Hot Tub adventure (Wood tub)

[stuart]

So how long did the whole project take? Did you bill hourly or for the whole job? Was it worth it?

[Chas]

Didn't get to finish it today - the customer decided he DID want a diverter. I ordered it, but it didn't arrive till late in the day. I finished up all other plumbing, cleaned out the tub, and put a couple inches of water in it.

I gave this guy a fixed price - I am a contractor - and have made change orders for the things he changed his mind about. Also, the shipping came in at double what the estimate was, and he is aware that can happen and will cover the extra cost.

Yes, it will be worth it, and I have enjoyed the job. I can't even remember when I did my last wood tub.

 8-)

[stuart]

Yes, it will be worth it, and I have enjoyed the job. I can't even remember when I did my last wood tub.

 8-)

That's why I do the company sauna installs, its therapy!

I asked all of that specifically to hear you say that you enjoyed it....I can't wait to do another wood tub.....it's been many years!

[Chas]

I have been going up the hill to this house to add water to get the tub to seal up. I have to admit that it has very few leaks compared to the ones I have done before. But there is one which is pretty big, and I may have to take some special steps.

I put masking tape on the inside of all the leaking joints, and then filled the tub up to about a foot. Overnight most of the leaks stopped.

I will be doing the final plumbing today - the customer asked for no jets at first, so I ordered four suction fittings and planned on just having two suctions and two returns. Then he said he wanted some jet action - I told him we should put in a couple of clusters with a diverter, but he said no.

As the job progressed, he decided he wanted two jets just like before. Then he decided to go with a diverter so he can run one, the other, or both of the jets.

All the parts finally came in, he approved the price changes, and we will finish it off today. He is on vacation, so I will continue to go add water for the next four days.

 8-)

[cedar tub]

Greetings Lads,
This is my first post here and I'm glad it's on an all wood thread.  It's good to see there are some people who know a real hot tub is wood, deep and has few or no jets!  Spas are acrylic with lots of jets.  

We are installing a 5ft diameter x 4ft deep cedar tub tomorrow.  It has all digital controls, 6 jets (I can add more if desired), a 4hp motor, a 1.5hp motor, 100 sq-ft filter, ionizer, lights, a modern cover and a real drain with a hose connection...not a cork  I know these all cedar tubs aren't for everyone and require a bit more upkeep.  They are also more sensitive to certain chemicals.  But, I just love the beauty of the wood and the depth.  We bought it for our mountain/lake house.

[cedar tub]

Hello Chas,
I was wondering if you had more to report.  Our tub arrived on Oct 15.  It was originally for our mountain house, but we decided to keep it at our primary residence since it will require a watchful eye.  I have some pics to post:

This is our view from the mountain house.  A hot tub is definitely going to find it's way onto the deck:



This is the lake taken from our boat.  Unfortunately, you can't see the lake from the house:



Here is the tub as it arrived.  Ours is by Callaway Woodworks.  Along with RH, they are one of the better manufacturers.  It comes in a wooden crate, which was quite nice, but a chore to disassemble when it was time to get rid of it:



Here is a pic of all the pieces on the deck:



Box-O-PVC parts:



The base is basically pre-assembled and in two pieces:

[cedar tub]

Here is the tub as the staves are being added.  The cedar aroma is very nice:



Another look:



I decided to treat the outside with tongue oil.  It really brings out the color and here you can see the difference it makes:


[td][/td]
I really like the look of the Callaway bench seats and they can be mounted at my desired height:



A couple of equipment pics:



If you look near the bottom left, you can see the drain that comes off the filter.  I'm going to install an elbow to make hose attachment easier:



I still have to build a deck around the tub to cover the equipment and plumbing.

[cedar tub]

Tonight, I added 2-3 inches of water.  As expected, there are a few small leaks.  Most have already sealed. However, as I'm typing this, it's 41F outside (N Atlanta) and I'm afraid that may slow the swelling of the wood:



Another look:



Looking down through the pergola from our bedroom window:



This tub is equipped with:
4hp pump
1.5hp bubbler
6 jets w/air controls
2 suctions
100 sq-ft filter
ionizer
lights
5.5 kw heat
digital controls
cover
5ft diameter x 4ft deep

[gwstudios]

The cost of the wooden tubs is not that much less than a high tech fiberglass 50 jet fiberoptic technical wonder with a built in CD player, foot and neck massagers and they seem to get really nasty looking from all the chemicals.

I am just trying to figure out the quant vs cool ratio when they cost about the same.

[cedar tub]

The cost of the wooden tubs is not that much less than a high tech fiberglass 50 jet fiberoptic technical wonder with a built in CD player, foot and neck massagers and they seem to get really nasty looking from all the chemicals.

I am just trying to figure out the quant vs cool ratio when they cost about the same.

It not so much what it cost...it's what I wanted.  As I said in my first post, it was purchased for our mountain house and the cedar was specifically for aesthetics.  For me that view screamed for a natural wood tub.  However, it wound up at our primary home.  

It's 4' deep and I don't have to lie down in it to cover most of my torso.  As far as the nasty looking ones you've seen in pictures, those are either old or weren't cared for properly.  I do agree that the chemicals can be a problem, that's why this one has a copper ionizer and Nature2.  It will only have 0.5 ppm dichlor.  I've done a lot of reading here and on other forums and found that the N2 low chlorine recipe is effective if you follow it.  I was originally going to use MPS, but will only use dichlor.  MPS will degrade the wood quicker as will Bromine...at least that's what I've been told by the manufacturer.

