How to Negotiate and Buy a Hot tub.

[ZzTop]

The "DEALER"

When buying a Hot Tub the DEALER can make all the difference.

After the Sale you will need advice on how to treat your water to get the right balance.  
Your Dealer should be able to test your water and tell you exactly what chemicals and proportions you need to properly balance your water.

You should check your water yourself daily for Ph and Sanitizer levels, (especially if you are new at it or your tub has had a heavy bather load), and have your water checked by taking a water sample to your Dealer monthly.

This is a service that is available to you by your Dealer free of charge.  (At least it is with Beachcomber Dealers.)
This is one reason it is nice to have a Dealer close by.

I have no idea how people who buy hot tubs from Big Box Retailers or off the Internet, test their water for hardness and alkalinity without the help of the sophisticated testing equipment that the Dealer has.

I cannot stress how important it is to keep your water correctly balanced.  Water that does not maintain the correct hardness and alkalinity can seriously damage your heater and hot tub and may even invalidate your warranty.  Of course the other reason is that having the correct amount of sanitizer is critically important to your health.

Note: Do not rely on an Ozinator alone.  Some sanitizer is always needed to maintain safe water.  The advantage of ozination is that less (chemical) that is sanitizer (chlorine or bromine), is needed to handle the bacterial load.

Most test kits only test for Ph and Sanitizer level not Alkailinity and Water hardness (Calcium), never mind TDS (total dissolved solids}, iron, copper, clarity and algae.

If you have installation questions, your Dealer should be able to advise you.  ie:  Foundation, electrical requirements, wire sizing, amperage of the GFI, and delivery.

Delivery;   It is best to contract the Dealer to deliver and set up..  Hot Tubs weigh between 500 to 800 lbs.  If there is any damage to the Hot Tub, it will be his problem, not yours.  There can be a real challenge in getting your tub to where you want it.  It may involve a crane or the removal of a fence or other obstacles.

Electrical:  Generally it is best to have your Electrician wire and connect your Hot Tub after installation so that he knows the exact location to wire to.  You may also want a 120 V GFI outlet to run peripherals such as a stereo or TV.

Start up can sometimes be problematic and it is nice to rely on your Dealer for information and help.  The Dealer should come out to advise you on water balancing and general operating questions.

Warranty Service; Your Dealer should be there for you for the entire warranty period and long after.

Tip:  After you become familiar with water care, buy your chemicals in the largest sizes available.  It is generally cheaper to buy in large sizes.

This all adds up to peace of mind in the Total Ownership Equation of owning and operating a Spa.

Happy Tubbing,


Regards Zz


:)No I am not a Dealer!  Just a happy Beachcomber owner [/color]

[ZzTop]

Beachcomber 550x



80x88x38
360 US Gallons
650lbs dry, 3655 lbs wet

[Gerrym]

Beachcomber 550x



80x88x38
360 US Gallons
650lbs dry, 3655 lbs wet

And the point is....

[ZzTop]

When buying a Hot tub what are the most important factors to you?

1.   Price?
2.   Engineering and design?
3.   Predicted long term Total Cost of Ownership?
4.   Comfort?  (Wet Test)
5.   Warranty and its exclusions?
6.   Number of jets and pumps?
7.   Reputation of the Manufacturer?
8.   Reputation of the Dealer?
9.   Type of water care?
10.  Ease of Maintenance?

[ZzTop]

The best time to deal is January, February, March, they are the quietest months when the dealers are hungry and they have tubs in stock they want to move for the new models.

[ZzTop]

In buying a hot tub here is an accessory worth considering.
You may not find this at a Hot Tub Dealer, but instead in a hardware, or Home Depot store.

I just installed a Misting kit in my Gazebo over my Hot Tub.
I installed a nozzle over each seat.

It can reduce the temperature of the air up to 25 degrees Farenheit.

This really works. and is very inexpensive.

Today we had 80 degree temperatures in the shade, very unusual in Vancouver Canada this early in the year.

Cost $39.95 Cdn
Installation Time  10 Minutes
Store: Rona
Product order Number MC525
1/4" 6mm Portable Cooling System Kit
Mfg:   Mist & Cool 2250 Agate Court, Simi Valley California 93065 USA
Web site:http://cloudburst.com/mistcool.html



I highly recommend this - Real Cool!

Regards Zz

[Bill_Stevenson]

This mister idea seems like a good idea for climates that don't have real high relative humidity.  It would be less than worthless here in South Florida, unfortunately, because of our very humid climate.  :-(

People need to think about the appropriateness of this type of thing for their environment.

Regards,

Bill

[stiffy]

"WOW" this topic really strayed..........................


Mister sounds cool though,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

[HotTubMan]

And the point is....

I think the point is "check out the wicked spine massage!"

[Wisoki]

Re Full Foam vs Thermopane

It makes absolutely NO sense to not support the plumbing lines with a little or no insulation in a Thermopane design.

In the case of Catalina, a thermopane style tub, all plumbing is supported by 2# density foam. Oper er up, turn er on, and look at the massive lack of vibration!!!

