tiger river bengal

[grumpy]

Just want to say Hi. New to the forum and soon to be new to hot tubbing. I'm looking at the Tiger River Bengal spa any opinions out there on this tub.

[Bonibelle]

When Drew wakes up, he will tell you that he loves his Tiger River  
He has lots of great info and will make you feel very good about this tub!

[hottub.pool_boy]

Probably our best selling model in the past couple years. You'll love it.

[drewstar]

I love my Tiger River Caspian.  I don't have a Bengal.  The quality is top notch , and  for the money I thought it was a great value.  Note my qualifer "for the money".

The Bengal model does not really catch my eye for features. But that is a personal choice.  I liked the caspain for the foot dome, the two cool off seats,  and had a nice balance of two sculpted bucket seats as well as some open seating.  These are features I don't see on the bengal.  The lounger  looks to me looks like wasted space in my opion.  It's the same jetting as a regular seat with not therapy for the butt or legs.  

I belive the Bengal can be run at 110v or 220.  With any tub being used outdoors, I strongly recomend the 220v set up.

I have found the Tiger River quality to be excellent.   I like the insulation of Full Foam.  Watkins (Makers of Hotsprings, Tiger River and Sola) are excellent.  However, I noticed that the Bengal has a 1.5 lb foam, which is different than the other models in Watking lines that use 2 lb.  What's up there?  Why?

For my money, the Caspain compared to other tubs was the best deal for me.

The Bengal could be for you? Maybem but I would consider other tubs, and see whay your money could get.  it seems thin on the feature side, and I'm not sure on the pump set up? (one pump? Two?)  What are they asking for the bengal? What's included?

[The_real_Clown_Shoes]

I love the Bengal.  Is it a newer version with the water feature or not?  For the money, I would go with the 220V only Bengal because it comes with the water feature (if it's not a floor model), and has a larger pump.  It's a great spa.

[drewstar]

Grumpy,

dont take my post the wrong way. Tiger River makes a great tub and I can recomend them,  However, it's hard to answer your question, becasue the bengal has features that are found in many other fine tubs, to say if this is the right tub for you, a price and list of how it's set up would help alot.  As well as how you liked it when you wet tested it against another tub.    

Does that make sense?

[grumpy]

 I was interested in the Bengal because it was the quality, price range, and size I was looking for. I want to stick with the Hot Springs brand for the avalibility of parts and service in my area.

[The_real_Clown_Shoes]

Just curious... what kind of price did they give you?

[grumpy]

All said and done $5700. What does the Caspian go for?

[drewstar]

Last year, I paid $7200 for my caspain. That included steps, cover, lifter, CD ozone, and crane delivery. I am in the Central MA.  I beluve I paid a fair price.  Some folks reported getting the same tub for a few hundred less. I tired like the dickens to get my dealer to drop the price, but no go.  

I too wanted to stick to a "name brand",  and have the Foam insulation which lead me to Tiger River.  

At the $5700 price,  what does that include? is that set up for the 220v?  At 220v do you know what you get for pumps? I was a bit confused when I looked at the specs.  At $5700 are they giveing you the Freshwater  03 too?  

The under $6K price point is very difficult, but I am sure some folks here will tell you what other tubs might be in that price range, so you can compare.   AS always, compare the whole package (and the 220v set up).  

In another thread someone mentioned a Jaquaizzi tub. I know very little about them, but they have a 230 model
That at first blush might be a consideraton as well?

Also in the running would be the Hotsprings lifestyle lines (need to upgrade the 220)

[The_real_Clown_Shoes]

$5700 is a great price for the Bengal, and at that price I'm fairly certain it's the 220 model.

Just make sure that it is indeed the 220 model and not the 110 model converted to 220.  Not that it's a bad tub, just not as beefy as the 220 Bengal.

[drewstar]

$5700 is a great price for the Bengal, and at that price I'm fairly certain it's the 220 model.

Just make sure that it is indeed the 220 model and not the 110 model converted to 220.  Not that it's a bad tub, just not as beefy as the 220 Bengal.

Giraffe,
 
Looking at the specs, there are 2 listing for the heater, one is convertable and the other is dedicated. The same with the Jet pumps.  Assuming the 220v set up what/how is the bengal set up?

Also, I noticed a foam differnce on the Bengal vs the other Watkins tubs. Why thedifference?  

[The_real_Clown_Shoes]

$5700 is a great price for the Bengal, and at that price I'm fairly certain it's the 220 model.

Just make sure that it is indeed the 220 model and not the 110 model converted to 220.  Not that it's a bad tub, just not as beefy as the 220 Bengal.

Giraffe,
 
Looking at the specs, there are 2 listing for the heater, one is convertable and the other is dedicated. The same with the Jet pumps.  Assuming the 220v set up what/how is the bengal set up?

Also, I noticed a foam differnce on the Bengal vs the other Watkins tubs. Why thedifference?  

In the 110 Bengal, the heater is a 1500w heater unless changed to 220, then it is the standard 6000w heater.  However, this doesn't change the pump power.  In the 110 Bengal there is a Wavemaster 7000 1.65 HP pump, and in the 220 model it's a 9000 with a 2.5 HP pump.

The new Bengal has a water feature over the lounger that now makes the pump two-speed.

As far as the foam difference, there is no difference in the insulation of the tub, but the density of the cover is 1.5 lb rather than 2 lb.  The Bengal and the Accolade are almost identical in footprint, yet the Accolade has a 2 lb. cover.  The Prodigy and Jetsetter are standard with the 1.5 lb. covers as well.  Of all the Prodigy, Jetsetter, and Bengal customers I've had, I haven't had any complaints.

[Chas]

Also, I noticed a foam differnce on the Bengal vs the other Watkins tubs. Why thedifference?  

Where are you seeing the foam difference? The tubs are all insulated the same. There is an engineered layering of various different foam densities: 30# on the back of the shell, 10# to encapsulate the plumbing, 1 and 2# to fill all voids, and 60# to cap or seal the bottom.

[drewstar]

Thanks.