I inherited a 97 Hotspring Sovereign. The previous owners said, "it works great but it started leaking a couple of months ago, the spa tech tried a scare tactic and told us the repair could be $800-$1000". I should have said "no thanks" right then and there. However, I've always wanted one and I enjoy the challenge of fixing things. That said, all they could tell me about where it leaked was "it's on the right side (if you're facing the control panel), possibly closer to the back right corner. Well, the moto massage is over there. I took all of the 2X4 outer foundation off and I'm about to put it back on before I dig into the foam and also replace the rest of the stuff that has gotten a little rotten from the constant moisture. The moisture and rot seemed most severe in the rear of the spa. The foam is soggy. So, at the least I plan to try to let it dry/suck it out with a wet/dry vac. That depends on how much I have to pull out to get to the leak. Is there a typical place that my model tends to leak? I've casually inspected the inside (bathing side) of the shell and I can't find any cracks. I've posted other threads and haven't gotten a single response yet. I'm getting desparate.
Thanks for any help,
Jeff

having sides that can't be removed, they are a pain to work on and for a tech to repair, it is worth a lot of money in wasted time because of this reason - many other brands are smart enough to allow panel access, however you're stuck with this one, so this is my method on these sorts of spas.
flip it over, dig out all wet foam and try to ID source of leak - a bit hard because a lengthy leak will cause foam to wet all over the spa in some cases tracking along pipes, etc.
In some cases we have used food dye - need about a litre to easily see the colour change in some cases - when you dig the foam it will be discoloured at the leak, otherwise you may be able to locate it simply by digging.
if possible - to save heaps of time - put spa up on blocks - support centre and sides - fill and run, get under it to find the leak - the only way to have a 100% positive ID in quickest time.
good luck (i hate those jobs - thats why a tech wants lots of money!)

Thanks Alacy.
So, you're saying remove the foam first? Then, support, fill with water/food coloring and then check for leak?
Thanks again,
Jeff

if you can support it properly up in the air (enough to get under comfortably to work) i'd leave the foam until after adding dye, but sometimes its worth digging out an area you are highly suspicious of, first.
No matter what you do, in what sequence, its a pain, but you'll end up solving it.

There is another plan of attack you may want to consider. Putting the spa on block is a good idea, but I wouldn't attack tit from underneath. Simplyu remove a few wood panels from the side, and keep the spa full of water while you dig. Dye is a joke in trying to spot a leak in a tub encased in foam. There are so many nooks and crannies, you'll just never know exactly where it's leaking, everything will have a hue.....

The wood on a 97 is tongue and groove, you will have to destroy at least one horizontal peice in order to remove the rest without harming them.

The first places to look are around the 4 jet cluster aboce the moto-jet, any other mini-jets, and the motto-drain line.

Thanks guys, that's what I'm looking for, a typical place that my tub would leak. I'll start with the motomassage and the mini jets.
Regards,
Jeff

Im not sure exactly which year Hot springs had this as a tech bulletin but it was very common for leaks on the spas that have the 1/4 inch bleed line on top of the moto area. You can only get to it from the back side , but its a small plastic nipple that snaps off in the foam from the back side . Its an easy fix once you get in there.

I have a 93 Sovereign that has a small persistant leak also from the right side but it started immediately as I switched the diverter valve to the right front jet cluster, it leaks for a few days and stops only if I turn the valve back to the left side jets. Its possible I may have a motomassage leak as mentioned and its just traveling down the very slight angle of the tub to the floor drain I put in when I poured my floor slab. My Sovereign had a 4x6 inch hole in the floor when the previous owner tried to thaw ice in it up here in Alaska and succeeded instead on melting a nice square hole through the ice and through the floor, the tub was basically given to me for $100, I dug out the bondo and caulking and cleaned it up around the fiberglas he also put inn to fill the hole and I used a plastic weld system like a two part epoxy from Napa thats primarily made for plastics like ABS, I put wax paper on it while its wet and I press it out flat by hand, that makes it a lot easier to sand and feather the edges, then I used a plastic paint called Fusion to finish it off, it looks great and that part is the only repair so far I had to do plus replace one heater.
Since this tub sat in his front yard like a giant planter/bird bath for a winter its possible water stayed in a fitting somewhere and cracked it. I have been using mine for two weeks now, about every 4 days I need to add a little water which isn't too bad.
My cedar siding though is a bit weathered and chewed up, I'm thinking of using some flooring strips of real oak or some that are a composite looking redwood. Home Depot has had some sale prices on some real wood fooring strips lately.

I was trying to find the year HSS started the bleed line on the moto , 93 are to early for that - i believe it started in 95.
If it sat outside during the winter it could have freeze damage.Since the leak gets worse when you run certain jets we can assume the leak is a presure leak and on one side . We have used a stop leak product with great succsses in pressurized leaks such as yours. Its made by VANSON , its for pools and hot tubs .Its called STOP LEAK. You must remove the filter while this stuff is in the water for 2-3 days and then drain and refill with fresh water - but it works very well.It runs 27.00 to 35.00 bucks and we use the entire qt over 2 days .

I found my leak on my 93 Sovereign, it was a cracked adapter fitting at a 3 way tee, it looks like it was a freeze fracture. It was at the right front triple jet cluster of my tub, I removed all the panels freom that corner and just hand dug out all the soft wet foam, I also used a drywall hand saw and a regular paring knife, I then used various dremel tools to clean and rough up the pvc fitting including the removal of any excess joint cement, I used Plastic Weld from NAPA, it looks and mixes like an epoxy but it really sticks good to plastics, its stiff enough to make even an upside down repair though just to make sure I made a sort of mold out of duct tape so it would not run. Worked great! I have used two cans of Great Stuff and will next put some new panels on, I will just glue them on and brace them as when I add the final foam shot I do not want the expanding foam to literally push the new panels off the side of the tub. Ithink that should be an important piece of advice about too much foam at once.