Author Topic: Hot Tub Suggestions Installed on Sloped Earth (Read 23267 times)

bud16415 · « **Reply #45 on:** July 09, 2017, 11:14:16 am »

Looks good. A lot of tubs come with the disconnect box they recommend. Depending on what tub you buy you might get a refund if you tell them in the dealing on price you don�t need it. My tub requires two GFCI breakers I have a 20 and a 30 in my box and then have 7 wires running to the tub. Not sure if you mentioned the tub you are getting.

Also just a head up. If you are getting an inspection or down the road you sell your place and someone brings in a home inspector or if you add the tub and addition to your homeowners and they bring someone out to look it over. Romex NM-B like you ran from your homes load panel up thru your attic and out the side of the house and down the conduit I believe is not to code going thru the conduit. It has something to do with heat and the outer insulation etc, I think it is BS also and I ran mine just as you did. But I�m told it might not pass code if the inspector is a stickler for details. You are supposed to transaction to single conductor in a Jbox. For that reason if I was you the underground part I would do with individual conductors and beside that it will be much easier to pull.

Hot Tub Forum · « **Reply #45 on:** July 09, 2017, 11:14:16 am »

jukeboxpunk · « **Reply #46 on:** July 10, 2017, 08:47:42 am »

Ya the tub we are getting is the Bullfrog XL7. They do not provide the disconnect box, only the tub. Which I thought was weird but was ok with it.

I left some extra wire in eaves, so if it has to be junctioned then it should be length enough to do so. The conduit in the line through the eaves is 3/4 LiquidTight. I only added it for protection against rodents cause we get mice every so often, they havent chewed through wire that I know of yet but wanted to take precaution. The Romex coming out of eaves/soffit is running down ext wall with 1.5" pvc conduit. So I could have probably just laid/ran the romex without the conduit in the eaves?

As far as going exterior, is romex for direct burial than? if not in conduit? Or like you said, it is supposed to be stripped down to individual wires, Pos, Neg, Neut, Ground, then run through conduit underground? I still havent ran the underground stuff, so I may at least get half of the job right still. lol

bud16415 · « **Reply #47 on:** July 10, 2017, 10:30:53 am »

The direct burial wire is #6/3 UF-B W/ Ground. You can�t bury the �romex� #6-3 NM-B W/ Ground. You also can�t take the conductors out of the outer sheath and run them thru conduit as they are not marked as individual wires would be. What you would run there is #6AGW THHN. You can use all the same wire but mark the ends with colored tape. RBWG

I personally wouldn�t do direct burial wire for the same rodent reasons you mentioned plus once you have the conduit in down the road if you ever need a new wire you can pull it thru.

I am not a professional but to the best of my abilities I believe what I just told you is code.

Clarkp · « **Reply #48 on:** July 11, 2017, 06:20:36 pm »

Great minds think alike...

IMG_0245 by Clark Pittman, on Flickr

IMG_0249 by Clark Pittman, on Flickr

IMG_0247 by Clark Pittman, on Flickr

2x10 treated cross-beams have been installed on 24" centers and it will get two layers of 3/4" exterior plywood. The Sundance Aspen is being delivered this Thursday!

jukeboxpunk · « **Reply #49 on:** July 12, 2017, 05:57:02 am »

Clarkp...so you opted to do more footings and beams for a plywood decking. Posts, footings and beams look great. Not sure about the 3/4 ply though and terms of how well it will hold up. You will have to keep us posted on that.

bud16415 · « **Reply #50 on:** July 12, 2017, 07:43:33 am »

I would suggest Pressure treated plywood over exterior plywood decking for a hot tub application, if a smooth surface like plywood was needed. There are grades of PT that can even be used for basement walls. The PT IMO would hold up great.

jukeboxpunk · « **Reply #51 on:** July 12, 2017, 08:39:50 am »

They make marine grade ply too. Also they have some plastic coating you can get to paint on to seal for years.

Clarkp · « **Reply #52 on:** July 12, 2017, 10:27:28 am »

IMG_0263 by Clark Pittman, on Flickr

IMG_0264 by Clark Pittman, on Flickr

Yes, the main load supports are 10" sonotubes with concrete saddles just like yours. Then there are 9 - 6x6 treated posts mounted in concrete for a total of 13 supports. The main load beams and perimeter beams are Boise Cascade "Versa Lam" laminated structural beams. These are 1.75" thick by 9.5" deep each. The main three center beams are doubled up, glued and lagged together.

The cross pieces are just regular pressure-treated 2x10s.

