How would you rate the quality of a hot tub? What specific aspects r important?

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

Really?  This is how you decide if a tub is high quality?  Seems that there are quite a few things that should be higher on the list than layout of equipment compartment and how the shell meets the cabinet, IMO.  I guess everyone will have their own priorities, which makes this task all the more difficult for Dr. Spa.  This is such a subjective thing. 

Layout of equipment and how the shell meets the cabinet shows an attention to detail and how precise their manufacturing process is. I think these are some EXCELLENT individual aspects to look at when trying to determine the over all quality of a spa.

Thanks for your own input and ideas :-)


P.S cup holders would be a personal preference / design feature,  and have no bearing on quality of construction

[Tman122]

Lets talk about the bottom a little bit. ABS plastic is a good thing but, you can staple a thin piece on the bottom or you can form fit a pan using thick plastic and all your frame work is protected from the elements. Some companies do both. Look at it. Another thing that varies differently from brand to brand and almost always depends on how much you spend.

[Tman122]

Proprietary or not to proprietary that is the question. All potential buyers should know if the parts for their tub are specific to their manufacturer or generic and available from anyone. And to expound on this further generic parts are not created equal. The manufacturers of generic parts (Waterway, Gecko, Hydroquip to name the biggest), these are parts that are used by several manufacturers of tubs, have, in most cases, several lines of parts that are good, better, best. And they have been known to manufacture parts specific for certain brands. Some to meet a price point and some that meet a specific spec whether its better or not better.

Proprietary does not mean bad it means proprietary. In other words they are made specifically for that brand. This can be both good and a pain. Sometimes parts manufacturers make a better part for a specific brand to meet their spec. But they are likely more expensive and sometimes harder to get.

Something every purchaser should know.

[TwinCitiesHotSpring]

Really?  This is how you decide if a tub is high quality?  Seems that there are quite a few things that should be higher on the list than layout of equipment compartment and how the shell meets the cabinet, IMO.  I guess everyone will have their own priorities, which makes this task all the more difficult for Dr. Spa.  This is such a subjective thing. 

Layout of equipment and how the shell meets the cabinet shows an attention to detail and how precise their manufacturing process is. I think these are some EXCELLENT individual aspects to look at when trying to determine the over all quality of a spa.

Thanks for your own input and ideas :-)


P.S cup holders would be a personal preference / design feature,  and have no bearing on quality of construction

one interesting little story which relates to the above and proves that some people do care about the very minor details...sold a Limelight Flair today after 2-3 weeks of "back and forth" with a customer who was comparing us to a spa from another "Top 5" manufacturer.  Customer was at said company and started feeling around the "lip" of the shell where it overlaps the cabinet, noticed how rough and unfinished that area was to the point of it being "sharp" where you could almost cut yourself on it, whereas your spa was very smooth and "finished" (his exact words, not mine)...he even said "I know its foolish but little things like that bother me" obviously a very technical/analytical person

but there ya go, a real life "the proof is in the pudding" story where minor details do matter to some

[Tman122]

HP and Jet count.

Would you rather have a hot tub with 15 HP and 100 jets or a hot tub with 30 jets and 3 HP. If a typical male is deciding they will always be swayed to the tub with more and more. Even though a properly engineered hot tub with 3 HP and 30 jets will have a better hydrotherapy feel at the jets than a poorly engineered tub with 15HP and 100 jets.

The wet test is the only way to determine this, and take your time, a half hour minimum.

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

I have 2 jets, and 3/4 hp  :-)

How about, would you rather have 100 jets pushing 1/2 GPM each, or 30 jets pushing 5 GPM each?

[Tman122]

Frame work. What is the frame made of? Wood? Treated or not? Metal, there are several grades and classes of this? Plastic, this to can and will get brittle? Wood 2x4's, wood 2x2's? Staples, screws? How is it put together? Sloppily or neat and tight? This is a sure sign of quality and the material really doesn't matter. Some will say one is better than another but this is nothing but hype and sales. In my 30 years around Hot Tubs I have disposed of plenty of tubs that were rotten or rusted. Never disposed of a plastic frame/supported tub yet. That will come. But the rot or rust was not a direct result of the frame simply wearing out and collapsing. A main reason for the failures was location (wet) or the tub was no longer cost affective to repair for other reasons and had some deteriorating frame work. But it has never the cause of the disposal for me. Maybe others have seen it but not me.

The frame work on any high quality tub will last the lifetime of the tub no matter what it is made of. This could be 15-20 years or more. Look at it and see how it is put together. Quality workmanship is easy to spot at the joints where wood/metal/plastic meet. But don't expect a mediocre quality tub or a value brand tub to last for 15-20 years or more no matter what the frame is made of.

Maybe your location your in and where the tub is going to be placed can decide this for you.

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

Got that one  Roger. And I completely agree. I've seen 20 year old spas with rotted away frames that are still standing strong....until you try to move them

how about, does their website display a complete copy of the warranty and make owners manuals readily available to anyone?

[Tman122]

Yes an available and easy to access warranty was going to be my next one. However a great warranty is crappy with a crappy dealer.