Cover versus cap

[brigham]

I am looking for a replacement cover for my outdoor hottub.  I have looked at covers versus a cap.  Is the cap a gimmick?

[wmccall]

I have heard some talk, not a lot. Have you seen a source on the internet or do you have a local dealer offering them?

[drewstar]

Are you talking about the inflatable spa cap?

http://www.spacap.com/home.htm


I saw this on the net and wondered how would it be to brush snow off of it?  

It  looks like it folds back ok, but if you wanted to take it completley off, there's no cover lifter and you, what put it on the ground?


It brags about air as an insualator (The air insulates the earth! it claims on the home page). Yea. ok.  somehting seems amiss to me.

Does anyone have one?    

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

Well, I keep a file of various postings I find regarding the Cap............. here ya go (posted in 2 parts as it's too long),

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BBB Reliability Report
Another Company
932 Birch-Bay Lynden Rd
Lynden, WA 98264

General Information

Original Business Start Date: September 1987
Local Business Start Date: September 1987
Type of Entity: Sole Proprietor
Principal: Mr Jeff Sliger, Owner  
Phone Number: (360) 354-0543
Fax Number: (360) 318-1802
Membership Status: No
Type-of-Business Classification: Spas & Hot Tubs - Dealers
Website Address: www.spacap.com

Nature of Business

This company offers hot tub cover manufacturer.


Customer Experience

Based on BBB files, this company has an unsatisfactory record with the Bureau due to unanswered complaints.

Report as of 10/28/2004

==========================================================

Hi Guys,

Thanks for your posts. I was searching for a new top for my spa and came across Spacap. I started to research it as it appeared to be an interesting idea.

I contacted Jeff Sliger of Another Company who makes the spacap.
I said I was interested in his cover but, due to the unique nature of his cap I was a little nervous. I asked him if I could see a copy of his R value testing. Or, was there customer near me that I could ask about it.

His response was that he would not give me any references and "Did you ask any hard cover dealers for customer references? No, because you know from personal experience they don't work." I replied , that I did in fact ask my spa maker for references on a spa cover with a radiant barrier. He gladly gave me a number of them.

I then , again, asked Jeff Sliger for a copy of their R-Value testing. Had he provided it and it verified his claims, I would have purchased it. His claims seem to be very high for just plain air. It contradicts all the information I found on R values for dead air spaces.

Jeff Sliger never replied. Very rude. This ticked me off a bit. At least tell me, NO you're not going to send it. Of course this peaked my curious nature and I did a little searching.

Spacap.com/ Another Company/ Owner Jeff Slinger have an unsatisfactor rating with the Better Business Bureau of Western Washington.http://www.oregonandwesternwa.bbb.org/commonreport.html?bid=13025291

A further patent search showed the inventor of spacap to be Kingston; James E and the assignee to be Sliger.

This is my experience with this company. I won't do business with them. Thanks to the forum for a heads up.

==============================================================

Author: drumstick (67.130.87.---)
Date:   09-15-04 18:45

I've come to the conclusion that the spa cap should be SPA CRAP. AFTER 6 MONTHS OF TEMP. TESTING 2 TIMES A DAY WHEN THE AM TEMP IS in the 40s I will lose 5 degrees in 5 hours . Thats extreme. The cap with 3 bladdes is a pain in the butt to get on and off. It is a farce that sounds good but RUN RUN RUN

==============================================================

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

PART 2;

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Author: mkamdar (---.dyn.optonline.net)
Date:   07-19-04 15:55

When It would rain, the top layer would let water seep in and it would get trapped in the middle with the air making it extremely difficult to lift it. Also, it would waver in the winds and that caused the fasteners to rip off - It was a horrible decision on my part to fall for the little video clip on their website. This is just my experience but my spa guy had warned me agianst this cover for precisely what I am describing. I was foolish enough to ignore him thinking that he is just saying that crap because he wants me to buy the cover from him.

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Posted By: wethe002 (CPE-24-163-252-228.mn.rr.com)
Date: Tuesday, 30 November 2004, at 5:29 p.m.

Had one for 3 years (it eventually leaked), uncertain if it insulated well. Also bought one for a second home, it arrived defective, and they have not replaced or repaired it. Bought it in 12/03, returned it 3/04, and have called many times. Still don't have a new one 11/30/04! Would NOT deal with this place- am about to contact them again!

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Posted By: gary tass
Date: Monday, 20 December 2004, at 8:07 a.m.


I got a spacap but im not real happy with it . it is real hard to get on and off. one person is a real chore. i have the one with 3 bladders and im not really sold on the insulating factor it should have. sounds good though.

