Shell Crack

[Steve]

Ain't THAT the truth! Well said!

[drewstar]

What this all gets down to is everyone who has a spa in their yard has a sample of one statistically.

Statistics....


Do you what's great?  The murder rate in Dallas was the lowest in 40 years (15  per  100000).

Know what sucks?  


Being  one of those 15.  

[Richs100]

Statistics....

Do you what's great?  The murder rate in Dallas was the lowest in 40 years (15  per  100000).

Know what sucks?  

Being  one of those 15.  

I wonder if any of those 15 were spa dealers with customers who got a crack in their tub?  

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

but a REAL nightmare is a week past warranty and the shell cracks, the spa is inside the house and a wall needs to be taken down to get it out and their local dealer closed down yesterday.

Not, there is a shell failure and they are replacing it for me... :-/

  Even I couldn't come up with an example that good. But, you forgot, the spa is on a second floor and the leaking caused the antique ceiling imported from Italy in the living room below to collapse (I actually saw a situation like this almost 20 years ago).

I was thinking, the dealer said you could put it on gravel, the shell cracked and the manufacturer said they specifically say gravel is unacceptable and void your entire warranty.... Or some of the past T-spa stories many of us have head about.

The shell cracking, and the manufacturer saying, "well crap, we'll get a replacement out to you as soon as we can", is NOT a nightmare.

As far as catastrophic (a fine word indeed), yes, it is approaching what might be described as catastrophic failure. APPROCHING (see Steve's fictional story).

Look, from the description given, this doesn't appear to be a big deal from where I sit. A crack was discovered, the dealer informed, and then told they'd get him a replacement spa ASAP. Ok, so a railing has to be taken apart to get the old spa out and the new spa in. So wait for the call from the dealer that the new spa is here. Set up a delivery date. Go to work in the morning and come home to a new spa. Where's the nightmare?

I spent 4 years acquiring a new international customer. Finally got an order from him. Literally the day I get a 6 figure deposit, one of my main machines goes down. The parts I need to repair it are going to take 6 weeks to fabricate. My contract with the customer call for the order to be shipped within 6 weeks of receiving the deposit. THIS, is a nightmare.

Same scenario, but the parts can be next day'ed to me and the machine is up and running in a day or 2. THIS barely qualifies as an inconvenience.

[Brewman]

Or your spa shell cracks, and you call the internet dealer in Colorado who tells you that you are too stupid to really take care of a spa, therefore this is all your fault, discover there really ISN'T a waranty, and are directed to a website to listen to some really, really, really, crappy band music.

 That my friends, would be a REAL nightmare.

[bohms]

Mainer - I'm on your side here.  It would be a nightmare to me too.  After paying 8K for a product, I would expect it to last for a long time.  Thankfully it happened under warranty but the inconvenience part of it is the part that s*cks.  I went through my own tub nightmare when Marquis tried to pass of a wet test floor model tub as a brand spanking new one from the factory.  They picked the wrong customer to try and screw over.  Anyway....to me that was a nightmare to someone else, that might not be that big of a deal.  Most people on here are Watkins supporters so they will downplay anything that might go wrong with one of their products and make you feel like an idiot for bringing it up.  
Good luck and thankfully Watkins stands behind their warranty and product and you'll be soaking in a brand new tub before you know it......I hope!!!!  

[drewstar]

Or your spa shell cracks, and you call the internet dealer in Colorado who tells you that you are too stupid to really take care of a spa, therefore this is all your fault, discover there really ISN'T a waranty, and are directed to a website to listen to some really, really, really, crappy band music.

 That my friends, would be a REAL nightmare.

\

Or he sends you to the Original equipment manufactuer....shell cracked? Really, you're gonna need to call Julio at Pheonix Spa...better brush up on your spanish.  

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

"After paying 8K for a product, I would expect it to last for a long time."

There's no reason to think that the replacement spa wont last for many years.

"Thankfully it happened under warranty but the inconvenience part of it is the part that s*cks. "

"inconvenience" yes. It's the "nightmare" I don't agree with.

"I went through my own tub nightmare when Marquis tried to pass of a wet test floor model tub as a brand spanking new one from the factory.  They picked the wrong customer to try and screw over."

