electrical consumption

[raysdad]

I am considering a solar installation along with adding a hot tub to our home.  My wife and I have it narrowed down to two manufacturers, Hot Springs and Dimension One.  Dimension One estimates use to be 2.25 KWH per month on the spa we are considering, Hot Springs a bit less.    Dimension One if I remember correctly basis it's consumtion as having all jets running at 100% every other day for 20 minutes.  I realize that everyone uses their tubs differently and I will guess that one the novelty of something new wears off that a tub might not be used as much after a few months.  I would like to estimate projected electrical use when pricing a solar install.  Have owners found that companies claims as to electrical operating costs to be close to those claimed in thier literature?

[ndabunka]

he only 'really effective' Hot Tubs will be the ones that REQUIRE 220 so I doubt you would have much (if any) luck with solar.  Power generally runs anywhere from $20 to $30/month in most areas.

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

I have customers running 11kw heaters with solar. As long as you're not off-grid, and have a big enough array back-feeding through the meter, no problem.

[Spatech_tuo]

he only 'really effective' Hot Tubs will be the ones that REQUIRE 220 so I doubt you would have much (if any) luck with solar.  Power generally runs anywhere from $20 to $30/month in most areas.

It would be great if $20 - 30/month was typical for most everyone and you can certainly be adding only $20/month but many people will add more than $30/month to run depending on their rates, usage, how well insulated, etc.

I'd say more like $20 - 75/month would cover most situations though poorly insulated spas and high rates carry many beyond the $75/month range.

[ejf The Spa Guy]

raysdad, both brands will be very close on energy use, your number must be looking at the Amore Bay!!!!. i can't answer ths solar question, but can tell you the D1 is very well insulated, I also own one personally, used every day do not notice on my utility bill.When you are looking at the energy ratings they are not a rated at the same rates, they usually will give you the average yearly cost with different killowatt per hour charge,,, But again both these brands are very good,

[Jet Sitter]

raysdad - Both companies manufacture well insulated spas and will consume similar amounts of electricity for similarly configured tubs.  If energy consumption is critically important to you consider carefully your intended use of the spa.

Generally smaller tubs will cost less to own than larger tubs  but the difference may not be great.

Generally tubs that use a circ pump for filtering will cost less to run than a tub that uses a jet pump on low (but some lose that savings if they have to replace a circ pump).

Generally running only one jet pump will cost less than running two.  Can your spa experience be satisified with a single pump tub?

The biggest factor in your energy use, assuming that you buy a well insulated spa as you are considering will be your pattern of use.  How often and how long will the cover be off?  Will you be running the pump(s) on high the full time or simply sitting in unjetted hot water?  Will the aeration be max or min?  Will you let the tub run for awhile after you get out and add chems (as I do) in an effort to prolong the life of your cover?

When you have an idea of which tubs between these manufacturers are comparable and best meet your needs, wet test them and choose the one that is most comfortable, assuming dealers and prices are also similar.