[\quote]While both systems work, the greatest long term problem is rigid support of the plumbing especially at the jets.  Each time the pumps are turned on there is a shock to the pipes which can stress the pipe where it is attached to the jet fitting.  As the tub ages these problems become apparent in some designs where no  or very little foam is used for support of the pipes. [/quote]

See above

[/quote]Advantages of Thermopane:

If you like your mice dry roasted it is a great design.  It might be good for dehydrating meat and fruit, any one for some rodent Jerky? Oh yeah I almost forgot . . .you can keep your towels warm.

Yes, you can get at and fix a leak easier.  It seems that there are far fewer leaks in a full foam tub.   Just ask the guys that repair them.

It costs less to manufacture a Thermopane design., Foam is expensive.[/quote]

Bull $h1t, 12 board feet of 1# foam, that which spa manufacturers use to insulate the spa. They only use the 2# as a capper on the bottom of the spa. costs $27.50. This is sufficient to replace foam around a jet repair. 22 board feet, sufficient to replace the foam in the entire base of a Juacuzzi premium tub when a foot jet repair needs done45.10, and then 200 board feet costs 315.00. Sufficient to refoam the entire spa, per the manufacturer. How many board feet to insulate a thermopane spa, I don't know, I do know Catalina uses ALL 2# foam. Probably more expensive, but not as much used. In this case, I'd guess the price difference is negligable. As for rodents, Tell me you have never dug into a full foam spa and found a whole bunch of little bead like pieces of foam that the mice moved out of their way as they were digging their little den into your full foam. At least in thermopane they become "dehydrated" for easy removal, as opposed to the nice comfey living space of a soft 1# foam den.

[/quote]Now Martha is the jury still out?[/quote]

not in my book, but I'll bet this wasn't a big light shedder upon which is "better"

[HotTubMan]

This mister idea seems like a good idea for climates that don't have real high relative humidity.  It would be less than worthless here in South Florida, unfortunately, because of our very humid climate.  :-(

People need to think about the appropriateness of this type of thing for their environment.

Regards,

Bill

Um Bill;

You just displayed the classic American ignorance of Canadian geography. Vancouver is on the ocean too, the Pacific ocean. It is humid on the west coast near the ocean too y'know..

[empolgation]

Um Bill;

You just displayed the classic American ignorance of Canadian geography. Vancouver is on the ocean too, the Pacific ocean. It is humid on the west coast near the ocean too y'know..

I'm not convinced of that...
I haven't had the pleasure of living in Vancouver but I've lived on the coast in New Jersey, the coast of California and in the Florida Keys and I'd say there was a whole lot more relative humidity in Jersey than in California and that didn't even compare to the relative humidity of Florida.

[Chas]

I'm not convinced of that...
I haven't had the pleasure of living in Vancouver but I've lived on the coast in New Jersey, the coast of California and in the Florida Keys and I'd say there was a whole lot more relative humidity in Jersey than in California and that didn't even compare to the relative humidity of Florida.

Well, I live in California, and my relatives are all humid.

[shoemaker]

     I just have to jump in here. Before I start, it's great to hear from Superted and Rick! This board needs more Coleman Spa owners/dealers, ect. on line.
    I’ve been selling Coleman Spas since 1994 in North Dakota. Yes that is right above South Dakota, and we are not the end of the earth!! However on a clear day if you stand on you car you can see it from here. Sorry, a little N.D humor.
   Zz you are so right in your observation comparing our house insulation to the insulation in spas. We make our houses more efficient by putting insulation on our walls and attic. We install air tight windows and put high efficiency furnaces inside to heat our homes. This seals cold air out and warm air in… This is what Coleman’s Thermo Lock technology does. They start be spraying 2 to 4 inches of high density foam on the spa shell. The tubs have a solid ABS pan bottom with 1 ¼” polystyrene bead board over that. The beadboard has a lining of reflectex. Reflectex is a silver reflective foil that will reflect radiant heat from the spa’s plumbing and equipment back up onto the spa shell. The cabinets are maintenance free Duramax, which is mounted on ABS board for strength than attached to the 1 ¼” poly-beadboard and lined with the reflectex. Coleman recaptures all of the heat generated by the equipment because we have a sealed, insulated, heated, dead air space all the way around the shell of the tub. Just like the technology in a house we seal cold air out and warm air in.
    The whole hype on the board about needing full foam to support plumbing is not at all true. First of all if that were the case, why would Coleman have a 5 year plumbing warranty? They would go broke fixing all the leaks. Second, take a full foam tub like Sundance. (I’m not picking on Sundance I think they have a good product!) look at the space they have their equipment in. What you will see is plumbing coming from the foam and into the equipment this is totally not supported in that part of the spa. How does that work?
    The Thermo Lock also insulates the equipment noise. When we do tradeshows and fairs I always check out the competition, our spas are always quieter than full foam spa’s.
   My spa is outside on the northwest side of my house with nothing around it. The winters here are cold!!! And long, it snowed two nights ago May 25th. My spa runs me around 25.00 to 30.00 in the coldest winter months, and we use our spa all winter long.
  Here are some websites to check out on foam insulation.
http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumerinfo/refbriefs/ed3.html
http://www.buyersinspectionservice.com/faq-insul-allabout.html
                                        Spahappy  

Hey Spahappy,

Can you sell in Massachusetts?

LOL..........................J/K !  

[ZzTop]

Spa Happy is our North Dakota Coleman dealer.
She is very informative on Coleman products.