Looking for feedback from owners of spas with tv's

[Flyonthewall]

I'm hoping owners of spas with televisions equipped would be willing to share their experience with the rest of us.  I love my spa and my t.v. but am unsure if i would get enough value out of combining the two.  Answers to the following questions would be appreciated as well as any other inside info.
Do they hold up well in the spa environment?  Has anyone had service calls and if so how did they go?
Do you use the tv as much, or more, than you thought you would when you bought the spa?
Please include how long you've had your spa with any comments.  Thanks

[Zep]

FLY.....

I don't have a spa tv.....but would still like to offer my take.

As a new spa owner about a year or so ago....I seriously considered a tv.

Imagined myself soaking and taking in a football game......ect

After I purchased an non-tv equipped tub I gave serious thought to adding
an outdoor TV....(expensive)..I kept putting it off.....and now after soaking
for over a year I would not consider a TV while soaking.
http://www.backyardstuff.com/Games%20&%20Fun/outdoor_tv.htm

I would think after an intial novelty, the value of watching the tube while soaking is
greatly diminished.

Of course there are some that may want to watch the evening news while soaking...
but it's not my cup of tea.

Another thing to consider.....the bubbles and water churning in a hot tub around
your ears almost submerged in water makes quality listening to a television almost
a chore...."what did he say?".

I say....soak for a year....then decide.....I bet you'll decide against....not just
for money but because inherently the two dont mix......churning water and
watching a tv show.

but as always......2EachHisOwn

 

[Brewman]

One thing to consider is the cost of future repairs.

   I would guess that having a repair person come out to fix a spa TV won't be anywhere near cheap.  Not to mention repair person competency- do they send the spa tech, or some generic TV fix it guy or both?
 Not sure what the reliability is on these, but they are subject to harsher operating conditions than regular TV's that sit inside.  So in my opinion, higer chaces of problems.  

And I suspect the warranty on these is not the 5 to 7 years that you get on the spa itself.  

Just food for thought.

[Bonibelle]

I agree!  If you think about the shows that you are most likely to be watching in the tub and how long they are on, you may realize that you probably won't soak that long. For example if you soaked for an entire football game, you would probably be a bit overdone by the end of the game.

We enjoy music, but not always...sometimes the best part of a hot tub is the absence of the noise of the TV or even music..just listening to the bubbles or jets or even (my favorite) listening to the birds and wildlife. Bill likes to listen to the stars .  

Hopefully someone who has a TV will speak up because, obviously, we only represent one perspective.

[Cyn]

I agree with everyone so far.  But, if I remember correctly, there are at least a few TV/DVD watchers in this forum that have talked about watching a movie, soaking without the bubbles on a cool spring evening...if they don't come forward, you might try a search.  I have only been a member since last summer so you shouldn't have to go too far back...unless I was searching for something else for myself when I fell on the posts  :-?  

[Brewman]

On this forum, there are more who have rigged up some sort of method to watch video while in their spas, than people who own spas with built in TV's.

In concept it's not unlike buying a TV set with the built in DVD/VCR.  Great idea till the video player breaks.  They you're stuck with either a repair costing more than a new stand alone DVD player (or VCR) or a TV with a broken DVD built in.  And then you have to go out and buy the stand alone player anyway.  

[Tyheethan]

I have a 19 inch TV mounted under the cover of my deck within 15 feet of my spa.  (My spa is not on my deck but is located right at the end of my deck).  Anyhow, I had grandiose plans of watching TV while in my spa and I think I have only done it 2-3 times, mainly because each time I found myself doing what Zep referred to--saying "what did he say?", etc.

I did watch the series finale of The Sopranos in while in my spa.  That one was important enough that I turned the jets off and just soaked it all in. 8-)

[Bonibelle]

Gotta turn on the closed captions

[Zep]

"Gotta turn on the closed captions"

then my reading glasses fog up!

[Bonibelle]

OH NO, you'll be turning up the temp in your tub instead of turning off the waterfall light ..

[Hot Tub Guru]

I don't have a TV in my spa.  There is a company that makes a TV for the outdoors by Sunbrite.

[East_TX_Spa]

I would echo the other esteemed forum members in kiboshing the television/spa combo.

In my yesteryears, I was titillated by the notion of wooing Ol' Meanness (who in those days was Young Sweetness) with a subtle plan involving a HotSpring Landmark, a portable TV/VCR, a bottle of Austi Spunkmate, chocolate covered strawberries, and a foofoo movie starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Bruce Willis.

About 30 minutes into the movie, I turned to Young Sweetness and said "This is the stupidest idea I've ever had!" to which she replied "No, it's not."  I danged near passed out from the bubbly, the heat, the escalating blood sugar, and the drudgery of the buttcheesecake excuse of a movie.  Never again, I proclaimed!

Folks watch WAY too much TV.  It's nice to do something different every once in awhile.

For what it's worth.

Term

[Pathfinder]

For the price of the option you would pay to have a TV in your tub you could go out to an electronics store and buy at least a 36"LCD and buy a cabinet you could house the tv in outside.

[ndabunka]

Don't do it!

In my research for running a business the SOLITARY decision I DID make was to NEVER, EVER sell a spa with a TV in it.  Granted it was 5 years ago and the technology at that time was younger but EVERY dealership I spoke to that sold them ALL said the same thing.  That they were a NIGHTMARE.  WAY too many service calls related to the TV's.  Some manufacturer's had entire lines recalled and or had MAJOR (unfixable) issues with the  built in TV's.  The cost is not warranted.  If someone has the kind of money to buy a Hot Tub with a TV built in, they also (and more likely) will be building a separate bar/TV area where a TV fits in a LOT better and since it's a regular TV it is more easily serviced (by a REGULAR TV shop rather than a Spa shop).  PS - One of the other businesses I "almost" got into 10 years back was Audio/Video and Home Theater (I program my own HT control software).  A pretty decent 37" 720p TV (adequate for 95% of the viewing pubics needs) can now be acquired for around $600.  The TV options were all over $1K Maybe they have come down but why pay $700 for a small 20-inch screen when you could get a MUCH larger, name brand one for less $'s)?

[Zep]

"There is a company that makes a TV for the outdoors by Sunbrite"

Yeah here is the link again....the problem is they are quite
expensive since they are all weather.....close to $3000.

http://www.sunbritetv.com/

http://www.backyardstuff.com/Games%20&%20Fun/outdoor_tv.htm