Hot Tub

[lucigo]

Do you have one? Do you love it? Hate it? Do you use it in the winter? Is this something I could safely buy used or would it be better to bite the bullet and get a new one?

 

[disney_me]

We have had ours now for 6 years and we love it! Bought ours new and just had to replace the motor last winter ($600.00) DH uses it every day and I'm more of a twice a week person. Our hot tub gets used all year round. In the summer we lower the temp to about *90 and in the winter it stays at *104. That's the max temp. We empty our tub every 3 months and give it a good cleaning. My DH takes care of all the chemicals and Ph levels, I just enjoy it!

I say if your budget allows you to purchase a new hot tub. Then get a new one. We were able to sit in the hot tubs ( empty ones!) at the showroom. I'm on the short side so it was important to me to be able to sit in the tub and not drown. Also, look for foot room!...... Sounds stupid but it makes a big difference when you have 2-4 people sitting in it.

Good luck in your decision!

 

[4HppyCamprs]

Do you have one? Yes!
Do you love it? Absolutely!!
Do you use it in the winter? Yep even here in the frozen Midwest. It is super! We keep it at 104 in the winter and between 100-102 in the summer. Our hot tub is installed so that the cover when off (on the cover lift) blocks the north wind.
Is this something I could safely buy used or would it be better to bite the bullet and get a new one? I am hesitant to recommend used because we have used our warranty a few times. If you can find a factory direct place that sells new and used they may offer some type of warranty and that would be better.

 

[MichelleinMaine]

We have one my parents gave us a few years ago. The novelty wore off in a couple years and frankly I'm too cheap to pay to heat it even in the summer. (I'd probably pass out looking at an electric bill for winter usage!) We have not had it filled in 2-3 years. I'd be happy to sell but DH wants to hold onto it.

Something to keep in mind- the purchase price is just a small piece. The chemicals weren't bad, but the electricity was too much for justify for us.

 

[cathyce2]

Yes we have one and it was great fun for the first year or so. Then the novelty wore off and it sat unused for awhile. We drained it when I was expecting DD who will be 8 next month. Now we use it to store outdoor toys. Total waste of $$$

 

[The Princess]

We've had ours for 5 years and love it!!! Have heard alot of people say the novelty will wear off and you wont use it but we still use it a lot. It was well worth every penny we spent on it.

 

[4HppyCamprs]

Do you have one? Yes!
Do you love it? Absolutely!!
Do you use it in the winter? Yep even here in the frozen Midwest. It is super! We keep it at 104 in the winter and between 100-102 in the summer. Our hot tub is installed so that the cover when off (on the cover lift) blocks the north wind.
Is this something I could safely buy used or would it be better to bite the bullet and get a new one? I am hesitant to recommend used because we have used our warranty a few times. If you can find a factory direct place that sells new and used they may offer some type of warranty and that would be better.

Adding: we have had ours for 5 years and for us the electricity might be 15.00 in the winter and maybe 5.00 in the summer. It was not enough to notice a difference in the bill when it was off for a few months. In addition chemicals are very reasonable if you use the correct amount. Our dealer suggested a less is more approach and according to our tub and test strips it works

 

[lucigo]

Thank you for all of your insights! We have an above ground pool that we swim in daily in the summer, and in the winter months we just really miss that time together (DH, DS8 and myself). Our pool has a salt system and is very easy to take care of, so will have to research the chemical use. As for the electric, I would guess it wouldn't be much more than what we spend in the summer for the pool? Again, more to research.

The pool needs a new skimmer basket, so while I'm there I'm going to look at hot tubs.

I tried to get DH to build me a dome and solar heating system for the pool, but somehow I don't think it would be enough - we love our 90 degree pool water LOL

 

[NeverlandClub23]

We have one and get in it maybe 2-3 times a year. I love getting in it, but hate getting out during the Winter . We have an in-ground pool and we use that a lot more than we do the hot tub. It's nice to have though whenever we want to use it or when we're having sore muscles/achy pains .

 

[Sorsha]

We have it one and use it almost daily. We have a 2-3 man model, because our house isn't wired for anything bigger.

In the dead of winter, use tapers off quite a bit because I am just not happy about wading through a blizzard in a wet bathing suit to get back inside the house. We just used it this morning though, so we are still going strong - and its 31°, windy, and snowing a bit.

However, it just isn't worth it to pay to have it winterized, then then un-winterize it come spring. We have tested the difference between our electric bill when it is running, or unplugged, and the difference is about $12 a month.

We really couldn't do without ours, my DH has back issues, and sometimes this is the only way he can keep moving - it's therapy for his back.

We did get ours used, my grandfather was moving to an assisted living place 6 years ago and didn't need his anymore, so he offered it to us. We have had to replace the master board (electronics), but other than that, have had no issues, all motors etc are still going strong.

 

[jimaok]

We have a 1985 Aqua Spa ( my wife's freind gave it to us). I have replaced the main controls, heater and pump. We love it. My electric is nominal even during the coldest months ( you have to have it covered when not in use) we keep it at 100-102 degrees year round. We especially like to get into it when the snow is flying or it's a cold crisp night with all the stars out. We use it several times a week. It does get cold here in Ohio.

 

[lucigo]

Hi all, OP here with more questions. I am revisiting this thread because we had to move from Florida to Virginia and I'm having major pool withdrawals. We are in a rental house for probably a year or two before we consider buying here. I'm thinking again about a hot tub for that quality time with DH and son. So here are my questions...

Placement? I know we are going to freeze in the winter but guessing we can't put the hot tub on the deck?

