Do Oil Absorbing Sponges Work In Hot Tubs?

Soaking in a hot tub or pool can put your bathing experience on another level. It not only cleanses your body but also extricates you from mental and body stress. To have a such soothing experience, the cleanliness of the water should be at the highest level. But continuous use of these platforms can create harmful micro-organisms, mineral metals can leave stains, and, left out oils can float on the surface level of the water. Different chemical products and methods are used to fight this issue.

Of them, oil-absorbing sponges are a definite use, if you are looking for an easy fix for your bathing platform’s oily, greasy issue. Oil-absorbing sponges are in mass use at pools. Now if you are wondering, do oil-absorbing sponges work in hot tubs, then yes they do! Continue your reading to understand the basic definition of oil in a hot tub, how they work, the benefits of oil-absorbing sponges in hot tubs, and many more.

Key Takeaways

• Oil-absorbing sponges are useful to remove oily substances from pools and hot tubs.
• Human body cells and personal care products can leave oil residue on the hot tub’s water.
• Oil-absorbing sponges are made of specially made foams that attract oil from the water.
• You can reuse a hot tub oil-absorbing sponge several times until they stop soaking oil.

Oil in The Hot Tub

Oil in the hot tub can be caused by various reasons. But mostly they are leftover residues of human body cells and skin care products such as shampoo, conditioner, tanning lotion, etc. As you know oils don’t mix with water, it rather float on the water’s surface due to their lightweight. That’s why, while we soak ourselves in the hot water, all the oily substance of our body dissolute in the water. If you take a general shower before going to the hot tub soaking, you will find less oil in the hot tub.

How Do Oil Absorbing Sponges Work in Hot Tubs?

Oil-absorbing sponges play a vital role in keeping oil from your hot tub water. In the process, they need no additional use of chemicals or other substances to keep the water oil-free. To understand how they do it, we have to start with the basic structure of oil-absorbing sponges, how are they made of, etc.

Oil-absorbing sponges

Oil-absorbing sponges are nothing but specially-made foams. They are made of reclaimed cotton fibers, nut pith, and hydrocarbon-eating microbes. The secret to the sponge lies in its oleophilic, hydrophobic, magnetic (OHM) nanocomposite coating. Their porous structure and special oil-attracting coating, together form the key factor behind their oil-absorbing ability.

Oil-absorbing sponges work process

Oil-absorbing sponges are simple foam made of polyurethane or polyimide plastics and coated with “oil-loving” silane molecules with a sweet spot for capturing oil. These porous spots attract the oil molecule once applied. As the oil molecules don’t mix with the water molecules, the former gets soaked by the sponge’s molecules relatively easily. The non-mixed oil bubble walls are made of water. Thus some water also gets soaked in the process, making the oil-absorbing formulation even faster.

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6 Benefits of Oil Absorbing Sponges in Hot Tubs

Oil-absorbing sponges are a true blessing for keeping the hot tub water oil-free. Apart from this role, some other direct and indirect benefits will also amaze you for sure. Oil-absorbing sponge’s benefits:

1. Easy To Maintain: Using oil-absorbing sponges leaves a long-term positive user experience. They are easy to buy, place, and process for reuse.
2. Maintains Clean Water: Alongside removing oils from tub water, they also soak other forms of scum for better cleaning of the tub’s water.
3. Keeps Hot Tub Corrosion: Oil and other non-containing wastes can create a layer of residues over the water and ultimately on the tub’s surface. If they have such buildups for long enough, it can leave stains or in the worst-case scenario, corrosion on the tub.
4. Less Chemical Use: We often use different types of chemicals to keep the tub’s water clean. Remember that, they are artificial chemicals and can leave bad effects one way or another on our health. Also, they cost you money to buy. An oil-absorbing sponge can cover all of these with their durable and cost-effective solution.
5. Reduces Water Wastage: Most people tend to release the tub water once they find it difficult to clean the floating oil. An oil-absorbing sponge can solve or reduce the oil issue to the level where the user finds it OK to use. This reduces water wastage drastically.
6. Provides Companion: For most of the hot tub users, it is alone time in the hot tub. But as the oil-absorbing sponges come in shapes like colorful ducks, starfish, and ships, they can be very companioning in your hot tub session. Especially, it is very convenient for children to attract themselves to hot tub bathing. In other words, they can add fun to any user’s hot tub soaking experience.

5 Tips for Using Oil Absorbing Sponges in Hot Tub

Using oil-absorbing sponges in hot tub water is the least complex work you can imagine. Basically, there are no strict methods to follow for using oil-absorbing sponges. Here are a few tips for better results while using oil-absorbing sponges:

1. Look for better material products: Better product means better performance. Oil-absorbing sponges come in different materials and are based on the intensity of the oil. Use high-standard polyurethane or polyimide plastics-based sponges. They have the ability to soak 40x than their own weight.
2. Sponge ball, bag, or other forms: Oil-absorbing sponges come in different shapes and names. Based on your user experience, you can choose oil-absorbing balls, bags, animal shaped sponges. If your hot tub is having excessive use, then you can use oil-absorbing balls and ducts, fish-shaped sponges 24×7. For bag-shaped sponges, you can use them before and after every use.
3. Clean the absorber for reuse: For quick results from the oil absorber sponges, it is necessary to keep their cleanliness. Wash the absorbers periodically by squeezing and rinsing them with fresh water. Change the old sponges if they seem non-efficient even after cleaning. If they become heavy for not cleaning, they can pose a threat to the tub’s filter mechanism.
4. Keep clean the water filter as well: The hot tub onboard water filter works as the main responsible for cleaning the water clean. If they are jammed with scum or other wastes, then you may find your tubs water oily frequently. This oily status may exceed the sponge’s ability to soak oils.
5. Shower before soaking: A maximum portion of the oil in the hot tub comes from the user’s body. They are either tissue cell leftovers or the result of care product application. To prevent such oils from coming at first hand, you can take a little bath to wash off the existing oils then take a soak. Less oil in the hot tub means better sponge effect, and longer use.

FAQs

1. How long do hot tub sponges last?

The durability of the hot tub sponges depends on various factors. Such as their built material, ability to soak oil, and reuse frequency. Keeping all of these in account, a hot tub sponge may last from 3 to 12 months.

2. Why does my hot tub feel greasy?

Hot tubs can be felt greasy due to the continuous flow of oily substances in the water. This oil comes from our body cells, hair, and skincare products we use such as soap, shampoo, conditioner, makeup, etc.

3. Why do hot tub sponges turn brown?

Hot tub sponges can turn brown if they are dirt or have soaked too much oil and other scum substances. All you need is to clean the sponge up and it will be back in its natural color.

Final Thoughts

In short, the answer is yes, oil-absorbing sponges indeed work in hot tubs. Their specially made foamy structure is prone to attract and soak oily substances from the hot tub. They are also useful to remove other scum. Depending on the hot tub use and the presence of oil in water, you may need to use more than one such sponge. Also, look after their ability to soak oils as they might get full and stop removing oil in the process. One big advantage of these oil-absorbing sponges is that they are easily reusable over a long period. So it conclusively stands out that, oil-absorbing sponges are a very reliable and cost-effective method to remove oil from hot tubs.

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