Spa alignment question...where to enter?

[gores95]

Hi all.  Spa is being delivered Sunday so I need some guidance.  The Caldera Geneva has an odd alignment where the entrance would seemingly be on the side of the lounger.  The main panel is also there and its on the bottom of the picture:



The cover would lift up from the bottom to the top and would not be in the way of the deck.  My alingment on my patio is as follows:  Entrance is from the "bottom" of the picture, I have a deck adjacent to the right of the picture and eventually I will be removing the rails of the deck so we can enter from the deck directly so keeping the raised cover away from the deck is key.  Here is a pic of the setup before tub:



I was actually going to position the tub exactly how the picture shows so the cover would lift up and be situated at the back of the house.  The only problem with this setup is that we are entering at the lounger.  Entering from the left of the picture is tough because the tub comes to almost the edge of the wall.  If I had to do it all over again I would have made the circular opening a bit bigger.  So entering at the bottom of the picture is the only option (besides the deck).

Questions:

1. Is it a big deal to enter at the lounger?
2. Rotate the tub 90 degress so that the main control panel is facing left (opposite the deck).  I would leave the cover alignment the same with it opening from the bottom.  The question is having the main control panel not exposed when lifting the cover...is this a big deal?  I would have to open the cover more than halfway to see the panel on the left side.

Does any of this make sense or any other suggestions?    The electrician is going to need to know where to run the wires to and the entrance point is on either side of the main panel.  I wa also going to ask the delivery guys for suggestions but I thought I would open it up to this knowledgeable group!

Thanks,

Marc

[Hammster]

I'm not so sure there is an official entrance to most spas.
Our Sundance came with spa cover and lifter. So when we move the cover back, one side is blocked by the cover and lifter. One other side is blocked by some plants we have set up for screening the neighbor. The other 2 sides are totally open and we get in and out of the other 2 sides no problem. Our spa is low, so we don't need steps so it really doesn't matter which side we enter from with the exception of the cover location and plants in our case.

Looking at the picture it looks like any side could be an entrance. I think the side you enter from might be controlled more by location of the cover and lifter and anything else that might be around the spa.

[drewstar]

However you place the spa, I would ensure that you have easy access to the control panel (temp, jet controls)  from outside the tub.

With my tub, the lifter had to be mounted on a specific side of the tub. If this is true with your tub as well, given the cover must lift off in a certain direction.  If you now consider the postion of the open cover, AND having the control panel being accessable, may reduce your possible polacement to only 2 positions.  Personally I would recomend the cover lift towards the house.  

Choose what works best, regardless of the lounger. Ensure that you have easy access to the motor/access panel  too.

In a perfect world, I would think the best placement would be to have the louger facing away from the house,On the left hand side (non deck side) of the pic  and the cover lifting towards the house, the steps right in front.  OR have the tub placed in with the lounger opposite the house.  Any other way looks like access to control panel and filter well would be severely limited.  If there's a cover lifter mounting restriction, then I don't think you even have a choice.

[lawdawgva]

Very nice set up by the way.  It looks as if the most logical set up would be as you said, just sit it in the opening exactly as you have the picture oriented now.  That way you could enter from the deck or the patio.  The cover would be at the back of the house and your controls would be in a good position to access and view.  The only thing I warn my guests about is not to put their hand on top of the filter compartment cover when entering/exiting the spa to avoid cracking it.  Mine is at the corner of the two most accessable sides of the spa as yours would be also if you use that orientation.  Good luck!

-Law Dawg

[PattiB]

Good Morning

We just received and filled our C Series which is the Geneva shell Caldera Special for Canada. So far, so good. It heated up  real fast. Turned it on at 7pm and it was heated and shut off by 3am. Water temp before start up was 60.  Anyways. what we decided was not to enter over the controls and into the lounge chair. We have put the stairs on the left side seat. (If standing in front of the tub, facing the control panel.) What I suggest you could do if possible is to use the right side seat, which is higher and flatter than the left hand seat.  For us the deck is in our way and we cannot enter into the tub from this seat. It is truly the best way to enter for us since we have two children. To enter into the tub through the lounger seat would mean putting your hands all over the control panel and entering onto an uneven  surface.  Even though that's where the handle to enter is.  We even considered cutting away the deck so we could enter the tub through that level , right seat, but my husband was concerned that the kids would put pressure on the filter cover, located right beside that seat. Hope this all makes sense. We were happy to see cup holders on the tub, since we couldn;t remember seeing  when we wet tested.  Also, the lights are brighter than had remembered and we love them and the fountain. Ask away if any questions.  After school we will finally get in the tub ....  

