Swell-Tub's New Spa Search

[searchinginfl]

I was really uncomfortable with the wet testing thing too. Most places though had very few people there if any when I tested. The ones that were there were all saying what a great idea it was to test. I was doing anything to avoid it, but I realized, when was I ever going to see these people again? Would I drive a car without a test drive? Would I buy a mattress without lying on it first? Why would I ever spend $10,000 on something I will have for 10+ years and not be sure it is the one I would be most happy with!

Many dealers were willing to drain one tub and fill another for me. I also went to places far away to test other models even if I were planning on buying one closer. Dealers will make arrangements for you to test after hours if need be.

[powernoodle]

Many dealers had mood rooms available years ago.  Now days many of the showrooms dont have the extra space.  There was an article about this in pool and spa a year or two ago.
We still have a mood room with 2 wet spas inside.  One spas on the floor and another on a two teir deck.  The rooms fully enclosed with a double door.  Room includes music, beach scene on wall, plants, robes and a 4x6 sky light.  

[Chas]

How do you dealers do wet tests when a customer wants to try a tub you have empty on the floor?

Scott  

I have a pump and hose handy. We can move the power to another spa in about the same time it takes to transfer the hot water.

I don't do it often, but the few times I have done it I have written up the spa in question.

 8-)

[East_TX_Spa]

I keep 2 spas wet in the private mood room, 2 more on the showroom floor, and 5 wet outside on the deck.  I've actually had up to 4 different families wet testing at once one time.  I also keep a supply of wine, beer, water, cigars, and other essentials to help make the experience more enjoyable for the customers.

Despite all of this accomodation, I probably only have about 10 wet tests per year.

If a dealer is not willing to accomodate you when you are shopping, go to a dealer that will.

Terminator

[Swell-Tub]

I keep 2 spas wet in the private mood room, 2 more on the showroom floor, and 5 wet outside on the deck.  I've actually had up to 4 different families wet testing at once one time.  I also keep a supply of wine, beer, water, cigars, and other essentials to help make the experience more enjoyable for the customers.

Despite all of this accomodation, I probably only have about 10 wet tests per year.

If a dealer is not willing to accomodate you when you are shopping, go to a dealer that will.

Terminator

Man  I wish you had a store in Vegas. Wine, beer, water, cigars. I don't drink or smoke but the other essentials have my mind going (haha).

Scott  

[IL Parrothead]

Heck yeah!  Term has me wanting to fly south to try another wet test.  IL just passed a smoking ban for anything indoors.  Haven't had a cigar since.  

[thearm]

  Full foam is GENERALLY a better idea, only because there are only 1 or 2 companies that insulate with other methods (sometimes called thermal pain or heat lock) that have it right.  Arctic and Coleman come to mind.  The rest of the companies using non-full foam methods appear to be cutting costs and are not well insulated.  May not be a big deal in Vegas, but full foam also helps insulate the noise of the internal components.
I'll give you what I have consistently seen to be the list of the top tubs for quality and owner satisfaction (in no particular order, and I may miss a couple):  Marquis, Hot Spring, Caldera, Jacuzzi, Sundance, D1 and Arctic....a few others seem pretty popular too -- Artesian, Coleman, Bullfrog.  After that, it's all 3rd tier or lower.

ILLPARROT,
I believe in your effort to be helpful you have made a few assumptions I take issue with. There are several companies that do it right with non-full foamed tubs. Popular tubs don't always equate to the best tubs. There are several regional tub mfgs that are really well made and hold up well. In fact most people that own hot tubs are not members of any hot tub forum and are very well satisfied with the tub they buy. I find it a little bit close minded to suggest any tub not on your list is 3rd tier or lower. When buying my hot tub I looked at over 3 dozen mfgs of hot tubs. Most of them were comparably built and most had some feature the others didn't. Bottom line on a hot tub is, Will it keep the water hot, relax you with the jets and not breakdown? Also in my opinion the dealer is more important than the actual mfg of the tub.  

