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Welcome to the forum. As an Erie native, may I ask where in Western PA?
I would want to know what your mechanical abilities are. Once you buy your hot tub someone is going to need to maintain it. It's going to have probably 3x pumps and a spaghetti of hoses underneath. Things will leak and fail, that's just how it goes with something mechanical. If you have a high degree of mechanical/electrical skills, willingness, persistence, and time, you can maintain it yourself. If not you're going to have to pay someone to fix it. Paying someone to fix/maintain a hot tub is what prompts a lot of people to sell their hot tubs as they can become maintenance intensive (expensive). The further you get away from a new hot tub, the greater the liklihood (and increased frequency) that things will need servicing. So, you need to ask yourself if you are prepared to work on a used hot tub. Something that's 10 years old, you should be able to find for anywhere from free to $500 if it runs fine, based on what I've seen here ....and I've looked at several used hot tubs off C/L.Does this help?
Almost all the hot tubs use pumps and controls made by the same mfgr (e.g. Balboa controls) with a few exceptions. I would look at who your local stores are in the area, how long they've been in business and what their reputations are. Then start working with them for deals. Obviously they need to make money to stay in business, but are there close-outs, or last yr's models ...do they have any repo's or anything like that where you can find some savings? Everyone who walks in their door is looking for a 'good deal', but try to allow them to work with you to find what fits your needs and budget. Do you need to have ALL the bells and whistles? Try out as many hot tubs as you can. They should let you sit in some to evaluate them. Try to find a good vendor you can have a good relationship with.
Quote from: JacuzziJack on August 06, 2017, 04:56:12 pmI would want to know what your mechanical abilities are. Once you buy your hot tub someone is going to need to maintain it. It's going to have probably 3x pumps and a spaghetti of hoses underneath. Things will leak and fail, that's just how it goes with something mechanical. If you have a high degree of mechanical/electrical skills, willingness, persistence, and time, you can maintain it yourself. If not you're going to have to pay someone to fix it. Paying someone to fix/maintain a hot tub is what prompts a lot of people to sell their hot tubs as they can become maintenance intensive (expensive). The further you get away from a new hot tub, the greater the liklihood (and increased frequency) that things will need servicing. So, you need to ask yourself if you are prepared to work on a used hot tub. Something that's 10 years old, you should be able to find for anywhere from free to $500 if it runs fine, based on what I've seen here ....and I've looked at several used hot tubs off C/L.Does this help?Unfortunately, I am not mechanically inclined. I love working with my hands with regard to any/all things landscaping, but when it comes to anything mechanical, i have zero knowledge. So, with that said, I'll have to hire someone to do any repairs that would be necessary over time.Your response was extremely helpful in that I now think I'll shift my focus to new. Do you have any opinions on any of the specific tubs I linked to in my original post? What about Belize spas offered at SpaDepot.com or this (https://www.wayfair.com/Futura-Spas-6-Person-88-Jet-Spa-with-Lounger-and-Stainless-Jets-FUTR1001.html?source=hotdeals) Futura spa sold by Wayfair?Thanks so much for the help!
I have no experience with the spas you mentioned but I have read many times the spas you can purchase online are mediocre at best. Since you are not handy on fixing them before you purchase read up on the warranty and find out how easy or hard it is to service. Who will be servicing it? If you live in a cold climate and the spa stops running how long will it take to get a tech out? Another question for delivery will they just deliver it to curbside and you move it to where you want and hook it up?
I would say, keep looking for a used tub. Like mentioned before, try to stay within the 1-3 year range for age. Good deals are out there to be had.Look at the deal I found. https://www.whatsthebest-hottub.com/forum/index.php/topic,21572.0.htmlIf your slab is outside & construction is not due to be finished until January, then you might not really be in a rush to make a deal now (if you can't find one).So you might have until next Spring, which gives you plenty of time to keep searching for a good / used deal.Good Luck!Dave...
We live up in the Erie / Meadville area so we are aware of how cold your winters will be as well. We use our tub all 12 months and seldom say it is too cold to open the tub. –30F had me saying not tonight though. In these extreme climate IMO it is important to have a high quality tub and a well insulated tub. You will also want your tub installed for the weather it will be seeing so you can enjoy it year round. We went way over our budget once we started looking into whet we needed. That being said I find a lot of people fall in love with the idea of a tub and after getting it and finding they don’t use it that much or don’t like the maintenance etc. after a couple years give up and sell it. That’s the used tub you want to get. Take the winter and study up on tubs and go around to everyplace you can and wet test tubs. You will be surprised they all don’t suit everyone equally. When you find a used one then or you see you need to up the budget or save up a little longer you will know what you want when it comes along. We started out saying 6k is the most we will spend. We ended up spending 12k. I’m glad every time I get in it we waited and got what we did.