Voltage? Also thinking since we know this isn't a permanent home, we should probably get the plug and use type rather than the 220V type, so wanted to ask your opinion on that.

Snakes? We back up to a wooded area and have already had a snake in the garage YIKES!!! Do snakes get into hot tubs??

Chlorine versus salt? We have a salt system on our Florida home pool and I love it. Does anyone here have a salt system on their hot tub? Opinions?

 

[ntink]

this is the hot tub we have
http://www.hotspring.com/shop-hot-tub-models/highlife/grandee

we love it and use it quite frequently. It is a little under 2 years old

It is a few steps outside our back door and sits on a patio built from crushed stone base topped with concrete paver blocks.

It uses the salt system. DH handles all the chemicals. We drain & clean it about every 3 months

It needs to be hard-wired so you will need to get an electrician.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

Nevermind, just saw that it was an old thread and since I can't give any suggestions on any of your other questions, I will delete it

 

[dhuba]

We just purchased one this past May and we use it about twice a week or when time permits. We only got the 3 person model because I knew it would be my husband and myself most of the time and I wasn't going to heat a larger model all year just because we might have company that wanted to use just a few times a year. I really haven't notice much difference in the electric bill and it really only uses a small amount of chemicals. I don't know if I will use it much in the winter. I get goosebumps all over when I go in on a chilly night, even if it's set to 104, but I'm always cold.

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

We bought a house that already has one, I've lived here 6 months and haven't used it once. It doesn't appeal to me during the summer, it's just too hot here in NC, I'd rather have a swimming pool. If DH and I don't use it this winter we're going to consider getting rid of it.

Ours is built into the middle of our deck which makes it a pain, if we get rid of it we will have to rebuild the deck floor. Plus if there are any issues with it we actually have to crawl under the deck. Supposedly we're supposed to be able to hook up a hose somewhere down there to drain it, but I can't even get under there enough to find where that's at so I had to buy a pump to do that, so I don't recommend building a deck around it without considering that.

I'm really frustrated with it right now so I'm really leaning toward getting rid of it, but DH is deployed so if he uses it and wants to care for it we'll keep it.

 

[krnlmustrd]

I too have an awkwardly placed hot tub. It's inside my house, sunken into the floor of my sun room. It's developed a leak and getting to fix it means going into the shallow crawl space beneath the house. I think we're going to just replace it, but getting it out is going to be a nightmare. I will say, though, that I LOVE having an indoor hot tub. We can use it year round. It's convenient and easily accessible. We can watch TV or movies while lounging. And costs practically nothing to keep hot year round.

 

[lucigo]

this is the hot tub we have
http://www.hotspring.com/shop-hot-tub-models/highlife/grandee

we love it and use it quite frequently. It is a little under 2 years old

It is a few steps outside our back door and sits on a patio built from crushed stone base topped with concrete paver blocks.

It uses the salt system. DH handles all the chemicals. We drain & clean it about every 3 months

It needs to be hard-wired so you will need to get an electrician.

Looks nice! DH can do the wiring, he hard wired our above ground pool in Florida. We will probably end up putting ours next to the deck but not on it.

We bought a house that already has one, I've lived here 6 months and haven't used it once. It doesn't appeal to me during the summer, it's just too hot here in NC, I'd rather have a swimming pool. If DH and I don't use it this winter we're going to consider getting rid of it.

Ours is built into the middle of our deck which makes it a pain, if we get rid of it we will have to rebuild the deck floor. Plus if there are any issues with it we actually have to crawl under the deck. Supposedly we're supposed to be able to hook up a hose somewhere down there to drain it, but I can't even get under there enough to find where that's at so I had to buy a pump to do that, so I don't recommend building a deck around it without considering that.

I'm really frustrated with it right now so I'm really leaning toward getting rid of it, but DH is deployed so if he uses it and wants to care for it we'll keep it.

Since we are renting we definitely won't put it in the deck, but was considering on it. I have a feeling though it would be too heavy.

I too have an awkwardly placed hot tub. It's inside my house, sunken into the floor of my sun room. It's developed a leak and getting to fix it means going into the shallow crawl space beneath the house. I think we're going to just replace it, but getting it out is going to be a nightmare. I will say, though, that I LOVE having an indoor hot tub. We can use it year round. It's convenient and easily accessible. We can watch TV or movies while lounging. And costs practically nothing to keep hot year round.

Inside sounds awesome, you don't have problems with condensation?

Even in Florida we loved our 90 degree pool, and would swim at 9pm, so I don't think "too hot" will be a problem for us.

 

[Kate and Pete]

DH and I bought a used Softub off of Craigslist for $500 about seven years ago and we LOVE it. It's portable, plugs right into the outlet on our deck, barely uses any electricity (even in the winter - when we keep it between 104-106), and is easy to maintain. We've had to do regular maintenance on the motor and we replaced the cover last year (though a company that was not Softub - brand new cover was only around $300, custom made, delivered right to our door!).

Ours is on our deck, no problems! And we actually use ours MORE in the winter - there's nothing like sitting in it during a good snowstorm! Yeah, running back inside can be rough, but it makes us laugh and giggle as we tromp through the snow in our flip flops!

I wouldn't hesitate buying used if you check it out first - see it running, look for cracks, that sort of thing (although with a Softub, there's no cracking!). Good luck with your purchase!

 

[Kate and Pete]

Oh, and I wanted to add - make sure that you put it where a hose can reach it - we change the water out often (every 1.5 months or so, but we use it at least three times/wk). You'll want to be able to fill it back up!