Do you clean the whirlpool tub before using?

[TOM&LORIE]

The powder cleaners I thought were not recommended due to acid ... Here is another person that says the same thing. It comes from www.thehomeknowitall.com. It says:


"... a combination of dishwasher liquid such as Cascade and bleach—just make sure it's dishwasher liquid, not the granular kind, because the acid in the powdered stuff can eat away at brass parts in your jets). After you add the cleaning agent, run the whirlpool for 10 to 15 minutes with the air controls open. Then drain, refill with cold water, and run for another 10 minutes or so to rinse any residue out before drying your tub thoroughly."


According to the CDC and most state Extention offices ... Bleach will kill any critter residing in the kitchen and bathroom.

I am also motivated by the fact I really don't want the BWVs MF to go up because there is a rash of Whirlpool tubs going bad. They are high enough anyway!

 

[jdg345]

The powder cleaners I thought were not recommended due to acid ... Here is another person that says the same thing. It comes from www.thehomeknowitall.com. It says:


"... a combination of dishwasher liquid such as Cascade and bleach—just make sure it's dishwasher liquid, not the granular kind, because the acid in the powdered stuff can eat away at brass parts in your jets). After you add the cleaning agent, run the whirlpool for 10 to 15 minutes with the air controls open. Then drain, refill with cold water, and run for another 10 minutes or so to rinse any residue out before drying your tub thoroughly."


According to the CDC and most state Extention offices ... Bleach will kill any critter residing in the kitchen and bathroom.

I am also motivated by the fact I really don't want the BWVs MF to go up because there is a rash of Whirlpool tubs going bad. They are high enough anyway!

I thought the Bleach ate up the other fittings and hoses?

 

[TOM&LORIE]

Bleach in high concentration will affect fittings negatively BUT not in a concentration here. 1/2 cup would allow a chlorine concentration that would act as a crittercide. If you want to add more you can but it is not necessary.

 

[Blahnde]

The powder cleaners I thought were not recommended due to acid ... Here is another person that says the same thing. It comes from www.thehomeknowitall.com. It says: "... a combination of dishwasher liquid such as Cascade and bleach—just make sure it's dishwasher liquid, not the granular kind, because the acid in the powdered stuff can eat away at brass parts in your jets).

I'm not a chemist (and I do not want my dues going any higher either!), but what I do know is that if you mix bleach and ammonia you get toxic gas. So I never mix bleach with something else (Cascade liquid or powder???) if I do not know whether it contains ammonia. So I decided to see what was in Cascade.

I looked up what is in Cascade powder v. liquid at the manufacturer's site using their MSDS's. The powder contains Sodium Carbonate, Sodium Silicate, and Sodium Percarbonate, while the liquid contains Boric Acid and Sodium Tripolyphosphate. I looked them up and Sodium Carbonate is also know as "Soda Ash" and it softens the water so the detergent works better; remember those old Calgon commercials? It is also widely used for cleaning tarnished metals (like brass and silver) so I cannot see that being a problem ingredient. The Sodium Silicate is also called "Water Glass" and is used to fuse metals and is a common ingredient in glue or cement. Again, since it is used to glue metal I do not see how it could be corrosive to metal. And the Sodium Percarbonate is the "oxidized bleaching" compound found in products like OxyClean. It reacts with water to create hydrogen peroxide which then "bleaches" your clothes, and soduim carbonate which softens the water, again. As for the liquid ingredients Boric Acid is, well, acid; enough said. And Sodium Tripolyphosphate is the sodium salt of triphosphate acid.

Based upon all this is sounds like the Boric Acid and triphosphate acid in the LIQUID would be what would cause more harm than any of the powder ingredients. But, again, I am not a chemist!

Obviously bleach works, and if you are worried about hurting the pipes, then just use that. But it seems to me that the pipes in the dishwasher and clothes washers might also be brass. I think that it would really be a problem for the makers of dishwasher detergent or laundry detergent to design products that would significantly damage our machines.

Blahnde

 

[TOM&LORIE]

My liquid dishwasher detergent (not Cascade) contains Bleach ... additional bleach would simply raise the chlorine concentration. The CDC is not recommending liquid dishwasher detergent as a disinfectant ... the levels of free chlorine would not be enough to kill the critters. I will also say that doing anything is much better than doing nothing.

 

[jdg345]

My liquid dishwasher detergent (not Cascade) contains Bleach ... additional bleach would simply raise the chlorine concentration. The CDC is not recommending liquid dishwasher detergent as a disinfectant ... the levels of free chlorine would not be enough to kill the critters. I will also say that doing anything is much better than doing nothing.

Do they recommend powdered dishwashing detergent as a disinfectant?

And do they sell Bleach at the resorts?

 

[Dina]

I actually started this thread 2 years ago before our trip in a 2 bedroom, now I'm trying to think what we actually used. I think we ended up just putting a tablespoon of bleach (not much), and ran the thing, and then filled the tub and refilled it to rinse it out. My mom and dad drove and brought the bleach, but my mom (who has a whirlpool tub at home) also said we could have just used some of the dishwasher liquid.

 

[Cruelladeville]

Bleach is actually quite strong, so a small amount goes a long way. The health dept. recommends a 1/2 cup of bleach should be thrown down your well pit every month if you have a rural well for your water. But soap kills 99% of all germs, even HIV--isn't anyone here required to see the "blood and guts" video on germs and blood every year as a condition of their employment??? Maybe it's a "teacher thing".

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

I hvae not read every post in this now 4-page thread, but I will say that I clean out my own jetted tub at my own house by dumping some bleach in the water and running it through for a few minutes. And at home, it is only me or my 2yo using the tub, so I would definitely do that in a resort tub! It's different from the hot tub by the pool that has chlorine and whatever other chemicals running through it all the time. At the very least, I would be concerned that some mold or mildew would be up in the pipes if it had been sitting usused for a while.

This is coming from someone who is not afraid at all of germs. I let my 5-month-old crawl around on the airport floor when we went on our first trip to WDW, and that's pretty nasty! He's still healthy more than two years later!

 

[allicat]

When we stayed at OKW we ran the tub for our daughter and brown water came out along with hair and other disgusting stuff. My daughter was beyond repulsed and wouldnt even entertain the thought of the hot tub that trip, even when we switched resorts. It was very unpleasant.

 

[DeeCee735]

I am the only one that absolutely must get into a whirlpool bath during vacation, and no I don't clean the tub. I'll rinse it by running the water and using a cup to rinse around the top where the running water doesn't reach, but that's it.

I love taking a whirlpool bath first thing in the morning when everyone is still sleeping - it's a great way to start the day. I also love taking a bath before going to dinner, between the park touring and the more relaxing evening.