help point me in the right direction

[michmicmon]

I have just began the search for a hot tub, and i am so confused.  the prices vary so....much!  can you tell me where to begin my search. I have only looked at the sundance, but then i see advertisments for hot tubs at thousands less with the same amount of jets, etc.   I need to know which brands are the best for the money, one that will last, and have the best filtration system, and I do like the bells and whistles, but 10,000 is not small change so i really want some opinions/ thanks to al

[anne]

I'd suggest finding out what brands are available in your area, then doing a search for those names here, covering at least 3 if not 6 months. That'll get you started on at least helping you get familiar with what is out there, and what questions to ask as you get more specific abut what you like/want

[Vinny]

Anne said it the best!

I went to about 10 dealers looking at all sorts of brands before finding a few I liked. The tub is one aspect but the dealer is another. For me I liked family run businesses not chain store businesses.

As Anne said, look at as many you can, ask questions at the dealer and here. Keep in mind that all the dealers may sell "The Best" and some of us owners are overly zealous in our brand of tub. There is more than one tub that is right for all of us!

[shortspark]

Anne said it the best!

I went to about 10 dealers looking at all sorts of brands before finding a few I liked. The tub is one aspect but the dealer is another. For me I liked family run businesses not chain store businesses.

As Anne said, look at as many you can, ask questions at the dealer and here. Keep in mind that all the dealers may sell "The Best" and some of us owners are overly zealous in our brand of tub. There is more than one tub that is right for all of us!

Well what do you know.  I finally agree with you on something, Vinny.  Yes, it is important to look at a lot of brands and be sure to wet test to compare.  In my case, there simply were not a lot of dealers close by.  Fortunately, Terminator's store was 40 miles away and knowing he sold a quality tub such as Hot Springs was a big plus.  I only wet test the HS but was happy with it in the showroom and I've been very satisfied since.  

Getting a well established, name brand tub is important but as has been said, so is the dealer.  I was lucky but most people don't have the luxury of having a Terminator near by.  So test and test again all the tubs that appeal to you in your area, ascertain the dealer's reputation, read all you can and look at sites such as this for first hand impressions.  And yes indeed, go with a family run business that has been around a while rather than a big chain.  With big chains you are only a number and your salesman will probably not be there the next time you walk in.  Term's boss has been in business for nearly 25 years and they treat you like family.  They even have parties for their customers every year and do what is right to keep you happy.

Here is an example.  Yesterday I went to town and stopped in to see Term.  I decided to get a few things while there.  The charge machine double rang up one of the products and neither Term nor I noticed it until I went home.  I called him up and he said don't worry about a thing.  Next time in he will give me a $50 credit on merchandise or chemicals for the mistake.  Now, do you think Home Depot or Sams would do that?  No way.  Go with a family business if you want to be treated like family.

[wmccall]

Take your time, this isn't a purchase you have to go out and finalize in one day. If you have several choices, take a notebook, or you might find yourself influenced by the last one you visit (which is what I did   )  People here are friendly and would love to dicuss it with you, but as always consider the source.

[longshot]

As a recent first-time buyer, I can sympathize with your question.  I read a lot of the stuff on this board for a month or two, and it really helped get me more grounded in what the main brands are, and more importantly, what criteria I should focus on in deciding what to buy.  Here's how I ended up making the decision:

1. figure out what we (wife and me) want in a hottub
Size?  Shape? Jets/features?  I think for us these three were the most important initially.  Regardless of brand, you need to figure out what you're after first - and then assume that you'll be able to find something like it from each of four or five major brands.  So...just go out and look at tubs.  Find the dealers who are in your area and check them out.  Most important thing, IMHO, is to first consider *how* you plan on using your tub.  

That means - just you and wifey (or S.O.)?  Or? Kids? neighbors? friends? massive naked hottub parties?  

That alone will dictate a bunch of things: overall size/shape/depth, price, site prep costs (you pay for voltage and concrete by the foot, amp and area!).

Next, what do *you* like about tubbing?  When you have used a hottub anytime in your life, did you go to the lounger chair and full jets? Or do you like marinating quietly with maybe just a few bubbles, sitting fairly upright?  Do you like foot massage?  Music? Quiet? Watching TV? (all are possible options, built in).

For us, we wet-tested the lounge chair type of seating and decided it didn't really interest us, so from then on we ruled out tubs (a lot of models) that featured loungers.  Some people (a lot of people?) love them, so don't let that sway you - just be clear what you like.

I knew I wanted foot massage and neck massage jets; and I wasn't too concerned about how much power the jets had - I personally didn't like the jets that you could use to pressure wash the moss off your stonework.  

Size - as much as I would have liked to hang on to my images of tubbing with six naked 20-year olds (it's a JOKE - lighten up...) the reality is my wife and I really envisioned just using it for us, and perhaps occassionally having another one-two other *close* friends join us. But even that would be rare. so...for us that meant we could look at the round and some of the smaller square tubs.

2. Brands.  After reading through various posts on this forum, and visiting our local dealers, we concluded that:
a) there are quite a few reputable makers out there, many of which we had never heard of
b) four or five main brands kept coming up as the good ones in our area - they may be different in yours (I'm not going to mention them - you'll figure it out for yourself).

3. Site prep - don't wait too long to get your electric and pad done.  And don't forget to budget for it - it can end up costing as much as your tub if you want to go for a really custom installation.

And this is now getting pretty rambling - so I'll leave it at that.