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Posted By: laurie <lsduke@xxxxxxxxxx.com> (65.220.66.222)
Date: Wednesday, 23 March 2005, at 8:13 a.m.

In Response To: alrighty who owns this cover (TomD)


This cover sucks. We hate this cover. It is very difficult to get on and off. If you don't fill it enough, water gathers in the top and causes the edges to lift up. when I bail out the cover after a rain, the water is WARM!!! That's when it's 25 degrees out!! Gee, I wonder how it's getting heated? If you fill it so that water doesn't puddle, it looks like a mushroom and you cannot fold it over. It's just a super-filled blob that is very difficult to move around. We are not at all pleased and our electric bill has gone up 25% since we installed it (that's $100!!!) due to the convection issue that we didn't realize.

ADDITIONALLY;
We have had hot tubs for 30 years and decided, after having to replace the foam ones every 4 years that it was time for a change.  We have not been happy with the cumbersome on/off maneuvers needed for this cover (not an easy one-man job), the water-pooling in the center (I got soaked this morning getting the 4 gallons of water out of the pool in the center of the cover - just so the sides would go down!!), and the poor, POOR insulating qualities.  I am furious about this purchase.  Their site is nothing but complete misrepresentation and when I called them, they said that no one else has ever complained.  HMMM.

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From:  littlestick (gptass@xxxxxxx.tv)  
Date:  Friday, April 01, 2005 08:56 PM  

does any one else out there have a SPA CAP spa cover??? it is the one filled with 2 to 3 bladders of air. i have one and i am not happy at all with it. my electric bill for feb. was $240 !!! last year same month was half of that. it is not as easy as it shows on their website to take off and put on. it is a joke.!!!

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[J._McD]

Well, certainly not very glowing endorsements.  

In reality, when you take it off the spa it is wet and takes dirt back in.  In the winter, when you take it off it is wet and FREEZES to the deck, and yes it will rip.  

Just a different idea that does not work well or serve a meaningful purpose.  Not a good customer item.

[drewstar]

taken from the home page:

"....Here's something you'll never hear from a foam cover dealer. Every year people are injured by foam hot tub covers...."


Really? Sounds like the age old scare tatic to sell a product.

Ok Dealers, fess up, how many customers are getting hurt, maimed and killed by renegade covers each year? Huh? Time to stop the cover up!  How many more must be senselessly injured, just so you can line you pockets ? !  ? !    

[JcDenton]

No injury here.


Just get the wife to do it.  

Jc

[shabba34]

I used to fight with my foam cover in the past, but we have been going to counseling for the past year.  WOW!!!  What a difference.  

[bulmer4nc]

maimed and killed by renegade covers

That's funny.  

[wmccall]

I can see where minor injuries could occur when covers get waterlogged, but maimed and deaths, sounds like a "Jim" line.

Doc, posted all I need to know.

[Brewman]

I love his cost savings calculations.  Apparently, I'm going to have to replace my foam cover every 2 years.
Funny, that my current and first foam cover is over 2 years old, and is in excellent shape, if it keeps up, I'll get at another year or two out of it, easy.   And I live in the evil north, where it snows and stuff.
Then I'm supposed to assume that his bubble cover will lower the power bill of my spa by $50 dollars per month?
That's almost twice as much as my total monthly spa electric costs are with my supposedly worn out energy wasting foam cover.

Nice math.

Much like DAIT, this cover must somehow create enough energy to actually feed back into the power grid.


Brewman

[leesweet]

Heh.  I can see how the cap would be a good idea *theoretically* but fails in practice (water pools, gets hot or freezes, etc.), yada yada.

As for 'renegade covers', yeah, one bit me once, but it was because I was stupid enought to leave it off the old spa, went inside, came back out three hours later, said 'holy *(#$, thunderheads!?' and tried to put it back on in the middle of a squall line.

As any sailor will tell you, trying to hoist a sail in a high wind isn't a picnic.  

[obi wan]

before we senslessly criticize a cover for needless injury, up to and including DEATH, we need to ask ourselves 1 very important question......

is it the full foam covers? or was it the insulated thermal pane covers........
and as a matter of fact, which is the better cover? the full foam??  
and are they out there, roving in packs, up to no good?

[drewstar]

Cover injuries: I imagined a scene with a cute young lady sitting in her back yard, and suddenly you hear  the ominus music Da-dun, da-duh, da-dun"

The lady looks up. Her face twsited in horror and she screams as a full foam cover attacks her.


It's just not neccessary. Stop the madness.