South Seas 846L vs Sundance Altamara

[cielo]

I know it must get tiring to answer questions for those of us searching for a tub, but it has been so horrid out there, that I am asking anyway. I did search back to page 25 (2008) for advice on the tubs we are looking at but did not find anything. 
We have finally found a dealer that we trust, but would still like an outside opinion.
We had no idea how expensive hot tubs were so all of this has been a bit shocking.

The South Seas 846L by artesian is $6000.00 and the dealer said we would get the most bang for our buck- it has only a 2 year warranty
The Sundance Altamar is $7200 with a 5 year warranty
If there is a huge quality difference then we will come up with the extra 1200 but if not, we don't want to get caught in the hype. We don't care about music or TV or lights. Just comfort and jets.

Any advise appreciated! Thank you

[hottubdan]

I would want to be aware of potential costs of repairs during years 3 through 5.  Major repairs such as heaters, pumps or controls can be $300 to $500 or more.  A couple of major repairs and you are pretty close to break even.

Did the South Seas dealer or the Sundance dealer point out any other differences, other than price and warranty? 

Did you compare filtration?  Types of jets?  Have you wet tested?

Have you considered any other brands?

[wmccall]

I know it must get tiring to answer questions for those of us searching for a tub, but it has been so horrid out there,

That is what we are here for,  you are most welcome.  Many here are genuinely interested in your search and helping you.

[cielo]

We actually put money down on a Master Spa but then felt so untrusting of the way it was being sold we pulled out.
We have looked at D1, hot spring, caldera, bullfrog, jacuzzi and thermospa came to our house. We have wet tested the D1, Sundance and the masterspa. The sundance they had for wet test was not the one we can afford!

Both the sundance and the south seas have two pumps and ozonaters (the south seas is dealer installed), they also both have balboa controls- I am writing as if I know what any of this means!

Sundance has something called microclean ultrafilter, 35 jets, cover and lifter, stairs
the south seas says it has a 50 sqft filter (whatever that means), 46 jets, cover and lifter, stairs

It is an unknown language here so any translation is much appreciated.
It seems clear that when you get up to the 10-12,000$ range you get a better product, but we simply don't have it, so we would like to do the best can to make an informed decision in our range. Again thanks for any and all advice...

[wmccall]

Both the sundance and the south seas have two pumps and ozonaters (the south seas is dealer installed), they also both have balboa controls- I am writing as if I know what any of this means!

2 pumps is nice so one person can have jets running while another sits in more tranquil water. Ozonators are a topic that can be debated, but dealer installed vs factory installed is not a major plus or minus in my opinion.

Sundance has something called microclean ultrafilter, 35 jets, cover and lifter, stairs
the south seas says it has a 50 sqft filter (whatever that means), 46 jets, cover and lifter, stairs

The higher the number of the filter sq footage can imply a more efficient water flow meaning more power to the jets and it means you have to clean the filter less. 

It is an unknown language here so any translation is much appreciated.
It seems clear that when you get up to the 10-12,000$ range you get a better product, but we simply don't have it, so we would like to do the best can to make an informed decision in our range. Again thanks for any and all advice...

[cielo]

Do you happen to know if 50 sqft on the pump is a decent flow?

I am interested in the ozonater question if you want to share your thoughts. I am not keen on chemicals so the notion that the ozonator would cut down on their usage is appealing, but perhaps this is not the case?
Again, thanks.

[cielo]

Hi Everyone,
I just wanted to follow up on our purchase in case anyone is looking at an Artesian/South seas down the line. When I was looking for info on our purchase I went way back through the forum looking at conversations  so I am hoping to pay the favor forward.

We have had the 846L for about 5 weeks. The tub is really comfortable for four and even five people, the jets are great, and our first
electric bill has not sent our costs soaring, I think it went up about 40 dollars, but I know we need more time to get a feel for this. My only complaint thus far is around the control buttons. Next to the temp read out are first two jet buttons then lights and lastly the temp control. In order to change modes from standard to economy to sleep you hit the light and temp button in succession. Needless to say, in the dark, when folks are trying to get the lights on they have put the tub into economy or sleep mode a couple of times. We bought this model partially because it fit within our budget so I assume that is why that design is not the greatest. Once we were aware of it, it was easy to adjust. I make sure to go out and check it if we have had guests over.

So we are happy soakers thus far and appreciate that this forum is out here. I will try to do a follow up in a few more months if seems useful.
Thanks!