Coleman Immerse 481

[BobC]

Ok,

I live in Sierra Vista AZ, it is about 75 miles south east of Tucson.  I am about to buy my first sap.  the local rep, at least the one my friends have pought pools from is suggesting that I buy a Coleman Immerse 481.  I am a big guy 6'3" 350 lbs. they have a solution that seems to fit me, but I did my evaluation in a dry state (no water in the spa when I tested it.  My delima is a) Tucson is a long ways away and vendors charge extra for the trip, needless to say if something goes wrong. b) The company has been around for a very long time, over 36 years. this is at a cost of 7696 for the  spa (only). So is the brand, model and price good?

Thanks in advance

[TN__HOT_TUB]

Is this the one with the neck collars seats?  Being that you're 6'3" you might want to make sure you fit.  

I don't know much about Coleman.  

Are there any dealers closer than 75 miles?  If not, then you're going to have this delima no matter what brand you choose.  

See if you can't negotiate a free service call if something goes wrong in the first 100 days or so.  Put it back on them...say something like "you know you guys make such a great tub that it's extremely unlikely that you'll ever have to make the trip anyway...right?"  If they don't feel confident enough about their odds, then perhaps you can use that as leverage (or perhaps that should tell you something).

Try to wet test a similar model. If for no other reason, I think that sends a message to them that you are a serious buyer.

[marks]

Bobc,

I live in Tucson and looked a Coleman Spas at Patio pools here.  Patio pools has a great reputation in town.  I ended up buying a Beachcomber from Rob (the owner) at Beachcomber spas in Tucson.  The Beachcomber dealership has been great.  This does not completely answer your question but I would give Rob at Beachcomber a shot.

Good Luck,

Mark

[BobC]

Thanks for the information.  On one side the tub has the neck collar seat, the other side is open. The lounge seat is larger also and has a foot massager.

I will talk to them about the free service call if something goes wrong in the first 100 days or so (good idea).

Most of the folks that I have talked to that have recently had pools installed have used Patio pools, and none seem to have had a problem. As you can see there reputation is good here also.

Mark, what made you purchase the Beachcomber? Cost? Functionality? Warranty? Just trying to get a feel for priorities.

There is another spa vendor in town; they sell the Outback Spa brand.

[marks]

Bobc,

I purchased the Beachcomber manly for functionality and aesthetics.   My wife and I had our choices narrowed down to a Hot Springs Grande, Sundance Optima and a Beachcomber 580/750.  We wet tested the Grande, Optima and Beachcombers.  We like the size and feel of the Beachcomber better.  We also liked the Hot Springs Grande.  My wife really liked the look of the Beachcomber, and that pretty much sealed the deal. On the pricing side they where all pretty close (+/- $1,000) so that did not factor in.  I did not like the look of the Coleman so we never looked at them seriously.

It was hard not to buy the Hot Springs because the company selling them (Tucson Pool) in Tucson has done the chemical service on my pool for about ten years and they are great.  In retrospect another factor in not buying the Hot Springs is the setup of the store.  They kind of just have the spas setup all other the place in a pool supply store.  Not a very appealing showcase.

By the way, Patio Pools built my pool in 1975 and it is still in great shape.

[BobC]

Originally, I was familiar with Coleman making hiking equipment and the like.  I did not know that they were in the spa business until I saw one in Home Depot about 3 years ago.

It seems that every time I buy a major item (like recently a car) from Tucson, and if there is a problem, no one in Sierra Vista can fix it.  We had a small problem with our car, and I had to ship it to Tucson for service.  Although it was warranty work, the inconvience just made me think.

A friend told me about the MAXXUS by Sundance. After some investigation I went to Tucson and talked to a dealer that had one in his home (even invited me and my wife to come over to see it), but stated that “he had problems getting supplies from Sundance,” so he dropped the line.  That was before the car lesson.

I just wish that there were more vendors to select from here.  

Thanks for your help again!

[BobC]

In the past have you had problems with Mosquitos around you spa?

[marks]

Bobc,

Never had any issues.