WHO'S TRYING TO SCREW over Mainer? the dealer already said they'd get him a brand spankin new spa as soon as possible.

"Anyway....to me that was a nightmare to someone else, that might not be that big of a deal. "

Well, I think to anyone your experience would be rightfully considered a "nightmare".

"Most people on here are Watkins supporters so they will downplay anything that might go wrong with one of their products and make you feel like an idiot for bringing it up.   "

WTF? There's a warranty issue. It happens to EVERY company. The company is taking care of it. Sh*t happens to everyone and THIS is the kind of thing that can make a company shine (or eventually file bankruptcy). From where I sit this looks like they're taking care of business (so far) as best as it can be done.

[Richs100]

\

Or he sends you to the Original equipment manufactuer....shell cracked? Really, you're gonna need to call Julio at Pheonix Spa...better brush up on your spanish.  

Sorry, but Julio had an unexpected, all expense paid trip back to Mexico this morning.  (La Migra)  Better you should brush up on your DIY hot tub repair skills.  Bondo kits are on sale this week at the auto supply store.  Ace is the place.

[bohms]

WHO'S TRYING TO SCREW over Mainer? the dealer already said they'd get him a brand spankin new spa as soon as possible.

I never said anyone was trying to screw over Mainer just telling him that they tried to screw me over.

WTF? There's a warranty issue. It happens to EVERY company. The company is taking care of it. Sh*t happens to everyone and THIS is the kind of thing that can make a company shine (or eventually file bankruptcy). From where I sit this looks like they're taking care of business (so far) as best as it can be done.

I understand that and that's why I said they will stand by their warranty and product.  My point was that if someone came on here and said that they had a crack in their shell and it was any other brand other than one owned by Watkins, most people on this forum would be singing a different tune and not go on and on about what a "real" nightmare is in their eyes.  That's all.  

[hottubdan]

It is a nightmare...for the customer, the dealer and the manufacturer.  Ideally spa shells do not crack.  

The customer has to deal with the inconvience, frustration and sometimes expense when the spa is being traded out.  Same with the dealer, who gets partially reimbursed, not enough to cover the cost of the trade out.  The manufacturer has to provide a new spa and pay for the shipping both ways.  When refurbished it can be sold, but not for enough to cover all expenses.

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

I'm sorry, but my response would be exactly the same, no matter the brand, under the circumstances described.

Now would any other brand appear to make it so easy? That I don't know.

[bohms]

Now would any other brand appear to make it so easy? That I don't know.


Fortunately I can't answer that and I hope I never experience it to know if Artesian will make it so easy.

[Steve]

FOR THE RECORD;

I'm not a huge fan of the Watkins products and hype surrounding it but feel they will look after the situation given their history. I give a rats a$$ who the manufacturer was...  

Steve

[D.P. Roberts]

Okay, here's a question. Under the Caldera warranty, can't the dealer just repair the shell? The warranty on their web site says that "Watkins warrants the interior acrylic surface material of the Utopia, Aquatic Melodies or Paradise Series spas to be free from defects in material and workmanship for seven years", so we know it's covered. However, under "Warranty Performance" it states that "Watkins or its Authorized Service Agent will repair any defects covered by this warranty." That makes it sound like they could just repair the crack, rather than replacing the tub.

If that is the case, the dealer could take Mainer's tub, and spend a couple of weeks repairing the shell, & he'd be without a tub the whole time (loss of use of the tub during repair is not covered under warranty). I'm kind of with Doc on this one, but if I had to tear up my deck railing and then lose an 8-month old tub for several weeks for repair, I'd be pretty ticked - maybe not a nightmare, but definitely in the "bad dream where you're running around in your underwear" category. The dealer would certainly lose any repeat business or referrals from me if that happened.

However, if the dealer is going above and beyond by replacing the tub, I'd say that's a pretty good deal.

Now here's the next question- is the new tub under warranty beginning with the new installation date, or is it still considered "warranty work" under the old tub's warranty? That might be something Mainer wants to make clear with the dealer: otherwise, you just KNOW something will go wrong during that eight month gap several years from now.