hot tub rookie need help choosing

[ray]

Don't use anyone elses opinion of what they think feels good or is a good deal. This is for you not them. As long as the brands you are considering are quality (and they are). Salesman are going to try and sway you.

of course.  my concern is more on the quality side of it.  thanks!

[Spatech_tuo]

Don't use anyone elses opinion of what they think feels good or is a good deal. This is for you not them. As long as the brands you are considering are quality (and they are). Salesman are going to try and sway you.

of course.  my concern is more on the quality side of it.  thanks!

With Jacuzzi, Hot Springs and Caldera you're looking at good manufacturers so concentrate on your confidence in the dealers, what kind of deal you can get and of course wet test.

[Tman122]

Don't use anyone elses opinion of what they think feels good or is a good deal. This is for you not them. As long as the brands you are considering are quality (and they are). Salesman are going to try and sway you.

of course.  my concern is more on the quality side of it.  thanks!

I was just concerned cause you were getting bombed by sales for brands your not even looking at. Glad your on top of it. You have some of the best in front of you. Narrow your choices just like your doing.

[DKRanger22]

Don't use anyone elses opinion of what they think feels good or is a good deal. This is for you not them. As long as the brands you are considering are quality (and they are). Salesman are going to try and sway you.

of course.  my concern is more on the quality side of it.  thanks!

I was just concerned cause you were getting bombed by sales for brands your not even looking at. Glad your on top of it. You have some of the best in front of you. Narrow your choices just like your doing.

I wouldn't exactly call it getting "bombed" with a sales pitch.  As someone who went through a very similar search and looked closely at the same list of tubs, I think the original poster might value my opinion.   If you look closely at my initial post in this thread, you'll see that my main advice was to wet test first, evaluate the quality of dealers second and consider price third.  I did exactly that, came up with a good battle plan and had narrowed things down to either a Grandee or Cantabria.   At the last minute, I ventured out to explore the Aspen, and found that the Sundance dealer also happened to carry Bullfrog.  After a wet test, I left having signed for a Bullfrog R8.   Perhaps my purchase was driven a bit more by price - it was literally half the price of the Cantabria or the Aspen - but it wet tested every bit as good (to me anyway) as the other tubs and seemed to have a great reputation.  My short time on this forum has confirmed that, with the exception of your disdain toward the Bullfrog brand for some odd reason yet to be explained.  If we can't share our opinions and experiences without ridicule, then what's the point of having a discussion forum?  And what harm is there in presenting another option to the original poster to consider?

Ray - I don't care which tub you buy, so long as you're happy with it.  I don't sell these things.  I wanted a quality, 8-person hot tub and was prepared to shell out $12-$14k for the pleasure.  I feel as if I accomplished that goal and only spent $7,400.   Even if you can't do as good on the price, a Bullfrog R8 (or A8 for that matter) should still be thousands cheaper and I think it's at least worth a soak.    Your mileage may vary and I really hope you enjoy whichever tub you choose.   Frankly, they're all great options and it's really going to be hard for you to go wrong with any of them.

[ray]

Hello everyone... i appreciate all your comments/experiences... really... thanks for sharing... well... let me recap.. i wet tested the jacuzzi j495 and hot springs grandee last monday...i tested the sundance and caldera today... DKranger... didn't get to test the bullfrog... dealers are a bit far from me and didn't want to deal with LA traffic... anyway... and the winner is... sundance Aspen. The Cantabria is nice but the lounger is for tall people... i'm not... plus i think the jets are softer than the Aspen... the grandee jets were kinda has the same feel as the cantabria... don't get me wrong... they're great tubs... but the Aspen in my opinion is more therapeutic... the J495 and Aspen are very similar but Aspen has few more features like the illuminated grab bars... you can also turn off all the jets and just have bubbles... i also prefer the waterfall instead of the fountains on the cantabria and grandee... so in the end it was the j495 and the aspen... the aspen was $2700 cheaper... got it for $12800 taxes included/out the door... other dealers quotes were around that plus tax... in case you're wondering... the j495 was $13995+tax+$300delivery... yeah... delivery... all the other dealers were free delivery except for the jacuzzi dealer... Can't wait!!!  again... thanks to all who took the time to respond/comment.  cheers! 

[Hottubguy]

Good tub for a good price. Congratulations on your purchase!

[Tman122]

Don't use anyone elses opinion of what they think feels good or is a good deal. This is for you not them. As long as the brands you are considering are quality (and they are). Salesman are going to try and sway you.

of course.  my concern is more on the quality side of it.  thanks!

I was just concerned cause you were getting bombed by sales for brands your not even looking at. Glad your on top of it. You have some of the best in front of you. Narrow your choices just like your doing.

I wouldn't exactly call it getting "bombed" with a sales pitch.  As someone who went through a very similar search and looked closely at the same list of tubs, I think the original poster might value my opinion.   If you look closely at my initial post in this thread, you'll see that my main advice was to wet test first, evaluate the quality of dealers second and consider price third.  I did exactly that, came up with a good battle plan and had narrowed things down to either a Grandee or Cantabria.   At the last minute, I ventured out to explore the Aspen, and found that the Sundance dealer also happened to carry Bullfrog.  After a wet test, I left having signed for a Bullfrog R8.   Perhaps my purchase was driven a bit more by price - it was literally half the price of the Cantabria or the Aspen - but it wet tested every bit as good (to me anyway) as the other tubs and seemed to have a great reputation.  My short time on this forum has confirmed that, with the exception of your disdain toward the Bullfrog brand for some odd reason yet to be explained.  If we can't share our opinions and experiences without ridicule, then what's the point of having a discussion forum?  And what harm is there in presenting another option to the original poster to consider?

