The Mystery of the Burned Spa Cover

Cailley Hammel Headshot
Wf Stroede 916 Holes Tile

Paul StroedePaul Stroede

Imagine a hot tub owner, Sam, in his backyard. He's just enjoyed a good soak, the last one before he heads off to the beach for vacation. Before he goes inside to finish packing, Sam secures his spa with a vinyl hot tub cover. (Like any responsible hot tub owner, Sam keeps safety in mind.)

A week later, Sam's back from his vacation and plans to unwind in the hot tub. But when he reaches for the spa cover, he finds a surprising sight: small holes on his cover! He's steamed (and not just from the water) — where did these holes come from?

Dick Rayner, owner of Rayner Covering Systems (South Elgin, Ill.) has seen this situation plenty of times before.

"When you have holes in the spa cover, the first thing I do is look to the neighbor's house. Do they have a window facing the spa?" he says. "More often than not, there's a window pointing straight at the hot tub. When the sun comes out, it reflects off the window and onto the cover, burning a hole into the vinyl."

Another common culprit: A robust Fourth of July show.

"If there's fireworks nearby, the ashes can fall onto the cover and also burn holes that way," Rayner adds.

The bottom line: If your customers are baffled by similarly mysterious damage to their spa covers, keep the above in mind — you may be able to quickly close the case.

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