Help Needed with a New Hot Tub Purchase - looking at Arctic Spa - help!

[newhottubowner]

WE are in the process of purchasing a new hot tub.  Does anyone have an opinion on the ARCTIC SPA - we are looking at the SUMMIT or TUNDRA model with SPA BOY.  Because the hot tub will be at a second home we were interested in the ability to remotely connect to the hot tub to control the heat through SPA BOY.  this is one of the main reasons for looking at ARCTIC SPA.  All this said I've seen some REALLY BAD reviews on both product quality and service for Arctic Spa - would appreciate any feedback?

[Tman122]

WE are in the process of purchasing a new hot tub.  Does anyone have an opinion on the ARCTIC SPA - we are looking at the SUMMIT or TUNDRA model with SPA BOY.  Because the hot tub will be at a second home we were interested in the ability to remotely connect to the hot tub to control the heat through SPA BOY.  this is one of the main reasons for looking at ARCTIC SPA.  All this said I've seen some REALLY BAD reviews on both product quality and service for Arctic Spa - would appreciate any feedback?

I've seen a few Arctic Spas and my opinion is that they are built well. Seemed solid and powerful. Their layouts were a bit confining for me but quality tubs.

[Hot Tub Guru]

As an Arctic Spa Dealer for over 18 years there is no other spa I would sell.  Both Summit and Tundra are the same price if you have the same options.  The Summit is the #1 selling Arctic Spa because of the super comfortable shuttle seats.  The Tundra is my best selling spa is its got a bigger foot well. 

They are super energy efficient!  Have cabinets that aren't only beautiful but last!  The remote feature is fantastic if you aren't at you home all the time. 

What bad reviews have you seen?  When were they?  I can help explain what Arctic has done to solve any issue.  Also who was the dealer?  Always do research on the actual dealer cause any spa manufacture can have bad dealers as well.

Good luck!

[silversun]

I was looking at arctic briefly. It seems like a very well built hot tob with a hard top cover and perma-base. 

I heard their wifi connection which spa boy depends on is flaky. the dealer suggested I run a hard-wired internet cable directly to the spa. No thanks. That wasn't the dealbreaker for me, but it made me wonder that the spa boy (which they market as their killer feature) had such a fatal flaw.

Ultimately I ruled them out because their shell designs felt confining.

[Hot Tub Guru]

I was looking at arctic briefly. It seems like a very well built hot tob with a hard top cover and perma-base. 

I heard their wifi connection which spa boy depends on is flaky. the dealer suggested I run a hard-wired internet cable directly to the spa. No thanks. That wasn't the dealbreaker for me, but it made me wonder that the spa boy (which they market as their killer feature) had such a fatal flaw.

Ultimately I ruled them out because their shell designs felt confining.

The WiFi does work in most situations 90% of them.  Now it's typically flaky because of customers hard ware issues.  Now with anything including a laptop hard wire is always better.  Now Spa Boy does work if its not connected to the internet. 

The shell designs are the best part of our spa.  When your wrapped in a seat its SO comfortable.  Have multiple arm rests are so nice! 

At least your in hot water now!  Congrats on your new spa!

[Hot Tub Guru]

Also with any salt system you need to check the price of the cell replacement!  I retail our 3 plate for $89 and our 5 plate for $109. 

[newhottubowner]

As an Arctic Spa Dealer for over 18 years there is no other spa I would sell.  Both Summit and Tundra are the same price if you have the same options.  The Summit is the #1 selling Arctic Spa because of the super comfortable shuttle seats.  The Tundra is my best selling spa is its got a bigger foot well. 

They are super energy efficient!  Have cabinets that aren't only beautiful but last!  The remote feature is fantastic if you aren't at you home all the time. 

What bad reviews have you seen?  When were they?  I can help explain what Arctic has done to solve any issue.  Also who was the dealer?  Always do research on the actual dealer cause any spa manufacture can have bad dealers as well.

Good luck!

I've read a number of reviews on quality issues customers are experiencing - to Arctic's defense I suspect most people do not post positive comments and complaints are more common in reviews.  That said, some of the major complaints are 'poor connectivity of the spa boy system', 'continuous replacement of the salt cell' and 'poor service with dealers'.