Ray - I don't care which tub you buy, so long as you're happy with it.  I don't sell these things.  I wanted a quality, 8-person hot tub and was prepared to shell out $12-$14k for the pleasure.  I feel as if I accomplished that goal and only spent $7,400.   Even if you can't do as good on the price, a Bullfrog R8 (or A8 for that matter) should still be thousands cheaper and I think it's at least worth a soak.    Your mileage may vary and I really hope you enjoy whichever tub you choose.   Frankly, they're all great options and it's really going to be hard for you to go wrong with any of them.

The OP asked about 4 specific brands and instead of helping them with their choice a couple/few tried to add something "they" think is better and/or worth a try.

Sorry I don't see that as help for a potential buyer. You never hear me skew a conversation/question to a particular brand. And suddenly I am against a brand......whatever BF koolaid drinkers.

To all those who need advice, I promise to not drink any ones koolaid. Take my advice or leave it. I could care less.

[DKRanger22]

The OP asked about 4 specific brands and instead of helping them with their choice a couple/few tried to add something "they" think is better and/or worth a try.

Read my response again.  I did provide feedback / insight on the 4 tubs originally in question.  I also provided feedback on another option that i felt competed very well with those same tubs - similar size, features and in my opinion soaking experience - at a significantly better price point.  I'm not sure how that can be construed as anything other than trying to help.   

[DKRanger22]

Hello everyone... i appreciate all your comments/experiences... really... thanks for sharing... well... let me recap.. i wet tested the jacuzzi j495 and hot springs grandee last monday...i tested the sundance and caldera today... DKranger... didn't get to test the bullfrog... dealers are a bit far from me and didn't want to deal with LA traffic... anyway... and the winner is... sundance Aspen. The Cantabria is nice but the lounger is for tall people... i'm not... plus i think the jets are softer than the Aspen... the grandee jets were kinda has the same feel as the cantabria... don't get me wrong... they're great tubs... but the Aspen in my opinion is more therapeutic... the J495 and Aspen are very similar but Aspen has few more features like the illuminated grab bars... you can also turn off all the jets and just have bubbles... i also prefer the waterfall instead of the fountains on the cantabria and grandee... so in the end it was the j495 and the aspen... the aspen was $2700 cheaper... got it for $12800 taxes included/out the door... other dealers quotes were around that plus tax... in case you're wondering... the j495 was $13995+tax+$300delivery... yeah... delivery... all the other dealers were free delivery except for the jacuzzi dealer... Can't wait!!!  again... thanks to all who took the time to respond/comment.  cheers!

Ray - congrats on the Aspen!   I really enjoyed that tub as well.   You'll have plenty of space to sprawl out or entertain friends/family.   I really enjoyed the 41" depth.    Enjoy in good health!

[Tman122]

Read my response again.  I did provide feedback / insight on the 4 tubs originally in question.  I also provided feedback on another option that i felt competed very well with those same tubs - similar size, features and in my opinion soaking experience - at a significantly better price point.  I'm not sure how that can be construed as anything other than trying to help.   

You also tried to sell the OP a different brand he wasn't even considering. Kinda like a salesman who drank to much koolaid.

You feeling that it competes well means what? You feeling he could of spent less? Maybe for less tub. Maybe he didn't want less tub?

Those are nice but this is better is what you did. Shame.

[DKRanger22]

Read my response again.  I did provide feedback / insight on the 4 tubs originally in question.  I also provided feedback on another option that i felt competed very well with those same tubs - similar size, features and in my opinion soaking experience - at a significantly better price point.  I'm not sure how that can be construed as anything other than trying to help.   

You also tried to sell the OP a different brand he wasn't even considering. Kinda like a salesman who drank to much koolaid.

You feeling that it competes well means what? You feeling he could of spent less? Maybe for less tub. Maybe he didn't want less tub?

Those are nice but this is better is what you did. Shame.

Thanks for trying to put words in my mouth, but that's not what I did.   

• hey, I'm looking at these 4 tubs - what do you think?
• great tubs, here's my take on those 4, my opinion may be of value to you, as I explored the same tubs in great detail.
• if you like those 4 and don't want to spend that much, you may also consider this option

You're right, I wasn't trying to be helpful.  I was trying to hawk a Bullfrog because I have some vested interest in what a perfect stranger on the other side of the country buys.   Such a shameful act on my part.  Instead of digging the pad for my Bullfrog like I was planning to do this weekend, I guess I better dig a hole and hide in it, as I can't live with myself 

[richierich]

Congrats on the Aspen! It is a great tub, also about as big as you can get. It seems like you got a very good deal on it. I'm sure you will enjoy the heck out of it.

[DKRanger22]

Agreed on the price - I was quoted about a grand higher here in my area before tax! 

[ray]

hey guys... i really appreciate all your comments/experiences/concerns... especially DK.    i took all your comments as i was wet testing the tubs... hey DK... so you are putting the pad yourself?  how about the hard wire?  how much did it cost you?  thanks again, everyone!  God bless.

[ray]

by the way... for rookies out there like me and is in a market for a tub... i'm sure they'll throw in the regular stuff... chemicals...step stool... delivery... cover with lifter... i did get the upgraded fabric (?) looking texture cover for free (the dealer said it was an upgrade)... she also gave me extra filter... and the padded seat for my wife... oh and a bunch of rubber duckies and squirty sharks.  my point is ask for everything you can think of that you'll need... $25-$50 here and there adds up...  doesn't hurt to ask.