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Hey Poolboys! Need hot tub advice

RusM

Amateur Viking
Joined
May 20, 2020
Member Number
812
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Loc
North Bend WA
So I'm thinking about getting a hot tub next year, what should I look for? Planning on buying new, used hot tubs seems as gross as used shoes or underwear to me! Are there any brands that are a deal? Any with enhanced reliability? Things to look for as features? What's the best deal for a 4-6 person tub with good jets?
 
Buy septic tank, use lid for something else. Add pump, fill with water, heat and enjoy.
 
I do pool repairs. No hot tubs. But I do know Bullfrog Spas are highly recommended
 
I used to be a bullfrog dealer. I'm glad I'm not anymore

Elaborate? I dont know shit about hot tubs but Ive heard they are good.
 
Elaborate? I dont know shit about hot tubs but Ive heard they are good.

I will say bullfrog has come a long way since they started, but they are a gimmick tub. The removable jetpacks idea is kind of silly. We found people rarely if ever actually swapped them around in the tub, and they certainly never bought different ones to try out. The jetpacks are expensive, and they had problems with leaks.

I bought out another company that was an existing sundance spas dealer and kept that dealer license and dropped bullfrog. I sell nearly 300 tubs a year now. My best year with bullfrog was less than 50. Sundance and hot springs are the 2 biggest names in the game. Their warranties are top notch, the overall fit and finish is above everything else in the game, as is their new technology (smart tub).


I'm currently 10 months out on new sundance orders and people are still willing to wait. Sold 12 last week alone.
 
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Go best you can get with the best warranty, we bought the cheapest plug and play at our last place. Wife always wanted one. We have since moved and the new joint has a tub. It's the real deal. I thought the sales guys was full of shit the first time around... "your back will thank you when your older/jets at your feet make a huge difference etc"... basically said give me that one I can plug in and move on with my life. Long story short, the balls out shit is awesome. I could never justify on its own but came with the house.

Have fun and post wife pics after purchase :flipoff2:
 
I installed a CalSpa in 2007, kept it on at 102° for over 10 years never turned it off except for maintenance. Added chlorine once a week, cleaned the filter every other month, i sold it with the house in 2018 never had an issue with it ever and we used it at least once a week. We loved ours.
 
My experience is all depends on what you want to spend.
We got a free one of craigslist. Looked brand new. Didn't work.
Priced a control board for like $400. Still cheap hot tub. But actually found a bad transformer. So like $12 repair. Ozone never worked on it. Never used it.
But 10 years now it has been running great. Had to replace a few worn out spinner jets along the way.
A couple of tops over the years.

So if you are capable of working on them, yeah just like boats. They are not all that expensive to own.

If i had to buy new or near new and not able to work on it then I wouldn't own one.
 
We bought an older one years ago from a friend to tryout. Sundance tub. Replaced cover, motor, controls, and a couple leaky pipes. Still cheaper then buying a new but it really helps out with aches and pains. Since then we've wanted to upgrade, just haven't pulled the trigger. We found we enjoy it more then we thought.

Electric bill not sure on cost. Have to look at the bills. We run a inground pool in the summer. So the luxuries of water pumping and enjoying the hot tub or pool out weighs the cost of electricity.
 
Semi-related but what are the upkeep costs? What kind of jump in your water / electricity bill can you expect? Is it something you would have to constantly work on and fuck with, or is it just plug it in, hop in, and start drinking?

If it's 220v and you keep it at temp (102-104) year round, then expect to see about 30ish dollar increase a month
 
I didn't notice change in electric bill. We are in the midwest and it is on during -10 temps. So that is nothing compared to a furnace running.

Chemicals can get spendy. We got lucky I think. Pretty much chlorine tablets, never really needed anything else. I think the water we fill it with is probably better than other areas of the country.
 
I didn't notice change in electric bill. We are in the midwest and it is on during -10 temps. So that is nothing compared to a furnace running.

Chemicals can get spendy. We got lucky I think. Pretty much chlorine tablets, never really needed anything else. I think the water we fill it with is probably better than other areas of the country.

