Hi all,
Thanks so much for sharing and guiding me towards a great quality hot tub. In the end, I found what many others have shared. There are 8-10 quality manufacturers. Each do things a bit (or alot!) differently but they are different only in how they acheive the goal.
I ended up going with a 1999 Arctic Midnight Sun. This unit is in great shape and was taken care of responsibly. I sped over to the owner's house the same day the spa was listed and knew enough to know it was a fair deal ($1,250) and to close the deal. Your help gave me the info to make the informed choice and know what I was looking for.
I have found the Arctic tub to be incredibly well built and perfect for our family's initial needs. We'll likely upgrade in a couple years but for now it is a great match. It turns out comfort has not been an issue. We really like the choice of seats and the lounger. What has been a slight surprise is how loud the tub is on our attached deck. There is no circ pump and when we upgrade to a new(er) tub, this will be a must. Arctic has shared two "tricks" to quiet the older Arctic tubs, rubber motor mounts and an A/C insulation pad beneath the unit. I'll let you know how it works.
We decided to go the used route as we wanted to know what we wanted (and did not want!) prior to investing $10k for a nice new tub. This seems to be a great first step for us. In a couple years we can hopefully sell our tub and bring in something new(er).
One of the things I liked about the newer tub was their extensive use of visual and audio techniques to create a peaceful calm. I loved the backlit waterfalls (especially on the quite circulation pump) and the multiple LED lights (great feature on the Jacuzzi 400).
Thanks again and all the best! I'm off to the "Water Chemistry Forum" here.......
Doug
