HydroMan

Hey Greg, I have seen some of your posts on Gulf Coast and you asked me about insulation before. You seem like a very smart person and a meticulous consumer. I am exactly the same way when it comes to large purchases. No matter how much research I do beforehand, I always have some buyer’s remorse. It is a curse that we probably share as we will always find something wrong with what we buy. I think that no matter what the product or brand is, you will always find negative comments or reviews about it if you keep searching. Even the best product ever made will dissatisfy some people. Enjoy your new spa.

I live in the Northeast also. I looked at bullfrog as many dealers around sell them and I heard lots of advertising about them. Some things to note are I believe the plumbing warranty only covers leaking from the jetpacks which are inside the spa. I don’t believe it covers the main line which is the only way it will actually be a noticeable leak (loss of water). Also the jets must be placed within the pack, which limits where they can be located in each seat. I felt that if you bought a comfortable spa that you will never need to change it. That is why I personally thought it was more of a gimmick than superior design. Almost every company has a gimmick, that’s just the way it is. Just make sure to see as many spas and dealers as possible so you have no regrets in the future.

Do you mean October 05? If they got them last month how would they already know average heating costs?

I would be willing to bet that your friends have older Gulf Coast models. I think that the newer XL models are made very well. I know someone with a XL9000 and it is much nicer then my Hydro Spa Omni. GC has added extra insulation to the backside of the cabinet panels. And the cabinet panels themselves are much thicker (over ¼ inch). I added extra insulation to my hydro spa and even in the northeast my electric is very reasonable. Although I don’t think it is necessary, you could easily add more to the GC if it was a problem. There are ways to very easily make a less expensive spa more efficient and therefore that aspect should not be a major deciding factor in your purchase. I also thought it was really cool how all of his control components where mounted in a molded base.

I did not want to reply to the Costco thread and continue to keep it off topic. I respect your opinion in regards to paying now or paying later. I understand the fact that higher priced tubs have cost built into them that is used for better customer service. I’m sure that when you buy a tub from a warehouse they drop it of, give you a pat on the but, and wish you good luck. I bought from a dealer and I place a great deal of value in the fact that I can call them with questions or issues. I don’t think everyone should buy a Costco tub. But when someone comes here looking for help, their purchase should not be belittled. If you (or anyone else) don’t have something related to the topic or helpful to say then why take the time just to make someone feel bad. Judging by your long reply my comments hit a nerve. If you don’t like having people flaming your purchase then why do it to other people? You have to admit that much more flaming on this and other forums is aimed at less expensive tubs.

This forum is for people who wish to share information and experiences. It is also a place where people can come when they need advice or help. If you are getting tired of coming to this website then I have some advice for you, don’t come here anymore! You will not be missed. This forum is not a place for snooty, overpriced spa owners to come and justify their purchases. Nor is it a place for arrogant, overpriced spa salesmen to justify having an enormous amount of inflated costs built into their tubs. There are plenty of other forums where you can go and be with like minded people. Try here: www.therichjerk.com/forum/

You can try some spa fragrances that have moisturizer in them. There is also something called just soft made by insparation that is the same thing but without scent.

I own a Hydro Spa Omni and I love it. I think that they are a great value that normal people can afford. The insulation can be easily upgraded to make the spa very efficient. The only things wrong with buying from Wallmart is you do not get backyard delivery or a professional dealer to help with any problems. Also, I wonder if that price includes shipping. Be aware that many dealers will post replies bashing any lower cost brand. They need to justify their high prices ya know. In my opinion, if a lower cost spa does not last 10 to 20 years, who cares! Who wants to own an outdated 10-20 year old spa anyway.

Yeah, if it is not a HS then it will certainly give you many problems down the road for sure. Seriously, why bother buying a lower cost spa. Just save all your money and you can buy a real spa in about 5 years.

I own a Hydro Spa Omni and I absolutely love it. After reading many posts from this and other forums, I would stay away from Gulf Coast. I don’t like how the GC dealers’ claim 50 percent off some made up retail prices. The dealer in my area does that and I have read about other GC dealers doing the same thing. That’s just downright shady if you ask me. During my research I learned that GC was made by Hydro Spa up until last year, so they have really only been making spas for about a year. Some GC owners have told stories about how they where told to fix their own spas by the 24hr tech support line. Also I have read about how the warranty will be voided if you don’t send in the card right away. The only negative things I heard about HS was due to bad dealer support.

Thank you for the replies everyone. I found a solution to the problem before my post was replied to. Here is how I got rid of the rust stains. Before I drained the tub I dumped a small amount of iron out into it. It did not take long before all of the rust stains disappeared. It worked perfectly! At first I was worried about what it might do to the plastic and metal parts of the tub. I have been using iron out for years in my water softener, washing machine, and dishwasher with no ill effects. I also did some research on the iron out website before I felt comfortable using it in my spa. I would not recommend using it all of the time, but if the need arises it is an option you might consider.

I’m not so concerned with appearance. I might actually trust a normally dressed person more then a suit and tie person. But that’s just me. One thing that I really like is upfront pricing. Give me all the facts and figures so that I can make a good comparison. My biggest turn off is a smug salesperson begging for a deposit. Followed closely be ridiculous sales, like "50 percent off MSRP summer blowout sale".

I work in electrical design and have experience designing ground fault and arc fault circuit breakers. There is no problem putting GFCI breakers in series. I would never do it though simply because of the cost. I would use two 50 amp breakers rather then the 40A unless the owners manual calls for a 40A breaker. Not that it is a huge deal, but you will get slightly more voltage drop across the 40A.

DT, I’m from south east MA. I was also looking at Costco and Sam’s club. I found dealers around here to be arrogant and way overpriced. I also looked at used spas and almost bought one off of ebay. I happened to find a dealer (four season) that had really good prices for Hydro Spa tubs. They where actually lower then online retailers. Anyway, I had a really good experience with them and recommend them to everyone.

I have rust stains everywhere! I can easily wipe it off most surfaces, but how do I clean the jets and other parts? I was thinking of dumping in some iron out just before I drain the spa, but I don’t know what this might do to my heater or plastic parts. Is there a way to safely remove the stains without removing and cleaning each jet individually???? This is how I got the stains; I have horrible well water with 7.5ppm iron and pH of 5.5. I have a calcite filter to capture the red iron and raise the pH followed by a water softener to lower the hardness and filter the dissolved iron. Normally I bypass the softener and fill the spa through the calcite filter. My last fill must have been loaded with dissolved iron because after adding Spa Frog and shocking with OZ (MPS) my water turned totally brown. I used Leisure Time metal gone while filling and still had this problem. I added a second bottle of metal gone along with defender and bright and clear (not all at the same time) and it cleared up in about a day. My water has remained clear since. I use defender every week but rust stains have formed all over the jets and other surfaces. From now on I will fill through the softener and add calcium later I’m really only worried about how to get rid of the rust stains without hurting the heater or making any plastic parts become brittle. I did a search through previous posts and believe that I understand how to prevent iron from becoming an issue in the future. I will add the metal gone and then wait 48hrs before adjusting pH or adding any type of oxidizer. If I fill the spa with softened water, I will bring the hardness back up with calcium booster. I will also try drawing the water slower to prevent disturbing any iron that might be settled at the bottom of my well. Thank you for your thoughts.