[Tailhooker]

I was really uncomfortable with the wet testing thing too. Most places though had very few people there if any when I tested. The ones that were there were all saying what a great idea it was to test. I was doing anything to avoid it, but I realized, when was I ever going to see these people again? Would I drive a car without a test drive? Would I buy a mattress without lying on it first? Why would I ever spend $10,000 on something I will have for 10+ years and not be sure it is the one I would be most happy with!

Many dealers were willing to drain one tub and fill another for me. I also went to places far away to test other models even if I were planning on buying one closer. Dealers will make arrangements for you to test after hours if need be.

Great point I need to do it to finally make my choice, but I am dreading the "wet test"

[IL Parrothead]

Tailhooker, I was a tad nervous (as was my wife) for the first wet test, but it wasn't bad.  We did it as suggested - right before closing time.  Some offered to do it at closing time, or even before they opened in the morning.  The one or two times customers came by, we were already in the tub -- they'd say something like "Great idea!  I should do that!" and walked along.  Noone actually stood there and watched us.  And they were long gone before we got out of the tub.  It really made our narrowing process much easier.

Thearm, I prefaced my list with the caveat that I might not list every tub.  And while there may be regional tub mfrs that do a great job, nobody on these forums could possibly know every detail about every one of them.  And those mfrs don't produce enough tubs to generate the numbers that let us really know with a better degree of certainty what their reliability and quality is.  And, obviously you didn't read my post very closely, because I've always said (IMO) -- dealer, wet testing and manufacturer are all equally as important.  Most 1st time purchasers have no clue what they're looking for.  Until they start reading on this site and others.  I myself didn't, until I started researching and wet testing. And while sometimes the advice they get is a bit general, we're all trying to point them in the right direction.  I have no agenda.  Just trying to give them info they might not have had when they first signed on here.

[Swell-Tub]

This reminds me of the Chevy vs. Ford discussions we have had in our family over the years. Everyone has an opinion and I appreciate all the opinions. Some examples have been that there is a Jacuzzi dealer here and also I hadn't even heard of Artesian spas until this forum.

I'm going to check out Jacuzzi, Hot Springs, and Artesian this week. When I bought a boat the best part was going to the factory and seeing how they were made. I'm kind of getting excited about a visit to the Artesian factory here in Vegas. I bought a SunnyBrook RV and the best selling point was a manufacturing video available on their website. I got to see an RV built from start to finish. You can tell alot about a product when you see one built. I have had a nice offer to fly down to San Diego to see a Hot Springs built.

So far this forum has taught me alot about a topic I had very little knowledge of. This journey is going to be an adventure and I'm sure I will be alot happier with my final decission because of it.

Scott  

[tony]

Also in my opinion the dealer is more important than the actual mfg of the tub.  

I don't completely agree with this statement.  I believe the dealer is AS important as the manufacturer.  A good dealer with a bad spa still gives you a bad spa.  A good manufacturer with a bad dealer gets you problems with service if you should need it (and you will).  A strong dealer carrying a good line should get you a good experience.

[Spatech_tuo]

I don't completely agree with this statement.  I believe the dealer is AS important as the manufacturer.  A good dealer with a bad spa still gives you a bad spa.  A good manufacturer with a bad dealer gets you problems with service if you should need it (and you will).  A strong dealer carrying a good line should get you a good experience.

Both are important but I agree with you that they're even or maybe the manufacturer is slightly more important if I had to choose. I'd rather have a so-so Hot Spring/Sundance dealer than a top notch M@$###/C@! dealer. If the dealer isn't good at least you can complain to the manufacturer and hope for resolution that way. If the dealer is great but the manufacturer has a crappy product or is denying claims a dealer sometimes  can help but sometimes the manufacturer can tie their hands.

In the end, why not just have the best of both worlds?

[Josh]

Hi Swell-Tub and welcome to these forums.

I recently went through the same sort of search as you...and the best advice I got from these forums was to Wet Test. It's like test driving a car...probably the most important way to see whether you'll like it or not.

