Opinions on Bullfrog Spas

[lucy1234]

Does anyone out there own a Bullfrog?  I have looked at these and like the concept but haven't read anything good or bad about them.  A guy that works with my husband has one and says it is more for therapy than relaxation.  

[empolgation]

As far as I'm concerned therapy is relaxation.

I don't own a bullfrog but I captured many of them as a kid and called them pets.

They sure caught my attention, I love the idea of customization but something is just not right. Ultimately my concern was what was happening behind the jet pack?? There's not a lot of water movement behind them and they're certainly not water tight. I closed my eyes and thought "what would it be like a year later when I remove a jet pack - what could be breeding back there?" And what's a "virtually leak-proof spa"? Is that a virtual spa that doesn't leak?

Be sure to wet test and see how comfotable they are.

[Spatech_tuo]

Does anyone out there own a Bullfrog?  I have looked at these and like the concept but haven't read anything good or bad about them.  A guy that works with my husband has one and says it is more for therapy than relaxation.  

I can't imagine they're any more therapeutic than spas made by the major manufacturers. My question has always been whether people will really be replacing their spa packs for different types. I've always felt that was really more of a gimmick (not necessarily bad, just a sales gimmick) and that for most I've always imagined they leave the spa backs as is. It would be interesting to find out what bullfrog owners do with that option.

[Spa_Tech]

No, I don't own one, but they are on my short list for spas that Id like to retail. The fit and finish on the product is approaching the level of Dimension One, HotSpring and Sundance and the ability to customize while somewhat of a gimick is far more useful than a pop up tv or a retrofitted car stereo in my opinion.

Despite empolgation's reservations about the Jet Paks, the water behind them is circulated along with the rest of the spa water. And since the spa shell isnt honeycombed with holes for jetting, this reduces the chances that a leak will occur- What's more is if the manifold plumbing does leak, it would leak back into the body of water the spa holds. This is what they meant by "virtually leakproof".

Ths biggest advantage to the Jet Pak system is in not having to purchase an entirely new spa to get an entirely new feel. On every other spa out there, once a spa has been plumbed for jetting you are stuck with that placement for the lifetime of the spa- it is certainly less expensive to change out a Jet Pak or two than it is to purchase a whole new spa.

[Jason_r]

I think that Bullfrog is a great concept spa, the ability down the road to change the spa to fit your needs. It leads me to t list of questions. If I upgrade from a 3 jet seat to a 5 jet seat what happens to the presure of the other jets would I have to turn down other jets to get the correct therapuetic value out of those styles of jets. Would I have to upgrade pump size? If I did when I switched back would I have to switch pumps back? Seems like a warranty nightmare. Which of the pumps you had purchased to you have in the spa that needs replaced? Also engineering if I were to increase the number of jets but decreased the actual volume of water flow,(smaller orface jets) this would create a back presure that would certainly decrease the life expectance of my pumps.
As far as the comment in regards to the circulation behind the seats, I would be supprised to see any circulation behind the actual seat if the do not have a jet back there to force the water out. The water behind the seat would certainly be subject to water molds and algaes growing.

Just some of my thaughts

[knowsabit]

interesting yet goofy, great idea poor execution.

my $0.02, FWIW blah blah

[stuart]

I think that Bullfrog is a great concept spa, the ability down the road to change the spa to fit your needs. It leads me to t list of questions. If I upgrade from a 3 jet seat to a 5 jet seat what happens to the presure of the other jets would I have to turn down other jets to get the correct therapuetic value out of those styles of jets. Would I have to upgrade pump size? If I did when I switched back would I have to switch pumps back? Seems like a warranty nightmare. Which of the pumps you had purchased to you have in the spa that needs replaced? Also engineering if I were to increase the number of jets but decreased the actual volume of water flow,(smaller orface jets) this would create a back presure that would certainly decrease the life expectance of my pumps.
As far as the comment in regards to the circulation behind the seats, I would be supprised to see any circulation behind the actual seat if the do not have a jet back there to force the water out. The water behind the seat would certainly be subject to water molds and algaes growing.

Just some of my thaughts

Chaser buddy!
What a great post! You certainly seem to know what your talking about and I agree, it would get confusing and I probably would never change the jet packs.

Heck you can't even figure out spell check so we know you wouldn't!

Just kidding but seriously it took me almost a year to remember to change one of my straight jets to spinning. I never seemed to have the jet when I went to get in and if I had time to mess with it any other time I would rather be soaking than swapping jets!

[rocket]

Lucy,

I don't own one but as a spa dealer, I have looked at them.  It is an interesting concept but I found that to replace the jet packs, to be expensive.  As one poster mentioned, cheapr than relplacing an entire spa

My feeling is that when a new,dynamic jet appears in the marketplace the major manufacturers will have that jet retrofitted for existing spa owners.  That new jet will probably retail for less than $20.  Cheaper than the plus $350 for an entire jet pack.

I have also heard that if you are in a cold clmate, the plumbing around the lip of the tub in the Bull Frog can potentially freeze.   I have no verification of this and would be interested to see what others might know.  

[new owner]

We own a Sweetwater but the house we rent for vacation in Outerbanks, NC has a 4-5 person BullFrog spa, so we can speak for how it feels. We've rented this house for two years and the spa always feels great. It's about 4 years old and still looks and feels good. I think this says something b/c I'd guess that a spa in a rented house is likely to be much more abused and much less loved than elsewhere.

Another thing--the owners leave all of their information in a binder for the renters, so I know how much they paid for the spa (about $4,000, seems pretty cheap but that is in rural NC, remember). I also have seen only one note about a service issue and it seemed like it was related to the renters not knowing how to work the keypad settings.

We liked the spa enough that when we started shopping I wanted to look at Bullfrogs but we have no local dealers.

Good luck, hope this little bit helps.

[ndabunka]

What Spa-tech said (= short list of potentials for dealership).  In regards to the cleaning aspects of the jet packs...ALL the water in a spa is pumped through the filters. This INCLUDES the water behind the jet packs. They are designed to be in the water and have water flow behind them. This is OK. The fit and finish is top notch.  Good products all the way around.