5-year review of 2008 Hot Spring Sovereign

[Jacuzzi Jim]

Btm line is it's a hot tub,  doesn't matter what brand it is, and it doesn't matter how much you spent on it,  things will and can fail.  Ironically it's seems to always happen just after the warranty has expired.   This usually makes for the more pissed off customer.   Sorry your having troubles with it, and if they do cover it under warranty cudo's to them. That being said it is out of warranty, and they really don't have to, but then knowing it has been on-going it might make a difference..

[zroger73]

It was in storage for 8 months inside a garage that stayed closed most of the time. Until proven otherwise, I have faith in my dealer. They've been good to me and I've "rewarded" them by buying all of my chemicals, filters, accessories, and repair parts from them - even though I could save a few dollars buy buying online. We're waiting on a response from Hot Spring at the moment. I understand the limitations of a warranty and realize nothing lasts forever. Given this particular problem started before the warranty was up, I will rightly be upset if they don't stand behind the pump motor.

[rosewoodsteel]

If you can afford to pay 4k for a spa, you can pay another 2k-3k for the warranty too.

Why not keep the 2 to 3 K and put it into an emergency / Spa maintenance account?

[zroger73]

Btm line is it's a hot tub,  doesn't matter what brand it is, and it doesn't matter how much you spent on it,  things will and can fail.  Ironically it's seems to always happen just after the warranty has expired.   This usually makes for the more pissed off customer.   Sorry your having troubles with it, and if they do cover it under warranty cudo's to them. That being said it is out of warranty, and they really don't have to, but then knowing it has been on-going it might make a difference..

Yeah - I know things break. I deal with warranties and broken things all day long at work. Kudos to my dealer and/or Watkins, however - I was just told a new jet pump is on the way. That's what great customer service is all about! I didn't complain about any warranty repairs and didn't complain when I had to buy new parts to fix things that happened after the warranty. Had the pump began to fail after the warranty ended I would have just bought another $475 pump, grumbled and bloodied up a knuckle or two replacing it, and moved on. Anyway, here's to hoping for a good closure to this particular problem.

[rosewoodsteel]

Great news!  Are they going to install it for you, as well?

[zroger73]

Beggers can't be choosers, right? I am able to install it myself, but I would expect Watkins to allow the dealer labor along with the pump/motor. If not, it wouldn't be the first time my expectations have not been met, though. I hope to keep the old motor for a teardown analysis and possible repair, but Watkins might want it back for the same reason. We'll see.

[Tman122]

Piece of cake to put that motor in. Do the dealer a solid and volunteer. Familiarize yourself with your now out of warranty tub.

[rosewoodsteel]

Piece of cake to put that motor in. Do the dealer a solid and volunteer. Familiarize yourself with your now out of warranty tub.

Good idea, Tman.

[Jacuzzi Jim]

 Glad you got taken care of!  Maybe papa hot springs was looking in on this one, being it was posted here.    

[zroger73]

After a month's delay, the pump finally arrived and a tech was sent out to replace it. He dumped all 350 gallons of water on my grass and managed to scratch and scuff much of the shell's perimeter and filter lid. He also arrived an hour and 15 minutes too early and somehow entered my back yard through a gate with no exterior latch. This was all after being told the reason the pump was delayed was because the carrier made multiple attempts to delivery the pump outside of business hours and it kept getting returned to Watkins. I now have a new pump that works. Unfortunately, the tech used careless procedures and the communication wasn't good. My local dealer comped some supplies for the inconvenience. I managed to "sand" most of the scuffs and scratches out of the shell using a Magic Eraser, although my arms felt like jelly after that.

Watkins: Thanks for standing behind your product even though it was 9 months out of warranty.
Sherrill: Work on those communication skills and at least pretend you care.
Albert: Please be more considerate where you dump water and be careful not to damage the spa. I'm more observant than your average consumer.
Chris: Thanks for doing your best to make it right and keep my business.

[Jacuzzi Jim]

   Couple things.  The delay in getting the pump sounds like BS.  You knew they were coming but didn't drain the spa, so guessing he cracked a union to dump the water or have to hang around 3 hours for it to drain? 

  And last, how does the tech scratch the filter lid and shell when all he had to do was open the front and replace the pump.   

 Good news is it's fixed so be happy..   

[zroger73]

I have the same feeling about the delay - my instinct tells me it was never ordered. I imagine this pump is always in stock and can be had by the dealer the next business day.

Correct - I knew they were coming, but pre-draining the spa for the convenience of the installer never occurred to me. I guess I subconsciously assumed they had a trick to replace it without draining. Haha!

I have NO idea how all the scratches got in the shell/lid. The cover is red-brown and so were the scratches. It looked like the cover was turned upside down and repeatedly dragged over the top of the shell. Or, perhaps he dragged dirty water hoses around the edge. Unfortunately, I wasn't there to witness or prevent it.

[Chartreux]

Tests kits are on sale at Leslies pools...15% for Memorial weekend...