Lots of people here have favorite brands.  Owners tend to recommend the tubs they bought and dealers recommend the tubs they sell.  I started a similar thread to yours and got the same sort of advice you're getting now.  It was all helpful, but none of it compared to the wet test.  That's really the only thing that matters.  You really have to get in there and see if you like how the seats feel when it's all filled up.  Anything else is really secondary to how it feels to you.

For what it's worth, I wet tested several different brands and took extensive notes on how each one felt to me.  They went a little like this (listed in order of my personal preference).


La Spas:  This is the brand I eventually bought. Most comfortable and also the powerful tub of the ones I tried out (great lounge, great back and shoulders chairs). I bought the HEET, but they have a non lounger called the Concord which was the best non-lounge model I tested.  I think they were fantastic and if there's a dealer near you, you should try them for sure.

Jacuzzi:  Their loungers were a bit too short for me (even in the biggest tub) but the 480 non-lounge had a bunch of really comfortable seats and was one of my favorite tubs. I really liked their in floor foot massage thing that people sitting around in a circle could share.  This was my second choice tub and I'd recommend it to anyone.

Sundance:  Really liked their Cameo, which had a great lounge and jets that gave a good massage.  There were a couple of shallow seats, but this one was a top 3 contender for me. I loved the corner seats in them, btw.

Phoenix:  A lot of people warned me to stay away from this brand (which was the cheapest with the most bells and whistles) but the dealership was by far the friendliest and so anted to give them a shot because of that. I liked their Sorrento a lot and if I was price shopping, this would have been my top pick.

Hot Spring:  Tested a couple of their tubs, but many of the seats weren't quite deep enough for me (My shoulders stuck out). On top of that, all of their tubs felt really underpowered. If you wanted to really turn it up, you had to divert the jets around and couldn't have more than one seat on at a time full blast.  I'd say they were very comfortable, but weak. Still, there's no denying the great rep they have.

Arctic:  Was very uncomfortable for me. The jets seemed more ornamental than functional and the mold of the tub wasn't a fit for me.  A lot of people have good things to say about these, so I'd chalk my own dislike up as "abnormal".

I also went and looked at D1, Marquis and a few other frequently recommended brands, but didn't wet test due to the quality or location of their dealerships. '


Good luck...and do those wet tests!  

[hottubber]

Vinny,
They appear to still be in business. They are up in the Northern Las Vegas area. I haven"t heard much about Artesian spas and you are the only one who has had something to say about them. My co-worker sells spas on the side and uses his Dynasty twice a day for his arthritis. I'll ask him what he knows about Artesian.

Thanks,
Scott  

I also am familiar with the Artesian brand as Vinny is. I think it's a quality tub with a tremendous amount of upside. You can actually build it based on features and price. There are many quality spas on the market, too many to list, although Sundance and Hot Spring always come to the top in every conversation.
It is extremely important that you feel comfortable with the dealer.  It is he/she that will be the difference maker. As someone said in an earlier post, "if you can't get it repaired in a timely fashion, does it really matter what it is?" :-/  

[Swell-Tub]

I had a very cool tour today of the Artesian manufacturing plant. They took me out on the production floor and showed me tubs at different levels of production. Now I will admit I'm a rookie but they had many quality checks along the way. All hose fittings are glued and clamped. The high end tubs have five 3HP motors so each seat has it's on pump and each pump draws only 6 amps. 7 year warranty on the tub and 5 year warranty on all the plumbing and pumps. 2 year warranty on the cabinet.

They make your tub to order in 10 days. I asked for a wet test and they build your tub with the colors you like and have you wet test that tub. If you like it you buy it and if you don't they put it into inventory. They have one equipped the way I want it but not in the same color, so I told them that I would prefer to wet test that one and then have them build my color if I like it, so my wet test is scheduled for this Friday.

The salesman and service technicians design the tubs and one of the technicians went on the floor with me and told what finishes hold up best in the Vegas heat. They also told me about service calls and what kind of things need repairs. It was really cool. They were making alot of tubs while I was there. I asked where all of them were going and they told me that they have large orders to fill overseas in other countries.

So does anyone have a Artesian Spa or know anything about them?

www.artesianspas.com

Scott