If your hot tub breaker keeps tripping, it can be inconvenient and concerning, leaving you wondering what’s wrong with your hot tub, and why it’s not drawing power. There’s not just one reason why the breaker keeps tripping: it could be the result of a number of different issues, ranging from minor ones that are easily solved to more severe ones that may be a bad sign for your hot tub’s longevity.
In this guide, we’re going to have a look at why your breaker might be tripping and what you can do to solve it. Are you ready to get started and get your hot tub back in working order? Then read on!
How to Know Your Hot Tub Is Tripping the Breaker
It can be difficult to know whether it’s your hot tub tripping the breaker, or if it’s something else. Thankfully, it’s not too difficult to find out. Near your hot tub, there should be a metal box with a black switch, which is your hot tub’s GFCI breaker. If it’s flipped, it can mean that your tub experienced an electrical surge, which trips the breaker as a safety measure.
However, it does not always mean that there’s a dangerous issue at hand – it can be the result of other issues, too. In this guide, we’re going to have a closer look at some of these issues and what you can do to solve them.
If you are not completely comfortable working with electrical systems, you should hire an electrician rather than do it yourself. If you do work on it yourself, be sure to follow all relevant safety advice.
6 Reasons Why Your Hot Tub Breaker Keeps Tripping
There are six common causes why your hot tub breaker keeps tripping:
- Your breaker may have worn out
- Faulty installation
- Moisture within the breaker itself
- Issues with the heater
- Issues with components
- Air blower malfunctions
1. Your Breaker May Have Worn Out
Circuit breakers don’t last forever, and it’s possible that age, previous power surges, or a combination of these and other factors have simply worn your breaker out. This can cause it to permanently be stuck in the flipped position. This is easy to diagnose: try flipping the breaker back up – does it flip back down immediately?
If it does, your breaker has likely simply worn out, and you’ll need to replace it.
2. A Case of Faulty Installation
If your hot tub is brand new, it’s less likely that your breaker tripped due to wearing out. However, it could be the case that the wiring on your hot tub was badly installed. It’s possible that, for example, there is an issue with your hot tub’s grounding, resulting in electricity flowing through your tub’s water rather than into the ground wire.
Another issue that can result from bad installation involves loose electrical connections. If connections in your hot tub are loose, it could cause significant fluctuations in power, which can trip the breaker.
3. Moisture Within the Breaker Itself
If there’s moisture within the breaker itself this will result in the breaker tripping at regular intervals. Your breaker should have a seal that can keep moisture out, but this can break or otherwise become less effective over time. When the seal has broken, moisture and water can find its way inside the breaker box, which will make it trip, as well as causing rust, which in itself can lead to many other issues.
If there’s moisture inside the breaker box, you will need to change the seal, which should solve your issue.
4. Issues With the Heater
The heater can be the cause of a tripped circuit breaker, especially if parts of the heater have corroded. The heating element is the usual suspect and if it’s corroded or broken, you’ll need to replace the heater. One way to test if this part is responsible is to unplug the heater and then flip the breaker up. If it works normally, then the heater will be at fault.
Replacing the heater isn’t too difficult a task, but it’s not something you should attempt yourself unless you’re comfortable working with electrics.
5. Issues With Components
Your issue could also come down to faulty components, particularly accessories. For example, if you have a set of LED lights, or a sound system, or similar, these components could be causing the hot tub to trip. You can diagnose the offending parts by unplugging all of them and then replugging them in one by one. The circuit breaker should trip at the offending part and not before.
Then it’s a matter of replacing that particular part and checking that the circuit breaker doesn’t trip any more.
6. Air Blower Malfunctions
Another core component of your hot tub that could be causing issues is your air blower. This is an important part of your hot tub, as it is what forces air into the hot tub and makes the bubbles that make your hot tub so enjoyable to use.
If this floods, due to failed valves or other issues, it can make your circuit breaker trip. It’s possible to fix an air blower that’s flooded just by letting it dry and then refitting it, but it can cause severe rust that will ruin the component. If that’s happened, you’ll need to replace the air blower, which can be a highly complex job.
In Summary
We hope that you’ve found this guide on why your hot tub breaker keeps tripping helpful. We’ve listed the most common causes that could be affecting your breaker, but this list is not exhaustive, and some rare problems could also be resulting in a tripped breaker.
If you’ve looked at this list and your problem remains unresolved, you may need to call out a professional technician to have a look at your hot tub and uncover the root cause of the problem.
At Platinum Spas, we can help you answer your questions – contact us today and our expert team will be happy to assist you.
Sarah Elphick is our passionate head of marketing who has years of experience within the leisure, travel & tourism industry. She is well-versed in a range of marketing fields including sales, direct marketing, CRM, brand management, innovation, customer research and much more. Her experience has helped us expand our brand into one of the fastest growing and innovative hot tub manufacturers.
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