower is placed above the water line on your hot tub, it is simply not possible for water to travel up above the water line into the blower.

A Hartford Loop

If you don’t want, to or can’t move the blower above the water line, then the other alternative is to put a Hartford loop into the system. This loop can be anywhere along the air lines towards the blower.

What is a Hartford loop?

A Hartford loop is a loop or “U” bend of pipe that takes the air lines up and over the water line. This means that water cannot pass over the loop because gravity prevents it doing so and you can use this to protect your blower.

Water is not able to defy gravity so just like taking the blower up and above the water line of your hot tub, you can achieve the same result by putting in a Hartford loop in the system.

This means your blower is protected by physics and not a manufactured part.

Happy Hot Tubbin’

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Thanks - Andi

 

Hi, Andi here. I own Buildahottub.com and also write all of the articles and info pages on the site. Some years back now, I built my own hot tub but struggled to find the information I needed. So, once my tub was complete, I started this website to help others in their own pursuit of hot tub and plunge pools DIY building information.

Today, I've helped over 1000 DIY customers just like you all over the world build hot tubs and pools. Have a good look around the site, there are lots of resources here. Please do get in touch if I can help you. - Cheers, Andi