Hot Tubs

[pinelakeperch]

My wife has been wanting a hot tub for a few years now, but I know nothing about them. Are there any manufacturers to avoid? What does installation cost? Are the prices negotiable? What are the operating costs? Thanks :)

[graham1]

I bought a 5 man from beachcomber several years ago.
Don’t remember the installation cost. They delivered it. The only cost was the electrical.
If I remember right it wasn’t really noticeable on the power bill.
But was $50 or so a month for chemical I think.
Haven’t lived there for several years. My numbers might be outdated.

[257Shooter]

Have had Beachcombers for almost 30 years. 2 to be exact. First one lasted over 15 years, second one is on its 12th I think.
First one had pump seal issues, but that may have been due to leaving the tub empty (and thoroughly drained!!) on and off a few seasons.
Had a few heater issues with the 2nd and replaced about 3 in the first 4 years. Have not replaced one in over the last 7. Replaced a pump seal on the small circulating pump as well.
Maintenance of the water is key, both for your skin and heater life (scale is a killer).
As far as cost, don't believe the salesman! They will say "only $1 a day!". Not so I think. Depending on power costs, $50-100 a month.
Wife and I have really enjoyed soaking after a long day, sipping a beverage and enjoying the night lights. Kids loved it when they were little.
I would recommend really thinking how big of a tub you need as opposed to what you want. 10-12 person tubs are excessive IMHO unless the family is large and the kids have lots of friends. We always had enough room with a 5-7 person.
Shop around and do lots of reading.
There are a few real good manufacturers, I am biased to Beachcomber. Not sure how many Canadian manufacturers there are, they would be my go to. Also the longer they have been in business would show the product can withstand our winters.
Be prepared for the sticker price and options.
Stereo is never used on our since we use bluetooth speakers and phones with tunes - if we choose.
Also the number of jets you can order with the tub can be overkill, depending on what you think you will be using the tub for i.e. soaking and lounging or therapeutic jetting for the achy muscles.
Good luck!

[anthony5]

Check out Artic Spa, made in Alberta. Had a Beachcomber hot tub for many years, went with an Artic swim spa, great to deal with.

[Albertacoyotecaller]

Recently purchased an Arctic Spa salt spa. It was between a BC and Arctic Spa. The beach chomber was a year wait and the AS was 4 months. Hoping it's nice when it gets here.

[AlbertaWild]

Hopefully this will solve your search.

Can't remember how I came across this web site
But it's calgary based.. I may consider getting both
Hot tub($1000) and sauna($1000).. would be awsome
to set up anywere. Even at home or when going camping or glamping in the travel trailer by a lake, or river, or creek or a resort... relax under the stars. But here is the site!

https://backwoods-glamping.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAt8WOBhDbARIsANQLp94Y5Nq2ADDFCk_xQGR 5Gx4Iy9m1TelUCUf-s6XA6FPdWhVY9-Hk83caAiVoEALw_wcB

[A.H.]

We Purchased a Master Spas form World of Spas in Edmonton. Very little wait time(some models were in stock so no wait time.) Ratings on these spas are excellent. We are very happy with it. Feels amazing to be in it in the frigid temperatures we have been having. World of Spas was great to deal with.

A.H.

[sourdough doug]

There is a company that sponsors the sports talk on CHED radio, in the mornings....SNL...S&L...???? Give them a call. Give them all a call and see if the info given varies......You didn't say where in the prov., you are located

[K44]

I've had 3 over the years if you want the best get a Arctic Spa great warranty and service trouble free power cost are getting out of control

[Drewski Canuck]

How about start looking at Kijjji and buy used?

I bought the biggest Beachomber tub that was few years old for $2,500. That was a saving from new of about $7,000.

I was able to see the tub running, and see that it was nice and hot.

Tub came with some almost empty bottles of Midnight Passion bubble bath.

First step was to bleach the thing completely, before I started it up.

As for the tub pumps, Beachcomber, Arctic Spa, etc all just install someone else's pumps and heaters and controllers. There is an outfit called "olue supply" on the south side of Edmonton that sells all the repair parts and chemicals for much less than the retail shops selling the tubs.

Drewski

[Ebrand]

Great place for hot tub owners to know about.

Super helpful guy.

