Shopping & totally confused! Thoughts on these spas?

[petals20]

petals20, it can be overwhelming, but you can find a good Hot tub/spa for you. This is a very good forum and others will comeby to help you out.
Maybe you need to start off with a list of things you want from a spa and then others on here can then point you in the correct direction...I want one for heat therapy and not overly large, just a 2- 3 person, ect and that's how you start to narrow it down...good luck with your search and keep open to Sundance brands as well....
my opinion...

Yup..that's exactly the size I want as well. The bigger models that seas over 4+ I think you loose that sense of intimacy & coziness and what you have is more like a small pool. Oh don't worry, I'm home everyday so I've been scouring the net these past couple weeks and I've come a long way and have absorbed tons of info. I feel much more confident as to which mfg's are in the top echelon and you know there are lots & lots of them.

It is a big huge world of hot tubs mfg all vying for consumer dollar so that benefits us because they're striving to put out the best product and I have to say I am very impressive of their commitment to quality & customer satisfaction.

I disagree to that person who said there's a small handful of BMW brands & a bunch of Honda/Kia's. Most of that list from PoolandSpa.com, they're all very much in the hunt and have an amazing line of hot tubs with their own special innovations & features. The hot tub industry is big business I come to that realization so nobody is a lunch meat,, they have to bring their "A" game or else they would not be in business.

The only Honda/Kia's are IMO the ones that you buy directly online with no dealer support like the ones at Costco....Evolution, Divine, AquaTerra, etc and other club warehouses.

[dunecritter]

Sorry Petals...I'm on the other side of the field from your post.. Bigger is better for me and I like my options of seats with a larger more options tub and also don't enjoy footsie games in a tub.
I also believe that there are certainly a handful of truly "best" tubs and lots of "Better" with a whole lot of "~~~" tubs. Own a few yourself and I think you will find this out for yourself in real life experience first hand vs reading about XYZ tubs and such on internet reviews and public forums...Everyone has opinions but those don't hold up if your not talking from your experience...That's why the independent service guys such as Tmann and Jacuzzi Jim for example are really some of the best reviews and posts to learn from...There's a lot of dealers and tho some are totally straight and legit in their posts(LIKE MINE!!!  ) some are still somewhat biased to some degree...And you can't blame them. Its their lively hood and also their passion...hard to sell something if your not a believer and not passionate about it. I'll refrain from talking about Value internet tubs

[petals20]

Oh of course variety is the spice of life   , I never said or implied it's my way or the highway. I also forgot to add that I would hate to talk in a 9-11 ft tub over the noise plus talking a big tub is like talking across the room. But For things parties and fraternities it's great so se la vie. And what a pain in the butt maintaining & cleaning a tub that size so no thx for me but knock yourself out.

I def plan to own a few from here on and continue to be a student learning & evolving with the industry. For instance with home theater which is one of our passion. Since 97 when the dvd player 1st came out we've upgraded a hdtv about every 2 yrs until 2012 when finally I was content with our current LG LED where I don't feel compelled to go out and buy another model. We've owned Panny, Toshiba, itachi, Sony, Samsung, LG,Sharp, plasma, LCD, LED, front projectors total of 11 over 17 yrs.

And if hot tubs is as fun at home theater then we'll go down that same road of live & learn.

[wmccall]

There is a balance to finding the right size.  Intimacy and coziness are overrated after you have been in 104F water for 20 minutes.  People don't snuggle in the sauna.  On the other hand some people buy the gargantuan tubs thinking every weekend is going to be a party with all their friends.  Out 2nd tub was a bit smaller than our first, but its still considered a 5 person tub and I think its just perfect for the two of us which it is 95% of the time, but still big enough if our daughter and husband come over.

[petals20]

I couldn't agree more. This is our 1st hot tub so I want to start small with a 2-3 tub then work upwards to what I believe is the right balance which is a 5 person tub. And perhaps from there my mind will crave for a bigger size then we'll go to 6-7. But I'm pretty sure 7 will be the max no matter what. We're not college kids or planning on keg parties. This will be an intimate affair with no more than 5 ppl max.

I don't want to start out at 4-5 then go backwards you know?

[Quickbeam]

Petals, you said you were into Home Theater. When we were first looking, many years ago at home theater and wondering what size of TV to get, there was a saying I heard many, many times. It was that no one ever complains about buying a TV that's too big. In other words, for TV at least, buy the biggest TV your room can handle. Personally, I would think the same for hot tubs.
We just purchased a new tub and it is 7' x 7'. I would have liked to have gone with a bigger size, but we put our tub on a roof deck and this was the maximum size we could have. We have only had our tub a very short time, and so far it is a good size for the two of us. We haven't had any more than the two of us in it so far. And while it's rated as I believe a 5 person tub, I personally think it would be pretty crowded with 5.
Just my 2¢, but if it was me, and I could go bigger, I would.

[dunecritter]