[wesj53]

drewstar just beat me to the punch. I think what is most important here is keeping your control panel on the most open side. Also to consider, what side are the pumps and other components on? In case of failure or repair, you're going to have enough room to open that side up and access it. If I were you and there were no mechanicals/electricals on the right side of the tub (where the naked cooldown seat is located), I would most definitely position it as you originally thought. You are going to remove the rails of the deck at some time anyway, which would then create the PERFECT entry into the spa from that higher seat. If there are pumps on the cooldown side, then I would rotate the tub to where the lounger is opposite the deck. That would be IMO the next best option.

We have a cheap spa up at our lake home and trying to enter it on the lounger side is difficult, awkward, and I think dangerous for some people who maybe are older or less coordinated. The surface is not flat and could lead to some falls, which you do not need as a homeowner. I would definitely NOT recommend anyone entering a spa from the lounger side.

[cooltoy2000]

I would enter from any side except the lounger. Too much chance of slipping. However the seat on the right side seems to be the flattest and the shallowest, thus the easiest to step into.

[drewstar]

...and let's not forget easy access to the filter well. Every month you'll be taking the filters out to clean them, if you will be using a Nature 2 catridge, then you'll need easy access as well. Also, it's recomened that you fill the tub by placing the hose into the filter well.  

So given access to:
Control Panel
Filter well
Motor compartment
Cover lifter mounting

What possible postions can you place the spa? Will the steps only fit in front of the spa? HAving the lounger opposite the deck would be best, and  you could enter from the front, or the deck. Will that work?

[gores95]

Thanks for the replies.  The only two places to logically enter would be from deck and bottom.  There is not enough room on the left and top although I guess you could jump in from the retaining wall.  The steps would only fit on the bottom area.

As for lounger on the left I like that arrangement also but the cover would still have to be opened from the bottom to top which means control panel would not be under the cover when cracked opened.  I would not be able to see the control panel on the left until the cover is just about fully opened.  In order to have the control panel exposed I would have to open the cover towards the deck I do not want to have the opened cover blocking access from the deck.

I think we will just have to enter from the lounger at the bottom and have the cover opened towards the top (house).

Quite a quandary...but I guess its a good problem to have at this point!

Marc

[wesj53]

I'm not sure why you're so concerned about the cover and the control panel issue. So what if you have to open the cover all the way to see the panel. Don't you normally use the panel only when you're in the tub anyway? Your cooldown seat is the perfect choice for entry into this model. Do what you want, but getting into a spa on a lounger is a terrible configuration IMO.  As an insurance agent, I see a liability claim waiting to happen on a trip and fall. Good luck regardless.

[drewstar]

I'm not sure why you're so concerned about the cover and the control panel issue. So what if you have to open the cover all the way to see the panel. Don't you normally use the panel only when you're in the tub anyway?

Nope.

Weekly shocking requires access to the controls, running the pumps when adding chemicals, setting temps, changing cycles or a dozen other little things that control panel allows you to do. You'll be using the control panel a lot.

Trust me.  You most certainly want to have access to the control panel from outside the tub.    

Wes, I'm not sure ...did you get your Artic yet? If so, don't you find it almost manadatory to have easy access to the Panel? I mean, even if you just want to check the temp?

[wesj53]

No, not yet, drew. Scheduled for delivery next week. That was good info by the way. Never having owned a tub personally, I'm not at the maintenance stage yet. In terms of your question about easy access, I will call my dealer and ask about that. I was planning on laying out my unit in such a way that the panel will be on the side closest to my house (a clearance of about 3'). That is the side where there are no motors, pumps, etc so it made sense to set it up that way. Plus, the highest cooldown seat will be positioned exactly where I want the steps to be. Thanks for the headsup. I will report back with more info.

[drewstar]

I enter my tub via the cool down seat, it makes a nice "step", and as other's have pointed out, steping into the lounger isn't the best alternatives, but i think it outweighs having to put your suit on and wade over to control panel every single time you wanted to do something to the tub.

Access to the control panel is important.  I have tripped my motor switch once or twice on fill ups and being able to get into the equipment area without too much fuss to press the reset button is nice. Also, ozone units require maitence, and on my tub, it's where i'd gain access to change the light bulb. Little things to consider.    

[tmknies1]

Gore,

Good luck with tub and enjoy no matter where you enter  

 We too have the Geneva which we received in July. We originally had the steps at the cool down seat. We switched it to where the lounger is. Believe it or not we found it easier for the kids to get in and out of the tub. It could also be the placement as it is on our deck and the way it is situated you can also grab onto the deck rail which assists in getting in/out. Very personal preference.

Tammy

[wesj53]

Hey drew, thanks for the help! I called my dealer and they agreed with you by suggesting I turn the tub a quarter turn so that the topside panel is exposed with just one flip of the cover, instead of removing the entire cover. My cover still retracts in the direction of the house, but makes the panel more accessible. I appreciate your good words.