How to Protect Your Hot Tub From Storms and Hurricanes

Whether you need to relax after a long day of work or warm your muscles on a breezy evening, your hot tub is the perfect complement to your routine. But even the strongest of spas could take a beating during hurricane season. Without proper weatherproofing and maintenance, your hot tub investment might wind up burning you. Here are some tips to prevent your hot tub from weather hazards, and protect it for years to come.

General Tips

Don’t wait — elevate!

Expect rain when you live in South Florida — a lot of it. If flooding does occur, you’ll want your hot tub and its electrical components to be protected. The easiest way to do this is to prevent the problem from occurring in the first place, before you install your hot tub. It might be a good idea to install your hot tub on a deck or any other sturdy, elevated surface.

Use a hot tub cover

A cover or cap can not only protect your hot tub from added rain water. It also protects your spa from the harsh Florida sun, which could damage the acrylic and exterior coating when it’s not in use.

Throw up some shade

Your pergola or umbrella is doing more than providing you with some much-needed shade. Your hot tub needs a screen, too! As an extra line of defense against the sun, it never hurts to add some roofing or temporary shading. 

If you’re looking for less expensive options to get some shade, we recommend some outdoor backyard sails. They’re portable, easy to install, and we have them in stock!

Before a Major Storm

Turn off the power

To prevent fires or electrocution, turn your hot tub off and switch the circuit breaker before a major storm. 

Leave the water in

A hot tub usually holds about 400 gallons of water. That’s as much as a car weighs. This water weight will help keep your hot tub grounded in high winds.

Add extra chemicals

Whether you’re facing evacuation or riding out a major storm, it’s important to sanitize the hot tub’s water when you have advance notice of inclement weather. 

A few days before the storm arrives, balance your hot tub’s chemical levels and add extra chlorine or bromine to combat debris or dirty water. Be sure to rebalance your hot tub once the storm has passed.

Remove loose articles from the area

You’re definitely not in Kansas anymore, but hurricanes still present dangerous high-speed winds that threaten to damage your home. Lawn chairs, umbrellas, and other loose furniture can start flying even before a hurricane makes landfall. To prevent them from damaging your hot tub (or your house!) bring these items inside or strap them down securely.

Keep it covered

There seems to be some debate as to whether you should use your hot tub cap during a hurricane. The logic here is that some people would rather drain and refill their hot tubs and remove the debris, rather than potentially damaging the cover’s vinyl coating.

Let’s be perfectly clear … use your hot tub cover. Sure, it’s possible you might lose a cover, but the alternative could mean the storm will damage your hot tub’s interior acrylic covering. If that happens … well, you might not have a hot tub to cover at all!

If you’re worried about your cover blowing away (well, even if you’re not) you should invest in wind straps to hold down your cover and protect your hot tub in inclement weather. We have wind straps in stock for those special occasions available for purchase.

If you’re looking to get your hot tub weather-ready for hurricane season, you’re not alone! Give us a call or send us a message and we’ll give you an accurate estimate of your weather-prepping needs.