Petals...Owning a larger 100" X 91" requires the same maint that a basic 84" X 84" (7' X 7').  you test the water the same and you and you clean the same filter's ...whats the difference??? Its not a pool that you sweep or are cleaning the leaves out of the basket like a pool.  So you simply add 3 teaspoons of sanitizer versus when owning a smaller tub you add only 2 teaspoons. You don't add chems more often...you don't have to check the water more often..That's the only difference in my opinion after personally owning the different sizes. The coziness thought is something some new hot tub owners might think they would like but it goes out the window very quickly when trying to relax and get a good therapy jet massage. Our highest volume selling tub is a 84" X 84" average. Some will buy a second tub and upsize and some will downsize after the kids have grown and gone. I've never had someone say they were downsizing because they didn't want to maintain or enjoy having a larger more option tub yet rather their new house will not fit the larger tub is the most common reply I hear. I personally have a larger tub for me and me only...I don't invite people over to "GO HOT TUBBIN" with me...It's just me , my wife and 3 year old son and guess what? I've got options and many different seats and water therapy to choose from with a different therapy option in every open seat. To be totally honest ..I don't want guests in my tub with me...Maybee it was my intention years ago before my family but no longer. They make smaller tubs (2-3) for a reason and bigger for the same... But lets keep it real...A bigger tub requires no more maintenance than a smaller one...just more chemicals due to more water. You should own a tub and take in advise from veteran owners rather than post about "whats what" before you really know what it is your giving advise on. Your posts should point the way of a question vs a fact. The things I see you posting all over will certainly change once you gain your personal experience...Especially when I see you looking and posting about an internet photo of a certain tub and telling everyone "its great"  "Just look at this beauty" and its actually a pig with lipstick...Don't be so fooled by smoke and mirrors. Its not about big claimed BHP pump #'s yet its about the pump's real factual continuous HP#'s that properly match the jet size and count to offer a great soaking experience...The best MFG's can certainly throw stupid  big pumps in that will happily consume many more amps of expensive power and drill another 50 holes in your tubs shell...to do what? have 50 more possible leaks and have an electric bill that will have you getting a second job to pay to operate it. But hey....If you want to sit in front of 4 fire hoses at once and stick your head in a jet engine while running....be my guest and trust me...your opinion will soon change...

A great hot tub is dependable, quiet to operate, efficient to operate, and looks good to the eye along with providing the most comfortable soaking experience and built by a long lasting reputable financially strong backed manufacture offering a real NO BS warranty and actually does what they say they will do in that warranty.  By the way...I'll warranty your tub for life and sell you my ocean front property here in Arizona real cheap.

[petals20]

You're absolutely right Quickbeam with that comparison and 99% of the time can be applied to other hobbies. When we got our 1st PJ an Epson with a 100" screen in the beg it was massive & I thought that was it- final. But only 6 mos later your eyes gets used to the size and was ready to bump up to 125".

But there's also always an exception to the rule & this case with hot tubs I feel it is..nice try though  Like I sd we're not college kids anymore so we don't have a growing family with "more" on the way or acquiring more friends. This is it for us, just 3 ppl in our household and we rarely entertain that much anymore just thanksgiving & Xmas and that's only sometimes not all the time. 

You were on the right track though had you compare HT to the size and #of jets which I feel the more the merrier yes? 

[Quickbeam]

Sorry Petals, we will agree to disagree. My wife and I are many, many years past being college kids and like I said our tub is 7' x 7'. I wouldn't want anything smaller than that, even for just the two of us. We do like to entertain, but our tub is at a summer cabin, so I don't think we will be using it to entertain a great deal. That said, we still have the option to have another couple join us if we do happen to have guests. And again, the 7' x 7' size is comfortable for just the two of us. And like I earlier said, I would have gone at least a little bit bigger if I could have.
As for the number of jets, something you will hear on this forum is that it is not the number of jets that's important, it is what those jets do. I think that is wise advice.

[petals20]

Mr Jake,..the model that was looking like the one we're going with is the LA Spa Allure 3 signature series. But a dealer near us who has that line, interestingly also happens to have a Bull frog A5L(a model that was in our top 3 but chose LA spa)  floor model that she is talking highly of it and said would give me a great deal on it.

So Jake, if you don't mind me putting you on the spot & making you work for your money tell me some strong points that you feel features/jets/benefits the A5L has that the Allure 3 lacks or doesn't do as well as the A5L.

FYI - the reason why we ended up going with the LA spa Allure 3 is because they have many standard features that our other finalists like Clearwater XS76R would be an optional feature that we have to pay extra for. The standard features the Allure 3 has are: F/X LED fountain lights, 4 Ultimate FX fountains, Air injector therapy, Quadrant Therapy System.

Give me your best shot & persuade me to sway from the Allure 3 to the A5L.    You've got a tough opponent, the Allure 3 has 2 pumps & 37 jets. Btw how is it possible for the A5L to have up to 137 jets? none of the 3 jets packs to be placed won't equate to 137 jets. Lastly, the Allure 3 is the only mfg that has option for a stone cabinet which neither Clearwater or Bullfrog can offer. We like that different stone look on the cabinet.

[petals20]

Hi Jake,

After we designed our A5L, selected the jet packs & accessories the result came out and was saved to our nearest local dealer in Utah which is 2 states away and that our chosen design will be handled by that dealer. But I spoke with a Dagmar at Hydro spa in Woodland Hills which is only about a 2 hr drive away yesterday when she gave me a quote on the Allure 3. IDK why, could be Hydro Spa is a new dealer and not yer updated on Bullfrog's website.

[Lionheart_CHP]

If you're looking for 137 jets in something a little bigger than a bathtub you're not going to find from a legitimate top-tier manufacturer.  Only the flash-over-substance guys do that.

[Quickbeam]

If you're looking for 137 jets in something a little bigger than a bathtub you're not going to find from a legitimate top-tier manufacturer.  Only the flash-over-substance guys do that.

+1  Totally agree with this!

[mrmojo1111]

To get to 137 jets in the Bullfrog, you would need a rainshower pack in each position, assuming you are counting these as "jets". Don't get me wrong, I love the feel of these packs, but seems like a stretch to advertise a high jet count using these. Not sure why anyone even cares about the absolute number of jets anyway. Petals, you really need to get into these tubs and see how they feel. I think the answer will become much more obvious to you then!

[dunecritter]

If you're looking for 137 jets in something a little bigger than a bathtub you're not going to find from a legitimate top-tier manufacturer.  Only the flash-over-substance guys do that.

+1  Totally agree with this!

+ 2 Here