Hot tub/spa advice

[StephMK]

We are thinking about getting a hot tub for our backyard. We do not have a soaker tub and DH has a bad back and knee from his younger, sports days.

What advice do you have about getting one? We have a flat backyard corner near the house that is by the garage which extends back and the back of the house. So it's protected on 2 sides from wind. There is grass in that area but we are fine with building a deck area or extending the patio since I read that is better for the tub.

What do you like about yours? What should we look for or avoid? I'm pushing to do it soon so we can enjoy it this summer but we'll see how some other projects work out. It looks like prices are all over the place for them and I'm not sure what's needed and what is unnecessary.

What is the upkeep like? I have also seen a few really clean, nice ones on craigslist for much cheaper. If we could get past the used factor, would that be a bad idea? It seems a little icky but disinfectant and fresh water would be used anyway.

Thanks for any & all advice.

 

[Tozzie]

We are thinking about getting a hot tub for our backyard. We do not have a soaker tub and DH has a bad back and knee from his younger, sports days.

What advice do you have about getting one? We have a flat backyard corner near the house that is by the garage which extends back and the back of the house. So it's protected on 2 sides from wind. There is grass in that area but we are fine with building a deck area or extending the patio since I read that is better for the tub.

What do you like about yours? What should we look for or avoid? I'm pushing to do it soon so we can enjoy it this summer but we'll see how some other projects work out. It looks like prices are all over the place for them and I'm not sure what's needed and what is unnecessary.

What is the upkeep like? I have also seen a few really clean, nice ones on craigslist for much cheaper. If we could get past the used factor, would that be a bad idea? It seems a little icky but disinfectant and fresh water would be used anyway.

Thanks for any & all advice.

Why do you think a used one that has been thoroughly cleaned is icky, do you not use a shower or bathtub when in a hotel?

 

[lsyorke]

We had one for about 2 years(we are in the northeast) it was a royal pain. I was constantly testing and dumping chemicals(the hot water makes the chemical balance much more critical than a pool) and once the novelty wore off it was rarely used. Now, we're in cold weather area so the dream of sitting in the hot tub watching the snow fall became..OMG, we have to get out of this warm tub into the freezing air! And..the mice loved heat and the insulation and chewed it on a regular basis.
We gave it away to a family member who moved to Florida.

 

[Megster1]

My husband is a spa (hot tub) service tech. He says not to buy a used tub unless it's only about a year old. Once they get about 8-10 years old they can start to have a lot of issues. He recommends Nordic tubs, they're round not square but he says they're great tubs and you should be able to get a decent one for around $4000.

 

[barkley]

we've had ours for 8 years. we live where it snows and the weather can get below 0 at times. we keep our tub operational all year long.

my advice-get one that's well insulated and get a good quality insulated lid b/c that will help keep the heat in (our utility bills went up very little by virtue of this). we've never had an issue with the chemical levels-dh checks it regularly and we keep an eye on the filters to make sure they don't get clogged. we went with a good insulated cover with a lift on it (so it folds over and hangs off the lift vs. having to take the entire lid off and put it back on every time we use it-and one person can easily do it).

no problems w/mice-pest service has bait traps under the deck the tub sits on and the mice prefer that.

dh uses it allot more than I do, but since having knee surgery 2 months ago I'm finding it very helpful easing the pain/helping with range of motion.

 

[StephMK]

Thank you to everyone! This is exactly the kind of information we need. We also live with frigid winters but I think we'd use it 3 seasons. The sunset is partially blocked by trees but very pretty from our backyard. I can picture relaxing with a drink or a book. Our kids are teens and I think they'd enjoy it some too.

Tozzie- I don't use a hotel bathtub and dislike thinking about the shower too. Of course, I use it but I am tempted to wear my flip flops!

Since it sounds like new will be more reliable and last longer, we'll probably go that route. It's tempting to go with a cheaper used one to see if we like it but I know DH will fuss if repairs are an issue.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

As far as building a deck or patio, you will have to have it built to hold the weight of the tub. We never put one in but when we had our patio poured we made sure to have it poured to hold a hot tub on it.

As a landscaping person, make sure you get someone to help you with the design of the area before you purchase the tub.

Also, noise is a factor with tubs. We had a built in tub in TX with our pool and the jet unit was pretty noisy. Not sure about a self contained unit though. Just be aware of it when you are doing the design.

 

[SC Minnie]

The one piece of advice we got concerning location is to no put it too far from the entry/exit to the house. The farther it is, the less likely you will use it, especially on those cold days/nights. Also make sure you are going to have some privacy from neighbors if you're houses are close together.

We've had our spa for a couple of years now and enjoy it. The chemicals can be a bit of a pain but you get used to it. The first time we drained and cleaned it was exhausting because we didn't know what we were doing. Now it's no big deal.

 

[tasha99]

We just turned ours off. Use this winter: One time. Then we sort of let the chemicals go and no one wanted to go in (my son was putting chemicals in, but they were never testing quite right. I was too lazy to get to the bottom of it). We do have a jetted soaker tub inside, which is much easier to use.

Because you're looking at it for pain relief, year round makes sense. We kept ours at the lowest temp in the summer because it is not refreshing to get into a hot tub when it's over 80 degrees outside. Hopefully if you get a new one, they'll teach you about it when it's installed. Our house came with a hot tub and we ended up hiring someone to clean it out and teach us what to do.