The top decking will be two layers of 3/4" pressure treated plywood - glued and screwed for a total plywood thickness of 1.5"

... or my new Sundance will be sliding down that hill...

jukeboxpunk · « **Reply #53 on:** July 13, 2017, 10:34:37 am »

Yesterday I finished the frame of my deck, sqaured it off and is resting in position where I want it. Today not much else I want to do in the rain. Still need to ad hurricane ties and blocking inbetween the joists. I sistered up 3 of the joists in the center and may do more. I used construction adhesive over the joint of the sister to prvent water from getting inbetween the sister and rotting them out. I also used tar tape for the beams to prevent the same thing.

Looking back at this, I wish I had gone the route of purchasing 6 inch I-Beams instead. but oh well.

Clarkp I like how yours is a more low profile deck and didnt need to raise it up much. My footings are 12" at 48" deep. I had though about diggin more footing and going the route you went but with my luck i would have run into more root and large stone or ledge issues.

Clarkp · « **Reply #54 on:** July 14, 2017, 11:17:35 am »

Juke... my original plan was exactly what you have done. However, during a trip to 84 Lumber for an unrelated project I spotted those Boise Cascade Versa Lam beams - that was a game-changer. With those I was able to re-consider the post locations and cut the deck height in half. Those beams are basically 1.75" thick plywood - 9.5 inches deep. I finished my tub support deck (the perimeter people deck construction will begin immediately) Wednesday night and this is what happened yesterday morning...

IMG_0269 by Clark Pittman, on Flickr

IMG_0282 by Clark Pittman, on Flickr

I wish the cover would stow lower but the Sundance Aspen has a somewhat rounded end so the mounts keep the cover high. We arranged it such that the cover stows between the tub and the house which maintains the view of the lake on the other side.

Keep us up to date with your construction, delivery and installation!

JacuzziJack · « **Reply #55 on:** July 15, 2017, 04:57:36 pm »

Might want to build a little platform on the side to make it safer to get in/out of, when you go to build the stairs...

Looks good though..

Clarkp · « **Reply #56 on:** July 16, 2017, 09:30:43 pm »

Of course... the whole idea was to get the main load-bearing structure done in time for the tub delivery. As it was, I had to work till 9 p.m. the night before delivery happened just to get everything ready to receive the tub.

As I mentioned before, there will be a fairly extensive deck system built around the tub as we go forward from here. These pictures show the temporary platform I did to serve us in the interim.

IMG_0283 by Clark Pittman, on Flickr

IMG_0284 by Clark Pittman, on Flickr

jukeboxpunk · « **Reply #57 on:** July 22, 2017, 12:36:40 am »

Looks great Clarkp.

Today I finished the burial of my wire. Tomorrow I am going to start staining the beams and joists. Some will disagree staining it this early but the wood I bought was already looking pretty dry and it has been baking in the sun for this week. Before I do that though I need to flush cut my beams to my deck width. I wasnt sure what size deck I wanted to build and settled on a size after the beams were in place. so excess beam ends are going to come off. I am right there with you about getting a foundation ready for tub and wiring, saving stairs for last.I have the tub people emailing me asking when they can deliver. Gonna get deck boards soon. Going with 5/4x6. Was going to do 2x6 but think it will be overkill.

Clarkp · « **Reply #58 on:** July 22, 2017, 11:00:48 am »

Sounds like progress Juke. Don't use a stain that has a "clear coat" finish to it - use something that is just a stain / sealer with no polyurethane-type top finish. Anything like that will start peeling not long after you apply it - it becomes a maintenance nightmare.

We're enjoying the tub even though its been over a 100 degrees for the past week or so. It's tough trying to keep the tub down around 94-95 degrees. The Sundance air jets do help it feel a little cooler. The water gets up to 97 pretty fast with two or three people in it.

I think I'm going the 5/4 decking route as well; smoother and hopefully less warping in the sun. The Trex stuff looks nice but $35 for a 16 foot stick?! Woof!

I would love to find some reclaimed teak boards but I'm sure those would be in high demand and quite expensive.

jukeboxpunk · « **Reply #59 on:** July 22, 2017, 07:02:36 pm »

Those damn post to concrete footing adapters suck I am realizing. I laid my deck boards on the deck loosely and began to jump on the deck and the adapters cause the posts to shift slightly. Im annoyed. But i think once the weight of the tub is on there it shouldnt have any issues. Wonder if there are adapters for after the fact. just in case.

I am going to do a solid color stain. It's BEHR brand so not sure if it has poly. Ill take a gander at that before I do anything. Worse case is that I wait till the deck is dried out a bit more. Currently have it covered with a tarp. Rain expected. I know rain won't hurt it, but want to keep it dry to help it dry out faster.

Hot Tub Forum · « **Reply #59 on:** July 22, 2017, 07:02:36 pm »

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