Heater Questions

[beaud]

just got my first hot tub for free off of craigslist.  it needs a new heater.  now as i would like to use it during the winter here in texas i have a few questions.  will it stay warm/hot all the time or will i have to wait hours for it to reach operating temperature in order to use it.  is there a cost effective way to keep it warm other than having the heater on 24/7.  it is like a 6 or 7 person hot tub. 

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

Depends on the brand, model of hot tub you have, how it's wired (110v / 220v) and how the controls are set up.

Without a lot more information, you're basically asking the equivalent of me asking you, "how big is my house?"

[wmccall]

Welcome to the forum.  We look forward to hearing more about the specifics of your tub.  Assuming its a standard above ground model, it will probably take hours to heat from ambient temp levels.  Most tubs use more energy in getting water hot than keeping it hot so turning off an on doesn't make sense in most cases.

[goneaway]

Hi Beaud.

Ambient temperature as well as tub insulation have governing factors.
I'm assuming that Texas is warm (it always looks it in the movies)
Here in the UK, our summer temperatures are about 25 deg C.
My tub which  has an insulated cover and insulated foam internally, loses about 1 degree over night.
Night time temps are dropping to sub 5 degrees C, and I'm losing at least 2 degrees over night.

In the summer, it would increase about 1 degree per hour.
At this time of year its taking about 8 hours to increase by 6 degrees.

So as you can see, there are lots of permutations to consider.