Outdoor Hot Tub/Spa

Starting to splash the waters of purchasing an outdoor hot tub/spa. Brands we have looked at are Cal Spas and Jacuzzi. Both have nice features. Appears that one might be paying a bit for the Jacuzzi name?

Have heard some people love them (especially in the winter no matter the location) while others say they used everyday for the first 3 months and then maybe 3 times for 9 months (novelty item).

Interested in feedback on love/hate relationships with your hot tub! From maintenance to enjoyment of use.

Thanks!

We use ours all the time and we live in Florida where they probably are not as popular year round for obvious reasons. It came with the house we bought 9 years ago. It is a Leisure Bay which went out of business some time ago.

One thing I have learned is that it is kind of like a travel trailer. The brand doesn't matter all that much because the parts are made by different companies. The brand puts it together and sells it but they don't manufacture much of the parts. I was knocking my head against the wall trying to find a replacement pump for my specific Spa. Eventually I figured out that I just needed the same specs. The HP on the one I was replacing wasn't even the actual HP of the pump which took a while to realize.

Besides the pump burning out mine has been pretty much been maintenance free. Check the water, add chems, and rinse the filter and that is about it.

We once owned a nice Hotsprings Spa. Initially we used it frequently, then not so much. Eventually not at all and I ended up giving it away. When we shut it down our electric bill dropped $30/month.

Some people love them, others, not so much.

We had a Cal Spas one for several years. We used it pretty frequently all year. We lived in San Diego then. There is not much maintenance. We bought it as a package deal that included a 16' gazebo. We bought it directly from Cal Spas at a great price at the Del Mar fair ( aka San Diego County fair ).

I have a Hawkeye Spa, which is a local company in Richmond. We have had it for 10 years. DH is handy and Hawkeye is great. I have called them 2-3X over the years and asked about replacing something. They have emailed me technical specs of what to do (diagram of how to) and the place where to buy the parts with the part number. Also, one time, the H guy said, as long as you are replacing the X, while you have the part pulled out, you should replace Y, as your spa is 7 years old and the part is only $15, but you'd have to pull out X to get to it. We did as he advised. I guess others would call a repairman, but I am glad that Hawkeye is willing to do this for us.
For the 1st 2-3 years, I used it average of 2X every 2 weeks, some weeks more often. At 10 years out, I average about 15-20X/year. I esp. love it in the snow--makes me feels like I'm in Colo at a ski place. Lack of use is really a time/activity issue. If I were retired, I'd likely use it a lot more.
We have a redwood casing and the corner of it just started rotting, as it is in the area of our house that gets the bad winter winds/snow (our windows on that part of the house also had wood rot and had to be replaced). So, I recommend getting poly/trek/etc. surround and not real wood. Almost maintenance free. Sort shocked it's still works as well as the day we got it 10 years ago. We have replaced the calibrator/control panel on the top, that $15 part, and nozzles, which just pop/screw off, and now rebuilt with compound the corners of the outside surround.
also, make sure to cover with extra plastic, etc. when it snows, as the covers will absorb moisture, become heavy with wetness and then mold and you have to get a new cover. Putting the extra plastic cover prior to snow helps a lot. We replace our cover every 5 years or so, costs about $350 mail order.
lastly--test drive whatever you are considering, esp. the strength and placement of the jets. I have a bad neck, so I wanted powerful jets positioned to hit neck/upper back. I have a corner seat with lots of mini back jets and 3 neck jets. It's fantastic.

We use ours all the time, but we certainly have spurts where we use it more frequently. I've replaced every pump once and a few other miscellaneous items, but they're not expensive to maintain. Ours is a Warm Springs, which is no longer in business, but as mentioned, the brand doesn't matter much as many brands share components. Our spa is around 18 years old.

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Ours is 15 years old, and we don't use it as much as we did some years ago, but boy, on a cold, crisp night when the ol' bones ache some, and you and your main squeeze feel like warming up with a glass of wine or two before bedtime, it's pretty hard to beat.

Yes, there's some maintenance involved both mechanical and keeping the water pristine, but really none of it is really onerous. I currently need a new display unit, but really, I seldom change the temp settings, and who really cares if it shows the time?

Jim

We thought about getting one at one time. My husband likes them a lot. I can't stay in them too long- don't like to be too hot.

Then I thought about just putting a whirlpool tub in the bathroom and finally just ended up making our shower a steam shower. Use it only on weekends since we work and don't have time, This works nicely for us. We just put some essential oil in the steam holes and we can stay in there as long or as little as we want and then just press a button and shut it off.

Not a hot tub but feels great- especially in winter.

Coleman (yes, THAT Coleman) spa. Inflatable - great for one or two-and about $300. We weren't sure we would like a spa - I'm not fond of hot water, either but my husband bought it for me last Christmas. I LOVE it. I have a lot of back pain and cannot get in and out of my house tub very well but the spa is perfect! The only drawback is it is inflatable - and the bubbles are not therapeutic; I mean they are NOT jets, just bubbles! I guess we could replace it every year for less than s $4-$6K spa would cost and still be ahead. Also, plugs into a 20 amp wall socket (no special electrical wiring).