Welcome to our forum.
Buying a spa sight unseen without a physical dealer makes absolutely no sense to me. Not for something like this.
Given those three limits, it seems to me that a person of average size has a reasonable chance in the online (or box store) spa lottery. But if you can't do a wet test, it is still a lottery.
Many times, I have read a dealer comment on a forum, "Would you buy a car without taking it for a test drive?"The answer is a surprising Yes. Many people do just that. I have to agree here with Tom. The last 4 cars I have shopped and researched on line and then bought. Never did a test drive on any of them. As I have stated before there are a lot of people that are very happy with what most people on this site would consider a lesser quailty tub bought online or a big box store. You really don't miss what you have never had and with nothing to compare with they are satisfied. You know what they say, Ignorance is bliss
Many times, I have read a dealer comment on a forum, "Would you buy a car without taking it for a test drive?"The answer is a surprising Yes. Many people do just that.