thermal blankets - opinions?

[st18901]

So - what's the opinion of thermal blankets here?

I live in SOCAL, so it's not like it'll drop to 30 degrees.

However, I'm trying to save as much heat as possible. I'm also trying to prolong the life of my cover as much as possible.

Are thermal blankets worth it?
Are they a pain to use? Do they buch up?
Are the cheaper bubble ones okay?

What's your story?

[East_TX_Spa]

I wish I could help, but I've never had any experience with them.  They are not a necessity, but I can't see how they would cause any harm.

Terminator

[Spatech_tuo]

If you live in a warm climate I think it comes down to saving $1.86 a month versus dealing with removing and reinstalling the thermal blanket every time you use the spa. They make sense to me when it's cold outside but other than such conditions I find them to be more trouble than they're worth (but that's just my opinion).

[Snowbird]

I was considering a blanket but decided against it.

The blanket will be another wet thing to deal with.  You can attach it to the underside of your cover so the blanket comes out when you lift the cover, but it will drip outside the tub along with the cover.  If outdoors, this isn't a problem, but mine will be indoors.

A person recently posted about how his blanket keeps breaking into pieces.  Another poster a while ago seemed to think there is very little thermal advantage.

For me, it was too much expense and hassle for very little gain.  If your tub is outdoors in the north it may be worth it.

[tony]

Same as Snowbird.  I considered it but ultimately decided against it for all the reasons above.  I get a lot of use from my spa and I want as little hastle as possible in the experience.

And I am in a cold climate.

[dalop]

I too was looking to put one in but I use my tub just about everynight so it would be a pain to have to try to put it back. I don't think the savings would be worth the trouble and i know it would be a pain when it is frozen.  But on the other hand it could improve the life of the Spa cover a bit too.  

[Brewman]

Same here- we live in the cold region, and do not have a thermal blanket.  I suppose it could save some money, but you'd have to repay the cost of the blanket before you actually started saving anything.
If I did get one, I'd get those straps that pull up the blanket with the cover.  I think Doc sells them.  

[NE-Phil]

I'm in upstate NY and it does get fairly cold here. There's already snow on the ground and the temps have been down to the mid 20's.

It seemed like a good idea to me so I bought a thermal blanket from Doc at his site and the straps that connect to the cover Brewman mentioned. It wasn't hard to cut the blanket to fit - just a pair of scissors and a helper to hold it in place - nor was it difficult to attach the straps to the cover - again, a helper to hold things in place.

That being said, a few comments. Yes, the material does seem flimsy. I'm thinking the bubble wrap is less likely to tear but I'm not sure which, the thermal blanket or the bubble wrap, would insulate better. A less tear resistant thermal material would be an improvement. I've had the blanket about 2 months now and so far I once ripped a 3" section when putting it in place. Kinda looks like I took a bite out of it. Now I'm a little more gentle with it. Time will tell if it degrades and starts to break down into multiple pieces. In two months time, I see no difference.

Yes, both the cover and the thermal blanket drip onto the floor but not much more than the cover alone. Since it's a screened-in porch with a composite deck, it doesn't matter.

Unlike Tony, I don't find the addition of the thermal blanket a problem. When I lift the cover up, the thermal blanket follows. I do have to give the ends a tug to get the other end out of the water once the cover is up. Then, when replacing the cover, I go back to the back end of the tub, lift the cover and (gently) pull the thermal blanket a little, making sure it covers the water from edge to edge. No other adjustment is needed. That's it.

I'm not sure why dalop is worrying about the thermal blanket freezing. It would take a long, long time for it to freeze. So far, I haven't noticed it even stiffening up after over 1 hour in below freezing weather.

One interesting thing I noticed but I don't if it's a direct result of the thermal blanket alone. A couple of days when the temp is below freezing, I noticed little icicles on the bottom of the outside edge of the cover. If ice is forming then the heat must be staying in, right?

Is it going to save me a lot of money? I have no idea but if it does improve insulation, help protect the cover and last a few years, I'll feel like I got my money's worth out of it.

Phil

[drewstar]

Under perfect conditions, how much do you expect to save with this blanket?  It seems to me that these things floating on the water surface are just another thing that could get dirty and slimely if not cared for correctly.

Also, how much do you really save if, after having this wet sheet  of plastic hang out in the winter air while you are in the tub, then you place the cold (maybe frozen) blanket on the water?   Kinda like tossing a few ice cubes into your spa before closing it up? No?  It's not goning to make a big difference, but the 2 or 3 pennies you saved, just went out the window when you put that cold blanket on the water.  

[NE-Phil]

Under perfect conditions, how much do you expect to save with this blanket?  It seems to me that these things floating on the water surface are just another thing that could get dirty and slimely if not cared for correctly.

How much will I save? I dunno. Then again, when I added additional insulation in my attic I never figured out how much I saved there either.

Well, I searched through the posts on this site before I ordered the thermal blanket and didn't find anyone complaining about slime. The only complaint I read about from anyone that's used one is that it tore easily. And that was in the past 3 weeks. I'll certainly be keeping an eye open for slime or any other problems and will deal with it if and when the time comes.

And let's not forget the "peace of mind" factor, too. That's important to me as well.

Also, how much do you really save if, after having this wet sheet  of plastic hang out in the winter air while you are in the tub, then you place the cold (maybe frozen) blanket on the water?   Kinda like tossing a few ice cubes into your spa before closing it up? No?  It's not goning to make a big difference, but the 2 or 3 pennies you saved, just went out the window when you put that cold blanket on the water.  

drewstar,
You do realize you could make the same complaint about the cover, right? The cover itself is going to get  cold or frozen but I'm still going to use it. Besides, what makes the cover the ultimate top layer to a spa? It seems reasonable that an additional thermal barrier is going to help. How much is it going to help? As I said, I don't know but until I find it's causing more problems than its worth, I'm going to continue using it.

As I noted earlier, on the nights when the temp went below freezing, I found icicles on the bottom edge of the cover. Would the cover alone allow that to happen? I don't know. Maybe another poster will chime in and let us know if they've ever noticed the same phenomenon.
   Some of you fellow Northerners want to comment?

As far as I'm concerned, the jury is still out. And I make up the majority of the jury.

Phil

[drewstar]

Don't get me wrong ,  I was only playing devil's advocate here,  and if it came out any other way than that,  I appologize.  

Please let us know how this works out for you, as many folks seem to inquire about them,  but we have few folks that can offer up practicle, hands on experience over a significant period of time.

[st18901]

what about protecting the main cover from evaporation. Is the thermal blanket doing its touted job there?

I'm thinking more about keeping my larger investment of the cover from getting water logged than anything.

The points that you all have raised have been good. I also wondered about the cleanliness factor.

[Detroiter]

The past week or so , here in Michigan, we had temps down into the teens at night......and with just my cover on the Marquis spirit I own, there was in fact ice forming under the lip of the cover. Don't know if that means anything or not , just that it does seem to keep the heat in.

[Cass]

I use a floating bubble blanket in my spa.  All I can say is our electric bill has basically stayed the same as it was before we had the spa, and it keeps the inside of the cover nice and dry.  The blanket seems to be holding up fine.  No rips, tears, etc.  and it doesn't seem to be slimy at all.

[fletch49]

Does it matter if the thermal blanket stops the floater from moving around (assuming you're using a floating bromine system)? Would you still get good disbursement of sanitizer throughout?