Help with electric and a few other newbie questions about putting tub in garage.

[FTLOSM]

I am narrowing down choices on tubs having a hard time finding ANYTHING that I like or want to wet test locally but just matching options and features with warranty and pricing in mind.

Quite a few of these tubs are plug and play on the 110volt outlet, this means either the heater or pump runs but not both at once, but if we do the 230volt hookup they would run both at the same time correct?

Kinda leaning towards a tub aquaterra (watkins) makes for costco but obviously no way to wet test that either, a few local shops have nice big awesome tubs but not the ones i want (more basic smaller models) specifically and its far and few between trying to find the dealers within 50 miles to even go see them and in a few cases the tubs have been empty (what's the point!) hehe.  So I may just go with costco and be done.

Having that option of hooking it up 230volt, in my garage there is a HUGE plug in that in the sub box of garage says MIG Welder/Compressor, so I assume the previous owner had that big outlet installed for the welder or compressor and that it is probably that higher 200+ type volt (not sure how to tell though), where we plan to put that tub is near both a 110 outlet and that super big outlet so I am hoping that might save us huge if we decide to hook it up via the 230 hookup vs having someone run lines etc.

I know and I can plug and play 110 and it will just "work" and most likely be fine in there but I wondered do they offer any simple 230 plug and play if i already have the outlet or does the electrician have to run something custom (costing much more) to get it hooked up.

This is going in my insulated heated garage, we keep the temp in winter at 58 degrees and the main garage door is close 99% of the time so it's quite comfortable out there would just using the 110 simple plug and play be ok since it isn't sitting outside in winter at 6 degrees trying to stay warm while in use?

Would it do me any good to lay down some carpet padding under it (concrete floor) to help insulate it from the cold floor?

Thanks for any info can supply pics of that big outlet and what the sub panel says beyond a 110 outlet i don't know much about electricity stuff but that big outlet is HUGE on the wall!

Oh lastly and this is paranoia, but any tips on if this thing springs a leak or of course some possible overspash from an extra person in tub etc in terms of ways to kinda soak up or divert the water some sort of around the general area mini edging or something that IF it ever did leak i could somehow divert that flow of water thru a channeling system over to the door (sounds silly i know) but it's wifes main concern.  Just thought someone may have some really cool idea or suggestion that just helps in places where you wouldn't want water to pool up on the concrete floor inside like our garage.

Its a 3 car garage but we use it for storage, have a tv, couch, treadmill out there along with tools and whatnot so she wondered if it was in a corner by door what methods we may be able to do to lessen any spashes or possible.
Bill

[Compatico]

If you don't know anything about the electical plug you mentioned, you'll need someone qualified to come look at it. It's most likely a 230v outlet but the size of the wiring going to the outlet will determine the amperage rating of the outlet to see if's suitable for a hot tub hookup. Even if it's 6awg or suitable wire, you can not plug in a 230v tub, you must have it hard wired. If the wiring is heavy enough like 6awg then the outlet plug could be changed to a spa pack with a GFCI breaker and hard wire from there to the tub. A GFCI is required whenever dealing with water and no other live electrical outlets can be within about 10' of the tub. Using the pre-existing wiring could save you a couple hundred bucks in wiring costs...but make sure it's done right as it is a tub of water with electricity flowing into the cabinet. And considering the costs of hot tubs, making sure it's wired safely is worth the money to have it done right.

My next question is why put it in the garage? There's nothing better than soaking in the tub at night and enjoying the outdoors, the fresh air, the stars, etc.

If you do decide to place it in the garage, remember it's a tub full of hot water so it'll produce a lot of humidity. You may want to consider adding a ventilation fan. If not and the garage is heated with with a forced air system connected to the house then all that humidity will be sucked into the house and circulated.

As for leaks I wouldn't be too concerned as these things are made to not leak. Does she worry about the bathtub leaking? Besides garage floors are supposed to be poured so liquids flow away from the foundation outside or to a drain in the garage. Confirm that the floor will drain away outside...if so just add a low profile set of tracks along the floor around the tub to guide it toward the door or drain.

Deciding if you want a plug and play or 230v tub is a major factor too. Indoors a plug and play is more usable as it will not have to work as hard to keep the water hot. A 230v tub can run both the jet pumps and heater at the same time so heating isn't an issue outdoors.

[Tman122]

I have an extension cord (made from a 2/0 4 wire welding input cable)  that I used in my garage that simply gets wired to whatever tub I have in there and plugs into my 50 amp 220V welding plug (looks similar to a big dryer plug) That worked fine. In order to deal with errant water I used a squeegee.

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

How'd the building inspector like that one Tman ;-)

[Tman122]

It was a temporary hook up that was used hundreds of times for short periods. And my friend the inspector wouldn't of said anything because it was a service cord. However a permanent hook up would need conduit for that cable. But direct bury cable would be OK sitting on the floor wouldn't it? I'll have to look that up.