Hot Tub Review
|
Edison
Model No: 680 Series
Manufacturer: Sundance
Description:
Marketing Fluff:
"The 680 series spas offers the best of both worlds for someone looking for the best spa experience without breaking the bank. With plenty of room for the whole family, the Sundance Spas Edison features comfortable head rests, beverage holders, waterfalls and much more! The Edison was designed for style and comfort. Enjoy a peaceful backyard spa with family and friends and experience the best in hydrotherapy. We know you want be sure you’re getting a quality product. Built by the company with the most certifications, awards, and honors in the industry, the 680 Series spas by Sundance offer more custom options, and come in more shapes and sizes, than you will find in almost any other spa line. Most importantly, 30 years of Sundance experience have gone into the design and production of the 680 Series spas, and each one is backed by a comprehensive warranty – your assurance of the best quality and reliability."
Avg. Price: $6200
|
|
|
konjurer
|
Sundance Edison Review
Let me preference my review by stating that this is my first tub and I didn't wet test any tubs before making my decision. I used other reviews and dealer visits to make my decision.
There is limited spa dealers in my area so my choices were Sundance, Caldera, Hot Springs/Hot Spot and Bullfrog. The Hot Spot dealer only had a couple models to look at. The Hot Spot tubs were ridiculously expensive ($10K-$11K) in comparison to the Sundance and Bullfrog ($6K-$7K US) and were much smaller. The Hot Spot that was $8K was a 4 person tub that was very tight.
It came down to the Sundance Edison and the Bullfrog R6L mainly because I liked the dealer who sold these brands. I loved the engineering of the Bullfrog and the longer warranty but the layout of the Sundance Edison was better given our budget of $6,000-$7,000. Before settling on a winner, when the electrician came to quote the electrical work, he stated that he has installed many, many tubs and personally his next tub was going to be a Sundance. It really came down to the dealer (Billiard and Spa Gallery in Cedar Rapids), the layout and the reviews on this web site. Ultimately, it was layout and the Edison was the final choice.
I kept reading and hearing that first time buyers get a lounger and second time buyers do not. I wanted the additional space without the lounger and the Edison was roomier. If the R6L came in a model without a lounger in my price range I might have gone with the Bullfrog. The Edison also had a foot dome that also swayed me.
The week the spa was to be install was forecasted for cold and rain. Luckily, the rain held off long enough for the electrician to do his thing and get the spa up and running. Before my spa, my hot tub experience was limited to hot tubs at various resorts and hotels. Wow! This is sooo much better. Although, it was a cold and rainy week the Edison has not disappointed. It's been two weeks and I've loved every minute in the spa.
The Edison is rated for 6 people. Of course, it really is 4 comfortably or 7 really friendly people. There are 4 deeply seated corner chairs, each with a different configuration of jets. Each chair has a unique feel. With the ability to adjust the flow and bubbles, each chair has wide variety of massage experiences to be had. I like to work my way around the tub.
The Edison has 35 jets. Some are some pin point jets that target the neck area. There are two big water moving jets. There are 4 that provide a spiral jet of water. When the 2 pumps are running and the jets are wide open you can get a deep massage in any of the corner seats. On the other hand, the jets are easy to adjust to get a nice relaxing massage in any seat.
There are three controls on the edge of the tub. Two control the air (bubbles) and one controls the waterfall. When you turn the pumps are off and the waterfall is on you get a nice peaceful soak to the sounds of a babbling brook. The pumps are fairly quiet when on high. The sound of the bubbling water is louder than the pumps.
The control panel is fairly simple on the Edison. You have two pump controls; one pump has two speeds and the other has one speed. There are two buttons that raise and lower the temperature. The temperature buttons can also be used to set the number of heat/filter cycles. There is a button for the LED lights. We bought the Oyster color liner (shiny silver). The silver color looks great reflecting the LED lights at night.
I envisioned that the foot dome would massage the feet. Sort of...unless you have really short legs. Instead, your legs stretch out over the dome and it works the calves. You can still target the feet with the jets but not so much from the dome jets facing you. You can stretch out across the tub much like a lounger and your legs get massaged by the dome.
The headrests are one other minor issue. They do not stay seated and pop off from time to time if you are moving around. Obviously they were designed to be removed and replaced. The dealer told me that they can deteriorate over time. It would be nice if Sundance engineers could design a better system of locking them in place.
Not related to the Edison, living in Iowa, it can be cold. Even in this cold rainy spring. We're still trying to figure out how to get in and out of the house, even though it’s a couple steps away. Things we didn't think about are where to put towels and robes. The lid handle has a couple hooks but it’s not really that useful for towels. Our decorative concrete patio is very slick so we are looking into pool mats. We wanted the built in stereo, but at $1000 that is silly. So we are looking at waterproof, rechargeable, Bluetooth speakers for playing music; the Grace Digital ECOXBT looks amazing at less than $100. Lots of things to figure out and buy.
So at this early stage in ownership, this tub is amazing. My electrician told me the best part of his spa is getting his teenage sons to spend time together. This has been the case for our 16 and 19 year olds. We've been having some great conversations and time away from the computers and smart phones.
UPDATE (11-27-2014): Still love it. If I had it to do over again, I would get a lounger seat model as I'm a bigger guy and I like to stretch out in the hot tub when no one else is in the tub.
We had one breakdown on the tub. The heat sensor went out and the tub got dangerously hot. Our dealer stated that was extremely rare. Billiard and Spa Gallery (our dealer here in Cedar Rapids) sent someone out the next day and it was fixed with no questions asked. This dealer is great!
The couple that runs the Billiard and Spa Gallery were torn on Bromine versus Chlorine. I sided with the husband and went with Bromine. I had a lot of problems with Bromine including a lot of scum. Switched to Chlorine and it solved all problems and is much, much, much easier to maintain. Should have listened to his wife ;)
I thought I would really like the LED lighting. Unfortunately, the LEDs are set too bright and the color selection is not to my liking. I play with LED lighting and microcontrollers for fun and I can't understand how they ended up with these colors and brightness levels.
Hey SUNDANCE engineers, how about some slow fades within a couple dimmer colors like a SLOW shift between blues and greens. Instead, you give me a strobe light and clown wig colors changes.
Date Purchased: 4/2014
Price Paid: $6200
Recommend: Yes |
Pros:
Roomy layout
Variety of massage experiences
Quiet pumps
Reputation of manufacturer
Seems very energy efficient so far...very little affect on our energy bills.
Cons:
Headrests come unseated
Temperature sensor went out after a few months
A few jets can be hard to turn on and off - especially the foot jets
|
This message was modified Nov 27, 2014 by
|
|
|
