House Fire Blamed On Hot Tub Motor

[Zep]

Hot tub motor blamed for house fire
Times-Herald staff report
01/07/2007

A two-alarm fire heavily damaged a home at 1231 Severus Drive
early Saturday morning, but no one was injured, authorities said.

The fire in the two-story home started at about 1:30 a.m., said
 Fire Department spokesman Bill Tweedy.

The residents evacuated after their smoke detectors sounded,
and they later found shelter with a relative.

The blaze, caused by a problem with a hot tub motor, burned the
jacuzzi and a gazebo area before entering the home through a
sliding glass door, Tweedy said. Firefighters controlled the blaze
within minutes, and damage was estimated at $225,000.

http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_4967749

[Spiderman]

Hot tub motor blamed for house fire
Times-Herald staff report
01/07/2007

A two-alarm fire heavily damaged a home at 1231 Severus Drive
early Saturday morning, but no one was injured, authorities said.

The fire in the two-story home started at about 1:30 a.m., said
 Fire Department spokesman Bill Tweedy.

The residents evacuated after their smoke detectors sounded,
and they later found shelter with a relative.

The blaze, caused by a problem with a hot tub motor, burned the
[glow]jacuzzi[/glow] and a gazebo area before entering the home through a
sliding glass door, Tweedy said. Firefighters controlled the blaze
within minutes, and damage was estimated at $225,000.

http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_4967749

Those darn "jacuzzi" tubs; I told you "they" were a fire waiting to happen............

Once again "jacuzzi" gets used as a general term; is it a "jacuzzi" or a "Jacuzzi"  

[Chas]

I have yet to see anything like this reported correctly. I would be willing to bet that this will turn out to be a fire which started in an incorrectly-installed pump motor or a gas-fired heater connected to an in-ground tub, or an older tub with DIY touches of some kind.

I have seen many tubs have flame roll-out because of rodent nests, water collecting in the gas line, sooted up heat exchangers etc. None of this stuff is even remotely possible on a new self-contained hot tub. Any appliance can have a problem, but it is extremely rare that a new ETL or UL -listed unit fails in this way.

I would like it if we could get a local dealer who was close enough to report on this - that has been the best source of info for the previous 'big problems' which were wrongly attributed to the 'jacuzzi,' or correctly attributed but not detailed enough to know that it is not a common problem among the types of tubs sold to most consumers now.

 8-)

[hottubdan]

Well, I'm the local dealer who is on this forum.  I even used to advertise in this paper.  I will see what I can learn.

[hottubdan]

I sent the editor an email asking for more info.  We will see what I can find.  Any other suggestions for getting more info would be appreciated.

[Chas]

Hi Dan,

Long time no see....

 8-)