Cal Spa

[reloman]

Can anyone tell me anything about Cal Spa?  It is one of my final picks and on other sites they get mostly negative reviews.

[salesdvl]

Can anyone tell me anything about Cal Spa?  It is one of my final picks and on other sites they get mostly negative reviews.

There's a reason for the negative reviews.  Do not take them lightly.

[spaman--]

Cal Spa is a fine product there are actually very few poor reviews compared to the number of spas sold, Cal Spa has a bad rap on these boards as you have the same people bashing and saying the same things over and over again making it appear a major problem. The problem is this, Cal Spa lends its name to its retailers such as Cal Spas of Denver. Every now and then you will find, as with any manufacturer there are dealers who don't do as they are suppose to to take care of the customers. The only reason it is different in with cal Spas is that they let the retailer put their name on the door, so unfortuanatly Cal Spa gets blamed for the retailer short falls. I can tell you the the minute Cal Spas hears about any problem a customer has they are all over correcting the situation. Now remembering you cant please everyone there are those who you can offer assistance to and they will not accept it and they would just rather complain. NOw back to the product, I have been in the business 11 plus years and have seen alot of products and disected alot of products and I can tell you that Cal Spas is incredibly well made in its construction, componants and molding. They have become almost to picky at the factory with their quality control. The warranty is as they state it, and they back it 100% in fact its a promise on the first page of their website.
š šI get e-mail all the time with questions about Cal Spas and help šanswer everyone of them. Alot of them come from these sites, while they all leave satisfied that their needs have been met I get a thank you and praise but they dont pop back up to review the positive. So it goes to show you that out of 100's of thousands of Cal Spas sold theres only a few with problems, so many customer service issues with other manufacturers get swallowed by the local dealers, Cal Spas lets its dealers put their name right on the front door as they absolutely want to know about any problems that may occur. I work for the largest store front spa dealer in the world covering Colorado, Minnesota and Las Vegas! We wouldnt keep Cal Spas on the floor if they werent a great product! Good luck and happy shopping! š;)

Again remember that every manufacture has dealers that arent up to par! I urge you to check out your local dealer as well.

[nicker]

There is no doubt that you will/have read bad reviews on these tubs.  I can confirm what spaman says.  But I would say is if you have wet tested the calspa tub you are talking about and you like it and the dealer is a good reputible dealer then that is all that matters.  THE DEALER is going to make your tub owning experience a good one or a bad one.  Make sure the dealer has been around a while, ask if you can concact people that have bought tubs from them in the past.  Thats is a good way to find out what how they handle their deals.  Another thing is when at the store ask some of the people in there that already own a tub from them see what they think.

Good luck

[reloman]

Is there anything to the Cal Spa heat exchanger and it never touching the water?  Another was the lifetime warranty on the heater, other dealers said that Cal Spa or the Watson's dealer that sells them offers the lifetime warrnry which in this state is only 7 years.

I really like the model we are looking at and the features you get for the price.

[Spatech_tuo]

Is there anything to the Cal Spa heat exchanger and it never touching the water?  Another was the lifetime warranty on the heater, other dealers said that Cal Spa or the Watson's dealer that sells them offers the lifetime warrnry which in this state is only 7 years.

I really like the model we are looking at and the features you get for the price.

I'm not sure how a heater became a selling point but I'd skip over that as just being salesmanship. Lifetime warranties are notorious for not really being lifetime but I'm not sure about any limitations in this case and their website doesn't seem to go into detail that I could find. If it really matters to you I would ask for a copy of the warranty and check closely to make sure the entire unit is warranted for "lifetime" as someone mentioned an issue with a heater not along ago that they thought had a lifetime warranty but when it came down to it portions of the heater had a lesser warranty (it may not have been Cal Spa though).

If you really like the dealer and trust they'll stand behind their product then let us know how it goes.

[spaman--]

I'm not sure how a heater became a selling point but I'd skip over that as just being salesmanship. Lifetime warranties are notorious for not really being lifetime but I'm not sure about any limitations in this case and their website doesn't seem to go into detail that I could find. If it really matters to you I would ask for a copy of the warranty and check closely to make sure the entire unit is warranted for "lifetime" as someone mentioned an issue with a heater not along ago that they thought had a lifetime warranty but when it came down to it portions of the heater had a lesser warranty (it may not have been Cal Spa though).

If you really like the dealer and trust they'll stand behind their product then let us know how it goes.

Yes Cals Spas heat exchanger is axactly as advertised the warranty is for the lifetime of the spa as long as you own it. NOT 7 YEARS OR ANYTHING ELSE!!!! The heat exchanger never touches the water as explained by your salesman. I would like top find out which dealer you are talking to as maybe I know them or something about them to add. I f you like the spa and the dealer I say buy it!!!

