Yes, excellent point. Here is the story:
It ran fine with a reconditioned pump from eBay for like $200 and it heated
fine and shifted speeds etc. After the first season it quit shifting from
low to high (which, in retrospect makes me think the pump is in fact
probably shot). When it stopped shifting properly it stopped heating
properly, it stopped holding the temperature. I had a "spa tech" from
Alpharetta come up and he told me the "thermostat" was bad and would need to
be replaced. He explained that the thermostat was similar to the therostat
in a car and while the part was very inexpensive, the labor would be a few
hundred dollars. I nodded, gave him his $90 and asked around about the
"thermostat" idea and did not get much concurrence with that particular $90
opinion.
Then it quit altogether. Just wouldn't come on when it was powered up.
So, like a dummy, I had another "spa tech" come over for another $90
"opinion call" and he told me I needed to replace this "Little General"
switch that goes on the heating element pictured in the link. He told me the
previous guy had lied to me about the thermostat.
http://atlantadogsquad.org/images/general-switch.gif. He didn't have one of
these switches in his truck and never got back to me about getting one, so
like a balloon head I got one on eBay for $25 or something and replaced it,
myself. No dice, nothing worked.
Last week I got yet a different "spa tech" from Gainesville who charged me
$100 to come over "assess the situation." He was appalled that I had tried
to repair the spa myself. He explained that hot tubs were highly technology
pieces of equipment (evidently as complex as maybe the Mars Rover or
something) and that anything I did myself would more often than not do more
harm than good. Thus, he explained, because I had replaced the Little
General switch myself and had attempted to adjust the setting on it(the
black screw part on top) that that was the reason the pump had failed. In
short, according to this expert, because I had "misadjusted" this Little
General Switch, I somehow ruined the pump. Sounded questionable to me and it
still does.
Is that even possible? Does the spa have a thermostat like a car? Are you
getting the drift of my frustration here?
I would like someone to tell me the truth about one thing. Is there one
honest "spa technician" in the Metro-Atlanta area? Sorry for that insult
boys, but I've paid for so many conflicting opinions that I have come to
regard "spa technicians" in the same category as lawyers.
Is there a school where this technology can be learned? Is it impossible for
a layman like myself to actually work on his own spa, or is this out of the
question, too?
wrote in message
...
On Dec 9, 2:26 pm, "JB" wrote:
I have a ten-year-old Balboa hot tub that has served us well but required
numerous repairs over the years. The hot tub technician would come,
replace
parts, and present us with bills for hundreds of dollars. After a while I
started to do my own repairs, replacing the controller and the pump. (I
can
turn a wrench.) I replaced the pump. Now the hot tub has quit again and
the
tech tells me the pump needs to be replaced. This would be about he
fourth
one. Motor and wet end. The techs are very condescending. I have had it
looked at by three different guys and none of them will specify whether
the
problem is with the motor or the wet end or both or something else. Just
says whole the whole unit for about $350 to $500 depending on which one I
have asked. I can get a motor and wet end for this on eBay for about
$170. I
am sick of this conflicting advice. I would like to work with an HONEST
technician who could tell me which part(s) have failed and why. I am in
Noreth Georgia. Any advice on how I could these parts tested or reputable
techs would be appreciated.
It would be helpful if you could describe what exactly it's doing or
not doing. If it's spewing water it's quite different than if the
motor is smoking and not turning.