Question for Caldera Niagara owners

[jasolution]

I have a new Caldera Niagara Utopia hot tub that is simply terrific. (Some useless background info follows)

We wet tested Hot Springs Grandee & Vista, the Caldera Niagara, Geneva, Tahitian and Aspire and the Marquis Reward and Euphoria. We liked all of the tubs, but felt most comfortable with the Caldera dealer and liked the Niagara tub slightly better than our other two top choices, the Caldera Aspire and the Marquis Reward.

Anyway.....now for my question. We noticed on the first night of using our tub that the auxiliary control panel was not backlit, so you cannot see it in the dark. We could not remember if it was lit when we wet tested, but the overhead lights in the store were on anyway, so we wouldn't have noticed.

I e-mailed Caldera through their website and they responded the same day saying that the auxiliary control panel should be backlit with a blue light. I called the dealer and he said that to the best of his knowledge, only the primary control panel is lit. He did not have the Niagara filled with water to be able to power it on to see.

Neither the owners manual nor the website say specifically if the auxiliary control panel is backlit. Since the dealer says no, and Caldera says yes, I figured the best way to settle the dispute is to ask another 2004 model Niagara Utopia owner to tell me whether theirs is lit or not.

So, any 2004 Caldera Niagara Utopia owners out there...does your auxiliary control panel light up?

Thanks a bunch!

Jason

[PPOL]

Jason-

I'm a Caldera dealer in Wilmington, NC and I know for a fact the 2004 Utopia models do NOT light up in the auxilliary control panel.  I have a Geneva Utopia in our mood room and I just ran back there and checked, only the primary panel lights up due to the red LED lights on the control panel.

Hope this helps.

Neil O'Donovan
Phoenix Park Outdoor Living
Wilmington, NC
www.phoenixparkoutdoorliving.com

[IonHeaven]

I'm curious, does the lighting from inside the tub provide enough light to see the auxillary control panel?

Also, what's the best way to drain the last few inches of water out of the bottom? Seems like a great tub. Looked at them but there are none around to wet test.

[PPOL]

IonHeaven-

I find that the pearlescent finishes have the best reflection of the Spa Glo feature.  The first level of intensity is bright enough to see the aux panel, plus there are usually a total of 4 buttons, 2 of which are smaller than the others.  Big buttons - Jets, small buttons -- Light and Air Jets.

As far as draining the last two inches of water out of the bottom, I suggest a standard shop vac or siphoning with a hose.  But I dont think its really necessary since you are talking about maybe 10 gals of a 475-500 gallon tub.


Neil O'Donovan
Wilmington, NC
Phoenix Park Outdoor Living
www.phoenixparkoutdoorliving.com

[autoplay]

I'll check my 2003 Caldera Geneva Utopia tonight and see what lights the auxilary control/s has,if any.

As far as draining.....I have done it several ways. I've used the pump on my tile saw,which drains it to about an inch from the bottom. I've also used a Shop-Vac...and,I've also used just a sponge. You have to use a sponge to a degree....as you need to get the water that puddles in the seat/s and the lounger.

Hope this helps,and will return later on to tell ya if mine lights.

[Spatech_tuo]

As far as draining the last two inches of water out of the bottom, I suggest a standard shop vac or siphoning with a hose.  But I dont think its really necessary since you are talking about maybe 10 gals of a 475-500 gallon tub.

I agree. If you're draining because you have swamp water then you need to get it all out. The other 99% of the time you don't need to worry about the little bit of standing water in the seats and footwell as its a small % for tubs that are 300+ gallons but if you really want to be thorough a shop vac is always a handy item.

[IonHeaven]

Does the ozonator have a longer contact chamber than the Hot Springs...and is the motor cooling feature a great advantage?

Thanks!

[PPOL]

The "Q chamber" in the Caldera spa have sheaths on the exhaust of the motors, this allows heat from the pumps to be pushed out of the spa pump chamber.  It also has a special opening near the impeller to draw cool air into the motor.  Cooler motors last longer.

As far as the Ozonator, they are pretty much the same IMHO.

[autoplay]

No light on the auxilary controller on my 2003 Utopia.

[IonHeaven]

Wonder if you Caldera folks would mind fielding a few more questions.

Does the water that is pulled in from the bottom of the spa go through the filter or directly back to the jets?

Is it 100% no by-pass filtration?

Also, can you turn down the air bubbler or is it on/off only?

What maintanance invloved with the ozonator after a few years?

Thanks again!