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Winterizing a hot tub in Connecticut, and whether you should
Connecticut winters are hard on a closed tub and easy on a running one. The first question is not how to winterize but whether to. Here is the honest version of that decision, then what a proper closing and a proper spring start-up include and cost.
Should you winterize at all?
A hot tub that stays running through the winter is the tub least likely to have a problem. The heater and pump keep the plumbing well above freezing, winter is when most people use it most, and the electricity to hold 102°F under a good cover in January runs most Connecticut owners $40 to $80 a month. Close it if the house is empty for the winter, if the tub is at a lake cottage that loses power, or if a repair is being put off until spring. Otherwise, keep it running and keep the cover in good shape.
What a proper winterization includes
- Power off at the breaker, water tested and the filter pulled.
- Full drain through the drain valve, then the heater tube, pump wet ends and the footwell pumped or vacuumed dry.
- Every line blown out from the jets and the equipment bay with a blower, not a shop vac on suction. Water left in a low spot is what cracks a manifold.
- Non-toxic spa antifreeze in the pump bodies, heater and low fittings as cheap insurance.
- Jets loosened, drain plugs out and bagged, pump unions cracked so trapped water has somewhere to go.
- Shell wiped down, cover on, strapped, and a tarp or cover cap over it so the cover is not holding a foot of wet snow all winter.
Done this way the tub sits safely through any Connecticut cold snap. Skipping the blow-out is the step that costs people a heater or a pump in March.
When
Mid-November through early December, before the first stretch of nights in the teens. Earlier is fine. We book closings from late October and the two weeks before Thanksgiving fill first.
Spring start-up
Reverse the process, plus the checks a tub needs after four months idle: plugs and unions back in, pumps spun by hand, fill through the filter well to avoid an air lock, power on, prime, then a full heat-up with a leak check at every fitting while it comes up to temperature. Water balanced and the first sanitizer dose in. Sixty to ninety minutes, and most years we find one union that needs a new gasket. Booking opens in March and April is the busy month.
What it costs
| Service | Price |
|---|---|
| Fall winterization, as described above | $225 – $350 |
| Spring start-up with fill, chemistry and systems check | $225 – $350 |
| Both, booked together | $400 – $600 |
| Drain, clean and refill with filter clean, any season | $200 – $300 |
Prices are for tubs with a standard drain and a working cover. The range covers distance; Waterbury to New Haven is the low end.
A dead tub in winter is different
If a running tub loses power or stops heating in freezing weather, do not drain it. Leave the cover on and tell us the same day. Most controls run a freeze-protection cycle even in an error state, which buys time, and a repair visit is cheaper than a frozen manifold. What to do when the tub is cold.