[reloman]

Watson's out of Indianapolis, Indiana

A competitor said that a lifetime warranty in Indiana is only 7 years.  We've not yet pressed the Watson's salesman to tell us if the heater warranty is "lifetime" or 7 years.  We will once we go back to the store, we've just been shopping other spas at this time.

Thanks for all of the great advice.

We just had the electrician out and we have 110 feet from our main box to the place we are putting the spa and the qoute was $835.00 WOW we were blown away.  Does this sound right???

[rocket]

Please do your homework and also test soak the spas.
Ultimately, it's your decision.  Here are some questions to ask the dealer/salesperson:
1.  Who does the service?  Are they on your payroll or
an independent technician?
2.  Are there any service charges during the warranty?
If so, how much?
3.  Give me 20 names of people who have purchased from you so I can call them.

I don't believe that the heater is very energy efficient?
Lifetime is determined by the manufacturer and I would encourage you to go to www.lifetimeact .com  You'll find some interesting infor on lifetime warranties.

Good Luck

[reloman]

I tried to go to www.lifetimeact.com and the url is invalid?

[Spa_Tech]

I'll keep it brief.

Ive worked as a service tech for about ten years.

Cal Spas main issue in my opinion, is enlisting reputable people for dealers and service.

Cal Spas has run into trouble in the past- It doesnt take much to locate information on exactly what kinds of trouble.

They are among my top five least favorite spas to render repair on.

[spaman--]

Watson's out of Indianapolis, Indiana

A competitor said that a lifetime warranty in Indiana is only 7 years. šWe've not yet pressed the Watson's salesman to tell us if the heater warranty is "lifetime" or 7 years. šWe will once we go back to the store, we've just been shopping other spas at this time.

Thanks for all of the great advice.


The manufacturer can tell you that they intend and warrant the heater for the life of the spa as long as you own it feel free to call them to find out. The heater is entremely effecient !!!!!!!!!!!

[Spatech_tuo]

Watson's out of Indianapolis, Indiana

A competitor said that a lifetime warranty in Indiana is only 7 years.  We've not yet pressed the Watson's salesman to tell us if the heater warranty is "lifetime" or 7 years.  We will once we go back to the store, we've just been shopping other spas at this time.

Thanks for all of the great advice.

We just had the electrician out and we have 110 feet from our main box to the place we are putting the spa and the qoute was $835.00 WOW we were blown away.  Does this sound right???

1) My understanding is that in some states a lifetime warranty is actually only applicable for 7 years. I'm not going by first hand experience as I've not dealt with that issue directly. It's something to look into and you can always ask the dealer who's telling you this to tell you how he knows the warranty is only good for 7 years in your state.

2) For the electrical, is that 110 ft run all above ground?

[spaman--]

1) My understanding is that in some states a lifetime warranty is actually only applicable for 7 years. I'm not going by first hand experience as I've not dealt with that issue directly. It's something to look into and you can always ask the dealer who's telling you this to tell you how he knows the warranty is only good for 7 years in your state.

2) For the electrical, is that 110 ft run all above ground?

Do you really think that the manufacturer is going to take the time to see what the law in each state says about lifetime warranties? Its a heater not a spa pack. They will send you the heater as long as you own the tub plain and simple.

In the past I tried to quote electrical runs , however I have learned that each job may be different and I leave it upto the experts. My electrician in Phoenix charges still to this day $480 for a 50' run and $4.50 per foot there after trench or not , of course trenching in Phoenix sand is a bit different than the rockies.

[Spatech_tuo]

Do you really think that the manufacturer is going to take the time to see what the law in each state says about lifetime warranties? Its a heater not a spa pack. They will send you the heater as long as you own the tub plain and simple.

Of course not, which is exactly why each customer may want to make sure that the “lifetime” warranty is really that in his or her state. If that warranty was a selling feature to me I'd want to find out for sure and if the other dealer is saying it's really only 7 years I'd start by asking them how they know this to be true.

IMO, lifetime warranties are gimmicky because I don't trust that the terminology is as straightforward as it leads you to believe it is. A good example is the "lifetime" warranty that D1 has on its shell. It IS a good warranty but it is NOT the "lifetime" warranty that most ASSUME it to be. In this case, after 7 years the manufacturer has the right to require the owner (at his/her own expense) to remove the spa from their yard, ship it to the manufacturer and pay for the shipment back. Yet it is called a "lifetime" warranty. I don't think that's what many envisioned when they heard the magical words "lifetime warranty on the shell". Again, it IS a good warranty but I have to belive it gives a false impression many times.