In terms of which model to choose, we have a family of 4 (with 2 young kids);  we like the Tundra because of the large footwell so the kids can move around and the fact it has 7 seats.  The spa will be used by young kids (under 10 years old) mostly - our kids and their friends - our main concern with the Tundra is we've been told the seats at VERY DEEP (or at least one is VERY deep).  With the tallest in the family at 5'6" and the fact mostly kids will be in the tub who are about 4'6" and smaller we are worried the tub seats on Tundra may be an issues (too deep).  In terms of the Summit the concern is there are only 6 seats - on the plus side we are thinking the seats in the Summit would be not as deep and the bench design for 3 of the seats may be a plus for fitting a bunch of small kids.

Appreciate any thoughts on which design you think would work better and/or comments on the negative review issues.

[Hot Tub Guru]

As an Arctic Spa Dealer for over 18 years there is no other spa I would sell.  Both Summit and Tundra are the same price if you have the same options.  The Summit is the #1 selling Arctic Spa because of the super comfortable shuttle seats.  The Tundra is my best selling spa is its got a bigger foot well. 

They are super energy efficient!  Have cabinets that aren't only beautiful but last!  The remote feature is fantastic if you aren't at you home all the time. 

What bad reviews have you seen?  When were they?  I can help explain what Arctic has done to solve any issue.  Also who was the dealer?  Always do research on the actual dealer cause any spa manufacture can have bad dealers as well.

Good luck!

I've read a number of reviews on quality issues customers are experiencing - to Arctic's defense I suspect most people do not post positive comments and complaints are more common in reviews.  That said, some of the major complaints are 'poor connectivity of the spa boy system', 'continuous replacement of the salt cell' and 'poor service with dealers'.

In terms of which model to choose, we have a family of 4 (with 2 young kids);  we like the Tundra because of the large footwell so the kids can move around and the fact it has 7 seats.  The spa will be used by young kids (under 10 years old) mostly - our kids and their friends - our main concern with the Tundra is we've been told the seats at VERY DEEP (or at least one is VERY deep).  With the tallest in the family at 5'6" and the fact mostly kids will be in the tub who are about 4'6" and smaller we are worried the tub seats on Tundra may be an issues (too deep).  In terms of the Summit the concern is there are only 6 seats - on the plus side we are thinking the seats in the Summit would be not as deep and the bench design for 3 of the seats may be a plus for fitting a bunch of small kids.

Appreciate any thoughts on which design you think would work better and/or comments on the negative review issues.

As far connectivity goes if you can hard wire the spa with ethernet cable that's the best option!  The connectivity issue is typically hardware un-related to the spa.  As in the router that's used changes its settings, the list goes on and on.  There are a few options to connect.  Check Arctic Spas Utah Page for really good videos.  Now the cell replacement.  When were these reviews?  Cause years and years ago we did have a manufacturing problem.  However in the last 3 years the cell replacements averages 3 years.  Our cells are 90-110 depending on Onzen or Spa Boy.  Other brands of salt cells average less time (read this forum)  and cost WAY more.  So having a salt system is SUPER nice.  Now whats great about Arctic Spas is this option along with most other options including more pump/jets can be added later. 

What dealer are you looking to purchase from?  Does that dealer have good reviews on Yelp, Facebook, Google, and check the BBB etc. 

Tundra vs Summit the great debate.  I'm 5'6 my wife is 5'4 we have a Tundra.  You need to sit in the tub see what one suits your needs better.  The good thing is they are the same price if there the same options.  The Summit is Arctic Spas #1 selling spa where the Tundra is my #1 selling spa.   

[Tman122]

Tundra vs Summit the great debate.  I'm 5'6 my wife is 5'4 we have a Tundra.  You need to sit in the tub see what one suits your needs better.  The good thing is they are the same price if there the same options.  The Summit is Arctic Spas #1 selling spa where the Tundra is my #1 selling spa.

No offense intended but the poster would be well advised to sit in multiple brands wet to see which feels best.

[Spatech_tuo]

Tundra vs Summit the great debate.  I'm 5'6 my wife is 5'4 we have a Tundra.  You need to sit in the tub see what one suits your needs better.  The good thing is they are the same price if there the same options.  The Summit is Arctic Spas #1 selling spa where the Tundra is my #1 selling spa.

No offense intended but the poster would be well advised to sit in multiple brands wet to see which feels best.

You state you're looking at 2 Arctic models but then bring up concerns about them but don't mention what else may be available to you. Arctic may be the spa for you in the end and I'm not knocking them in any way but the best approach when spa shopping is to start with an open slate where you review all/most of the major brands in your area and then wet test at the couple dealers that seem to give you what you need. If that ends up being Arctic then that's great but by opening yourself up to everything available to you at least you know you've kicked the tires of multiple brands and that the spa you end up choosing won by its merit rather than by default because you only reviewed one brand.

