Background:
I have a Galbocca 2-person Plug and Play HotSpa (tm?) that I imagine is quite old. It came with the house I'm renting, so I have no idea exactly how old it is, but the company doesn't seem to have a website.
Judging from their LinkedIn page and cross-referencing the address listed there with Google Maps, I think it's safe to say that this company is now out of business.
The problem:
Except for some issues regulating the thermostat, it worked fairly well last winter. Towards the end of the season, I noticed some water pooling on the floor near one side of the bottom exterior of the tub. So, I drained it almost down to the bottom (maybe 2-3" of water in the foot well), and the leak stopped. It is an indoor tub.
I'm now looking to fix it, so I drained the rest of the water out and examined the bottom. This is what I saw:
As you can see, the veneer seems to be bubbling and peeling, as if water has infiltrated the surface. On closer inspection of the bubble under the intake suction vents:
Ah ha, that must be the leak! This is even the same side where I saw the water pooling.
But…wait a minute. That crack could only have formed after a bubble appeared, which means that water must have already been infiltrating the surface before the crack formed.
It also seems that similar bubbles have formed, even on the other side of the tub:
So, am I reasoning this out properly? Is this the source of the leak, or a symptom of a leak somewhere else?
I should note that I lifted the tub with my car jack to see if I could get at it from the other side, but the entire underside is completely filled with spray-foam insulation.
Best Answer
I'm a bit confused how did you get to the conclusion that crack could appear after a bubble? I’m not saying you are wrong but not sure how you have concluded this. Anyway unless there are some other cracks this is 99% sure the reason why your tub is leaking. And if there is some more cracks or problems this is one of them for sure.