[liketoshoot]

Nust got a quote for a new tub from Arctic Spa when th dust settles it will eat up the better part of 20k

[SamSteele]

We bought a house and it had a hot tub. I wouldn’t spend the money to replace it if/when it goes. Dealing with chemicals every week, electricity costs, chemical and filter costs, etc gets to be a pain. My family is hardly in it too. Maybe one evening every two weeks.

SS

[no-regard]

My wife and I have had one for three years now, wish we had gotten it 10 years ago when we first started talking about it. The Mrs. is in it 5 days a week, and me usually 3 or 4.

After a long day of hunting or skiing, there is nothing better to come home to!

Ours is a 7' model I think, probably considered a 4-5 person. It has a 'laydown bench' on one side and 5 different seating positions across the other 2/3. We don't use the bench as often as we thought, but it is nice from time to time. Usually it's just the two of us and we are so happy we stayed with a medium sized unit.

Chemicals (I use Bromine) isn't very difficult, I check it and do a small top up if needed once or twice a week. Top up the water once in awhile and wash the filter out every few weeks.

I'd estimate costs at $75/month.

[tri777]

My 5cents,
Any foam filled hot tub is a 1000% no go for me.
If when you open the inside cabinet & can see all the parts, get that tub.(aka Arctic Spa). Foam filled tubs 'can be' a fast enemy 'if' a leak from within the cabinet appears.

[riden]

Here is another option.

Plug and play, runs off 120 or 240. No installation costs for me.
https://www.thespaberry.com/

[omega50]

Excited to hop in the Hot Tub in Fort Mac on Xmas night after dinner at my step daughters.

-30 Dipped toe revealed heater failure with water temps about 5C
BRRRR lol

Turned out minor issue caused by slightly low water level

Has anyone ever had one freeze over?

[stubblejumper01]

Here is another option.

Plug and play, runs off 120 or 240. No installation costs for me.
https://www.thespaberry.com/

The wife and I purchased one a few years ago. We used it a lot the first few years and enjoyed it. Easy to use and care for. Prices have nearly doubled since we bought ours.
The last 2 years we barely used it as I’ve been undergoing chemotherapy for leukaemia and can’t use the tub.
We never used it in the winter. I winterized it every October and started up again in May.
We will probably sell it as we haven’t been using it enough. If anyone is interested PM me.

[riden]

The wife and I purchased one a few years ago. We used it a lot the first few years and enjoyed it. Easy to use and care for. Prices have nearly doubled since we bought ours.
The last 2 years we barely used it as I’ve been undergoing chemotherapy for leukaemia and can’t use the tub.
We never used it in the winter. I winterized it every October and started up again in May.
We will probably sell it as we haven’t been using it enough. If anyone is interested PM me.

We have ours for 4 years and it still gets regular use and we use it all winter. I find it really helps to loosen up my back.

Good point in pricing...... the price is extremely negotiable and i suspect they have a high retail, so they can offer a great deal at trade shows. I paid $2k less than retail for mine.

[no-regard]

Forgot to put in my post that ours is a Coast brand, made in BC with high quality components (pumps, heaters, controls etc). List price was $14K, we paid $10K on a sale. I'd for sure be trying to dicker on price if buying.

[slough shark]

Excited to hop in the Hot Tub in Fort Mac on Xmas night after dinner at my step daughters.

-30 Dipped toe revealed heater failure with water temps about 5C
BRRRR lol

Turned out minor issue caused by slightly low water level

Has anyone ever had one freeze over?

That right there is perhaps the biggest worry of owning a hot tub, you need to keep an eye on it when it’s cold and you worry about it kicking out with a power bump or low water level. Me and my wife are looking at getting a remote monitoring system so we can check the temps when we aren’t home for a couple days.

[Jamie Black R/T]

Bought an Arctic spa about 8 years ago.

It was a refurb paid 5000 for it.
added about 1000 in electrical and pouring a pad off the patio.

Two pumps, two heaters, control board and a new cover this past fall Im into it about another 4k. I try not to keep track too closely.

kinda like owning a boat...Total luxury item.

Just open your wallet and dump its contents out into the septic tank.

Wife enjoys it...so we keep paying :sHa_sarcasticlol:

[sirmike68]

Going on 18 years with a Sun Ray spa. Made here locally and pretty much a budget brand arctic spa. Definiately go with the saltwater chlorine generator. 1000X easier to maintain water chemistry. I bought the "SmarterSpa - ControlOMatic" and have never looked back.

