Self leveling concrete?

[robfasman]

Hi Everyone,
I recently purchased a Hudson Bay HB19 and have been extremely happy with it, especially for the value and how well the jets work for a 110v spa. I paid a licensed concrete contractor $1300 to tear out my uneven pavers, dig the rocky soil underneath, and lay a concrete pad about 9x9. We never discussed a specific slope, I assumed he knew what he was doing and trusted him.

Well it turns out there's a slope of 1 1/8 inches over 6ft (the tub is 76" I think). It's lower over the filter side (so that's not an issue) and probably nobody would notice except for me unless I point it out, but it's bugging me, especially for the price I paid (feel like I got a used car with a dent for the price of a new car). My understanding is this will probably not affect the functioning or stability of the tub, but it's at that borderline. He said mudjacking wouldn't work because I already have concrete posts there holding up the roof, and suggested adding a layer of self leveling concrete.

I've searched various forums and it seems like some people think 1 1/8ish inches is just fine and others don't. Wondering what folks in the know on here think. Yes/no on self leveling concrete? Are there specific questions or requests I should make, are there some brands or types of self leveling concrete that work better than others? Or should I just live with it and ask for a partial refund of like $500? Maybe put some shims under it even though the manufacturer says not to (or should I take that no shimming recommendation seriously)?

I'm not looking forward to draining it, dealing with the hassle of moving it, refilling and rebalancing chemicals, and waiting a few days for it to get back to temp (I've had it for 1.5 months and have used it daily), but I would do that for the long term investment.

Would love to know what others would do in this situation.

Thanks in advance,
Rob

[bud16415]

If I couldn’t live with the tub tilted an inch I would remove the tub and build a form around the pad that was dead level at the top and just flush to ¼” above the high side. Then if the pad wasn’t clean I would pressure wash it and if it was still clean as it sounds like a new pour I would just wet it down. I would have a screed board ready long enough to span the form by a couple foot.

Then the product I would use is Rapid Set Cement-All. It is sold in the builder centers and if you search on it you will find dozens of how to videos. This stuff can be mixed quite thin and made to be nearly self leveling but I would still screed it as to not have low spots. It will harden in and hour but I would wait till the next day and set the tub.