As can be seen in one of the photos, the equipment is mounted on an aluminum skid which will be under a surrounding deck that has to be built.  Since I assembled the tub, I'm quite familiar with it's plumbing and equipment.  If something breaks, I can simply open the access door that will be built into the surround and get to everything.  The tub is supposed to last 15yrs and if I get 10, I'll be OK.  At that time, I may get a modern tub and a floating bromine system for convenience.  It was about 35F at my house in suburban Atlanta this morning when I woke up.  I wish it was filled and warm,  that's one thing about the fiberglass/acrylic tubs...you connect the wiring, fill them and turn them on.  

To sum it up:  different strokes for different folks.  

[Chas]

That's a great looking tub and far more complete than what I ordered from RHT. In my case I was replacing a tub already in place, which has a one HP pump and gas heater. That's it - no blower, no light, only two jets with a diverter between them, and a simple switch on the wall a few steps away for control. In fact, now that I have seen it run, I think the open-face impeller in the all-bronze pump needs to be adjusted: it simply doesn't move much water. The two jets are fine, but I expected them to really blow!

The Tub I installed is full of water and we are waiting for one last crack to swell closed. I missed a slight gap between two staves, and it poured when first filled. I covered it with masking tape so we could proceed, and that stemmed the tide. But it is down to a drip now and the rest have stopped.

Some time this week I will drain it, sand down the lip and run it with my router and then install the benches from the last tub. They overlap, so they have three different heights and the customer liked them. I'm going to sand them lightly and install them just as they were before.

This is the third tub to be in this spot, spanning thirty years. Both old tubs are around, in bits and pieces. The benches from the very fist tub are sitting on the deck next to the tub just because they look so 'cool' to the owner.

This tub has a solar heat exchanger, and the owner reports having to use the gas heat only a couple of times a year - or if he does a water change and wants it hot that same day.

 8-)

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

WOW there's a lot of flat grain wood in there.

Mind if I ask a few questions? Other than some some boards from tubs of theirs we've replaced, I've never seen one of their tubs.

How was the crate put together? Nails or screws?.... and how did you get rid of it?

The wood attached to the underside of the bottom is cute. I assume it's there to hold the pieces of wood together? Though, from a few of your pictures it looks like there's some pretty nice gaps even after being assembled. I wounder why they just didn't glue it all together.

Did all the staves come pre-drilled?

One of your pictures shows a stave that's narrower than all the others. Did you have cut it to that size?

How thick are the staves?

Do you know the brand of the jets?

Was the silicone required, or recommended around the jets on the inside of the tub?

Thanks!

[gwstudios]

It not so much what it cost...it's what I wanted.  As I said in my first post, it was purchased for our mountain house and the cedar was specifically for aesthetics.  For me that view screamed for a natural wood tub.  However, it wound up at our primary home.  

It's 4' deep and I don't have to lie down in it to cover most of my torso.  As far as the nasty looking ones you've seen in pictures, those are either old or weren't cared for properly.  I do agree that the chemicals can be a problem, that's why this one has a copper ionizer and Nature2.  It will only have 0.5 ppm dichlor.  I've done a lot of reading here and on other forums and found that the N2 low chlorine recipe is effective if you follow it.  I was originally going to use MPS, but will only use dichlor.  MPS will degrade the wood quicker as will Bromine...at least that's what I've been told by the manufacturer.

As can be seen in one of the photos, the equipment is mounted on an aluminum skid which will be under a surrounding deck that has to be built.  Since I assembled the tub, I'm quite familiar with it's plumbing and equipment.  If something breaks, I can simply open the access door that will be built into the surround and get to everything.  The tub is supposed to last 15yrs and if I get 10, I'll be OK.  At that time, I may get a modern tub and a floating bromine system for convenience.  It was about 35F at my house in suburban Atlanta this morning when I woke up.  I wish it was filled and warm,  that's one thing about the fiberglass/acrylic tubs...you connect the wiring, fill them and turn them on.  

To sum it up:  different strokes for different folks.  

I hear you. I just don't see $5,000 worth of hot tub. I could make one of those myself for a fraction of the cost out of some decent wood and the extra spa pump / motor I have laying around. I gueess what I am saying is the cost seems way too high for me.

It fits perfectly with the Pacific Nortwest / Aspen lifestyle and I like the look for your location and the spectacular view.

[cedar tub]

GW
I have to assume it's the price of good wood that makes them so expensive.  If you have the equipment to make the ball and socket joints and curve the individual staves, you could do it yourself.  The individual staves on my tub are milled with a curve and aren't flat.  They fit together very tightly and in some places, it's difficult to see the seams.  All you'd need to buy is a pump, blower, jets, control system, plumbing and the necessary milling equipment to cut and curve those staves.

The mountain house is about 2hrs away on the GA/NC border.  For that reason, I decided to install the cedar tub at our primary home (it can't run a tablet dosing system).  The mountain house will get a regular plastic tub or whatever those things that you like are made of  

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

GW
I have to assume it's the price of good wood that makes them so expensive.

While there is some truth to that, the tub pictured has a HUGE amount of flat grain wood...which "ain't" all that expensive   We just sent back about half a truck load of it, for as far as we're concerned it doesn't come close to meeting our required quality.

The ball and socket joint, just like the tongue and groove we do, has nothing to do with the quality of the tub, nor it's ability to hold water. For hundreds of years, tanks, barrels and hot tubs were made with flat sides and they held water just as well. The difference is ease of assembly. Here in the shop, I can assemble a tub in about 15 to 20 minutes. without the tongue and groove aligning the staves, I could spend another 1+ hours aligning them by hand.

The ONLY advantage to curving the staves is marketing talk. I've used curved stave tubs and flat stave tubs, and can't tell the difference. I've also talked to a lot of people that also have used both, and say the same thing. The DISADVANTAGE is that curving the stave makes it thinner. A thinner stave is weaker, more prone to warpage, has less insulating ability, and has a shorter life span due to there being less wood to spread it's natural rot resistance around (tannic acid).