[1899b]

Had an 8 man Arctic Spas tub. In a past life I flipped 5 homes in 8 years and the house that had the hot tub sold in days. They seem to always be a selling feature.

With that said I would never go out of my way to purchase and install another one. While it was nice to have a hot soak in minus 30, the novelty wore off and was never rekindled.

[Sledhead71]

I use my tub daily, even in these cold temps I get a soak in before the sun rises and enjoy having one outside. I am running the salt system and would never go back to the Bromine, salt is simple and water changes are minimal.

Cost wise, it does add up but well worth it in my opinion....

[Mb-MBR]

I purchased one about 5 years ago, after baby sitting a friends house and jumping in his just after my fall archery elk hunt, it was heavenly. I took up yoga about the same time and since then have not really needed it. I only used it in the winter, never in summer. Never filled this winter, just hope I winterized it properly, guess I'll find out later this year.......

[ren008]

Bought an inflatable 4 man unit from Cdn Tire a few years back for $600 bucks and got a two seasons (minus winters) out of it before it went to the folks for them to use. Only extras were 2 sheets of 2 inch foam insulation, one for underneath and one on top under the cover to help with the heat losses. Used to doing pool chems on the cheap and the operating costs were minimal imo, but maybe 20 bucks month all in? Probably higher power use for a real deal unit in our winter's though...

So glad we went this way first as the novelty got old fast for us and felt it was a waste just sitting there, cant imagine how it would feel sinking 5k+ into a tub and not using it often.

Now just a good hot soak in the bathtub once every 2 weeks in the winter gets me my fix. If I needed something for aching bones/joints I would probably just have a jetted tub put in the house.

[Flatlandliver]

Pumps need to be replaced every 5 yrs-ish.
The farther from the back door you put it the less you will use it.

[Rickster123]

That right there is perhaps the biggest worry of owning a hot tub, you need to keep an eye on it when it’s cold and you worry about it kicking out with a power bump or low water level. Me and my wife are looking at getting a remote monitoring system so we can check the temps when we aren’t home for a couple days.

I had the same concern about my hot tub temperature when I'm away. I purchased a system that we use at work because it works so well. It is Monnit, they are based out of USA but great support. I have a wireless water temperature sensor for the hot tub and it sends data to a Gateway that is hooked to internet. For $39/year, you get constant monitoring and you can set alarms for when temp gets out of range, if battery gets low, loss of signal, etc. Great reliable system that I can trust to tell me if my hot tub is cooling off. You can set any temp for the alarm and if temp goes above or below set points:), you can get an email or text message. You can PM me if you have any questions about it. By the way, I'm not a dealer for them.

[Albertadiver]

We bought a house and it had a hot tub. I wouldn’t spend the money to replace it if/when it goes. Dealing with chemicals every week, electricity costs, chemical and filter costs, etc gets to be a pain. My family is hardly in it too. Maybe one evening every two weeks.

SS

Same.

Ours is a 1999 model beachcomber. No bells and whistles, which is why it's still running. Changed pump twice and heater once. A few troubleshooting visits.

Had the pump go a few winters ago over the holidays in -30C. Had to tarp and insulate the tub, put a few heaters in the pump bay, and managed to save it.

I find it best not to leave it drained for any amount of time, it seems to work better when it's on 24/7.

I don't use it much and it's 6' from our master bedroom exterior door. My wife likes it though.

If I was to fork over money, I would do a steam shower instead with a bunch of jet sprays. I find that much more relaxing and more convenient.

[sewerrat]

Ahhh hot tub feels so nice right about now.
We don't have one and don't want one either for me the novelty wears off pretty quick, and the maintenance doesn't seem fun.
My neighbors have one I hear the thing humming but they hardly use it.
So to me its a waste of money. JMO.

[sewerrat]

We just bought a house and it comes with an Arctic spa summit.
We never owned one and never wanted one.
I have no idea how to operate one,
What is all involved how much work is it.
What can we expect for power use.

Me thinks we will probably use it for a bit till the novelty wears off, then it will be on Kijiji.

[Stirlingville]

Ours is a Maax Spa Vita Grande.
We bought it in 2014 and use it almost every day year round.
One selling feature of the model and brand that we got was that it has a galvanized metal frame.
Also no foam is a must.

[moniaw24]

We have an Arctic Spa, salt water with the Spaboy monitoring system... not one bad thing to say about the tub... love it.. easy to maintain, virtually zero issues in 8 yrs