[newhottubowner]

Tundra vs Summit the great debate.  I'm 5'6 my wife is 5'4 we have a Tundra.  You need to sit in the tub see what one suits your needs better.  The good thing is they are the same price if there the same options.  The Summit is Arctic Spas #1 selling spa where the Tundra is my #1 selling spa.

No offense intended but the poster would be well advised to sit in multiple brands wet to see which feels best.

You state you're looking at 2 Arctic models but then bring up concerns about them but don't mention what else may be available to you. Arctic may be the spa for you in the end and I'm not knocking them in any way but the best approach when spa shopping is to start with an open slate where you review all/most of the major brands in your area and then wet test at the couple dealers that seem to give you what you need. If that ends up being Arctic then that's great but by opening yourself up to everything available to you at least you know you've kicked the tires of multiple brands and that the spa you end up choosing won by its merit rather than by default because you only reviewed one brand.

Really appreciate the discussion as this is a big purchase.  To give the full background, in my search I looked at Beachcomber, Hot Springs and Arctic.  For Beachcomber I looked at the 'Summer Editions' - specifically the Hybrid 380 and 590 editions.  I liked the size of the Beachcomber 'summer editions' - I also liked the seating configuration as it is more like a bench all the way around so I feel it would better for kids (I know some may argue a deep seat with arm rests is more comfortable but I like the flat bench configuration).  The concerns I had was there was NO SALT SYSTEM offered and THE PUMPS ARE ON THE OUTSIDE UNDER THE STEPS.  I heard the benefits on servicing for the pumps but with Canadian winters I'm not a fan of the equipment being external to the casing.  The item which brought us to Arctic was the remote connectivity of Spa Boy.  We are using this tub at a second home and we are only their on weekends.  Having the ability to remote connect to control the spa is very appealing (Beachcomber did not offer remote connectivity and they do not have salt systems).  In terms of pricing they are very similar (Beachcomber and Arctic) for the model I'm looking at - except the Arctic has the remote connectivity and the salt system (for maybe $700 more).  Hot Springs seem to have some remote connectivity service but it had a monthly subscription charge which we were not interested in - plus in the Hot Springs line up we only liked the higher end model which was at least $3K more than the Beachcomber and Arctic so we eliminated this brand.

[Tman122]

THE PUMPS ARE ON THE OUTSIDE UNDER THE STEPS.  I heard the benefits on servicing for the pumps but with Canadian winters I'm not a fan of the equipment being external to the casing. 

Forget the part about the pump being outside the casing. Beach makes both outside the shell and inside pump models and I would guess the beach of either configuration will be less or equal in energy consumption than the Arctic. This is a non issue. Beachcomber makes a great tub. Long lasting and energy efficient. But so does Arctic and if those other options are important to you then by all means stick with a manufacturer that can supply them. But for that kind of money I would make it comfortable to ME and NOT my kids. They are just going to splash around and get your water dirty.

[sergey]

Do not forget that Spa Boy PH probe to be replaced from time to time (I've heard that it last 1 year).

[newhottubowner]

Help!  I was all ready to buy the Arctic Spa but went to Beachcomber one more time.  I wanted to have my family sit in both the  Arctic Spa Summit and the Beachcomber 380 (summer special).  The shell layout of the Beachcomber seems to be more comfortable - really like you that you can fit 7 people + 1 cooling seat (total 8 people) - and really like the fact the seats are almost on the same level (bench style) so you can move around easier.  The arctic is much more defined seating and as a result 6 maximum people (even though the physical measurements are the same on both).  Also the arctic has the filters exposed and taking up space, while the Beachcomber has the filter tight in one corner and covered (so unexposed).

Still like the fact Arctic has a SALT SYSTEM and has SPA BOY (remote connection through the phone) and the model I'm looking at with arctic has 2 pumps.  ALL THIS SAID, I'm also starting to think all these features (salt, spa boy, extra lights, etc.) may result in maintenance issues/costs down the road.

I'm likely over thinking this - but at $10K it is a big purchase so trying to figure it out.  The thinking continues.

 (and holds more people).

[meriflower]

When you say sit is the spa dry or full of water?  You really need to wet test or sit in the spa with water.  A spa will have a totally different feeling from dry to wet.  What might be more comfortable when dry you might find you tend to float too much when wet.