Cleaning and maintaining a hot tub’s spa jets is something that can improve jet pressure, add a longer life to the jets, in improve the user experience.
Overall, jet maintenance is a fairly simple thing to do, yet it is mainly forgotten over the years.
Even occasional maintenance can help a spa get back to the hydrotherapy it had when the spa was first installed. Clean jets will allow you to adjust volume and pressure just as they were designed to do, and rotating jets will spin normally again.
There are normally two main things that reduce jet efficiency; sand/dirt and calcium/minerals. But they can be removed with this jet maintenance process.
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A jet can be opened by turning its’ outer ring from left to right.
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With the spa pumps off, close the jet by turning the outer ring all the way to the left.
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To remove the jet, give it another 1/4 turn. For stuck jets, use a pair of rubber gloves from the kitchen to get a good hold on the outer ring. Sometimes you may need to drain the water below the jets to get a better grip. Also, occasionally, you may need to apply inward pressure before the final ¼ turn (think “aspirin bottle”)
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After you remove the jets, you can soak them in a container filled with water and white vinegar for 3-4 hours. A 50% mixture of each is generally sufficient.
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Swirl the jets in the solution every hour or so to rinse off some of the sand and/or calcium, as it begins to loosen
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When the time is up, rinse the jet with fresh water from a hose or the kitchen sink
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Rotating jets should spin as if the were new. If they don’t, the bearing may be worn and the whole jet assembly must be replaced
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To re-install the jet: insert the jet into the housing, and rotate it to the right. The jet should easily lock.