Chlorine tabs will absolutely destroy your hot tub. I would suggest using granules instead
 
So I'm thinking about getting a hot tub next year, what should I look for? Planning on buying new, used hot tubs seems as gross as used shoes or underwear to me! Are there any brands that are a deal? Any with enhanced reliability? Things to look for as features? What's the best deal for a 4-6 person tub with good jets?

Buy from a local established reputable place that will help you in the coming years. Available service and support is more important than brand.
 
Put it in a private convenient place. Mine is used 6-7 days a week. If it’s outside, get it out of the wind.
 
I have had several hot tubs over the years. I had a viking hot tub that didn't give me any trouble the first 6-7 years, it is still being used 12+ years later with very little trouble. The viking had very little insulation so the winters killed my electric bill, I did some insulating myself which helped, buying a think cover helped too. I have a Marquis now that is great but only have had it for a year, it is insulated and the electric bills this winter didn't really change and the top it came with isn't the best you can buy. Stay away from 110v tubs as they can only heat or run the jets and if you are in cold weather think about insulation. Also, buy from a dealer that has been around because they will break and if you cannot work on it yourself service is hard to come by in our area if they didn't sell you the tub. One more thing, I do not like tubs that have a continuous pump (runs 24/7), I prefer to have tubs that work on a daily timer to circulate the water.
 
Add How are you with Masterspa?

As far as what?


They're an entry level spa. If you just want hot water, it does the job. The equipment on them is just standard balboa packs. I believe they still use 48 frame motors (I could be wrong though). The jets are your standard no frills that you find in a lot of roto mold tubs (think costco or any home and garden show hot tubs). Warranty is meh at best and parts are hard to get. They don't offer a much in the way for hydrotherapy either.

If you're looking for quality and longevity, I would look elsewhere. Just my honest opinion though
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I will say bullfrog has come a long way since they started, but they are a gimmick tub. The removable jetpacks idea is kind of silly. We found people rarely if ever actually swapped them around in the tub, and they certainly never bought different ones to try out. The jetpacks are expensive, and they had problems with leaks.

I bought out another company that was an existing sundance spas dealer and kept that dealer license and dropped bullfrog. I sell nearly 300 tubs a year now. My best year with bullfrog was less than 50. Sundance and hot springs are the 2 biggest names in the game. Their warranties are top notch, the overall fit and finish is above everything else in the game, as is their new technology (smart tub).


I'm currently 10 months out on new sundance orders and people are still willing to wait. Sold 12 last week alone.

Any opinion on Cove? The property I just bought came with two of them (one at each house). One is brand new and the other was only used for 1 or two seasons. I haven't been inspired to fill one up yet as I haven't had time to learn about upkeep. Both came with a full array of "natural" chemicals.
 
As far as what?


They're an entry level spa. If you just want hot water, it does the job. The equipment on them is just standard balboa packs. I believe they still use 48 frame motors (I could be wrong though). The jets are your standard no frills that you find in a lot of roto mold tubs (think costco or any home and garden show hot tubs). Warranty is meh at best and parts are hard to get. They don't offer a much in the way for hydrotherapy either.

If you're looking for quality and longevity, I would look elsewhere. Just my honest opinion though
​​​​​

Is there an acknowledged best product in the hot tub industry?
 
Any opinion on Cove? The property I just bought came with two of them (one at each house). One is brand new and the other was only used for 1 or two seasons. I haven't been inspired to fill one up yet as I haven't had time to learn about upkeep. Both came with a full array of "natural" chemicals.

Those are all roto mould tubs. No frills whatsoever, mass produced by the thousands and rebranded with a dozen different names. They are almost all 110v, so not really efficient. Cannot run the jets and heater at the same time.
Warranty will be the lowest in the market.



But, like master spas if you're looking to just sit in hot water a few nights a week, it'll do the job.
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We have had a couple houses with hot tubs.

For me the biggest entertaining value of a tub is when people dont want to have anything to do with you, until they find out you have a tub. THEN all of a sudden they are your friend. :laughing:

Personally I don't miss the pain in the ass up keep,
 
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