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utah

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  1. Hi all, Thanks so much for sharing and guiding me towards a great quality hot tub. In the end, I found what many others have shared. There are 8-10 quality manufacturers. Each do things a bit (or alot!) differently but they are different only in how they acheive the goal. I ended up going with a 1999 Arctic Midnight Sun. This unit is in great shape and was taken care of responsibly. I sped over to the owner's house the same day the spa was listed and knew enough to know it was a fair deal ($1,250) and to close the deal. Your help gave me the info to make the informed choice and know what I was looking for. I have found the Arctic tub to be incredibly well built and perfect for our family's initial needs. We'll likely upgrade in a couple years but for now it is a great match. It turns out comfort has not been an issue. We really like the choice of seats and the lounger. What has been a slight surprise is how loud the tub is on our attached deck. There is no circ pump and when we upgrade to a new(er) tub, this will be a must. Arctic has shared two "tricks" to quiet the older Arctic tubs, rubber motor mounts and an A/C insulation pad beneath the unit. I'll let you know how it works. We decided to go the used route as we wanted to know what we wanted (and did not want!) prior to investing $10k for a nice new tub. This seems to be a great first step for us. In a couple years we can hopefully sell our tub and bring in something new(er). One of the things I liked about the newer tub was their extensive use of visual and audio techniques to create a peaceful calm. I loved the backlit waterfalls (especially on the quite circulation pump) and the multiple LED lights (great feature on the Jacuzzi 400). Thanks again and all the best! I'm off to the "Water Chemistry Forum" here....... Doug
  2. Thanks for your reply. It's going to be close! I have exactly 2.5 inches on each side. Is this enough or do I need more space? Tub delivery comes in 30 minutes and I'd feel MUCH better if I don't have to move it once the crew leaves. Help, please!
  3. Ok, I pulled the trigger on the used Arctic. The Arctic Midsun is 85.25 inches wide with no cover lifter. The ideal spot on my deck is 90.25 inches wide. How much will the outside width of the tub be increased with cover lifter and cover. I don't think by 2.5 inches on each side but I'd feel better if someone took a quick measure and let me know. Thanks Doug
  4. I have a chance to buy a used Arctic Tub. Would you have any concerns buying an Arctic of this vintage? Inspected the inside of the tub and it says "Blue Falls Manufacturer, Model Midsun Elite, MSPA, EMS. Has anyone ever heard of Blue Falls or know anything about this Arctic history? I recognize the construction and it definitely is an Arctic tub. Arctic Controller and several other parts say Arctic. Made in May of 1999. Bought at the local Arctic dealer. Owner is going to pay Arctic $200 to put the tub through its paces and have Arctic bless it. Feels pretty reasonable to me but I wanted to see if anyone had heard of Blue Falls. Also, do the old Arctics use a pump and a heater to heat the water or just a pump. I opened one panel and looked around. Could not see the entire cabinet but don't recall seeing a heater.... Thanks
  5. Chas, Thanks for your reply. Yes, it has gotten quiet on this board. When I started my hot tub search, this was the only board I went to for advice but now I post on two boards. Sounds like transducer speakers might not be a good choice if we do house swaps with friends who may or may not be use to our system. Sounds like it would be pretty easy for them to do some expensive damage.... Doug
  6. I don't like the pop up speakers but am wondering how happy people are who have gone with the speaker in the tub design. Do you like it? Any maintenance issues? How is the quality of sound? Thanks Doug
  7. Could I get you to elaborate on why you would stay away from a tub that has a crack on the upper "lip" (wraps around the top edge of the tub). Let me give you a little background on these tubs in case that is helpful. Its been repaired by the factory and depending on the color can be difficult to even detetect. The company has put me in touch with the Director of Quality. He checks that everything is running well at the factory and also has final say on whether a tub gets returned for repair or not. If the tub does get returned, he has the production team repair the tub to his specifications (special acrylic kit). He has several of these tubs available and sells them at a couple hundred dollars above what he would sell them to an employee. The last one he called me about had a 3-4 inch repaired crack on the upper lip. One year old tub, with full written warranty from the manufacturer for everything with one exception that I will clarify below. A day after we chatted, he called letting me know that one of his employees opted to buy the tub and that it was no longer available (a good sign to me). He seems trustworthy. We have chatted on several tubs and he has suggested I pass on a few (another good sign I think). The warranty is modified in 2 ways. First, I only get the remaining period left on the warranty. Not prorated but just "shorter" based on the year the tub was originally sold. The other is that "cosmetic" defects will only be repaired, not replaced. The factory will pick up the tub and return it at no cost to me (in writing) for 7 years less the above "shortening". He claims none of the warranty returned tubs that he has sold (they destroy the really bad ones) has ever returned for a structural crack or leak. Yes some have had another crack show up that the factory repaired. A tough call here but my senses tell me his is being truthful based on our conversations to date and his candid responses to some tough questions. BTW, he suggested I pass on ALL microcracked tubs. Cosmetically don't look good and he has had some of those come back with later problems. I would love your candid thoughts on what challenges you think I might have with this type of tub. I am definitely not convinced to go this route yet. Rather, I want to make an informed decision. Some additional questions..... - Why do acrylic/abs tubs crack at the upper lip - Are they likely to crack again or worsen? - What do you think about the acrylic repair kits if done in the factory? The incentive for me is that I can get a 1 year old tub that would normally retail for $7,500 for around $3,000 and have a warranty on everything. In all likelyhood, my other choice is to buy a 3-5 year old used hot tub for around $3,000. I'd love all the features of a new tub but the extra dollars compete with the college savings goals for my 3 and 6 year old. Feels like a fair trade-off for my family. Buy a less expensive used or warrantied return tub and put the difference in the kids college savings. Again, please keep the candid responses coming so that I can make the best decision for my family.
  8. Do local dealers care if someone buys from the factory guy at the state fair? The local dealer has a booth/tent set up at the fair. I went to visit and the owner was not in so the factory rep gave me the tour. If I decide to buy from this manufacture, I would rather support the local dealer than the factory that is thousands of miles away. Do dealers care if I buy from their staff or go ahead and buy from the factory rep that is there? The booth is operated by the local dealer and the factory rep said he was there to support the dealer. The rep was promoting his product pretty hard and was really hoping I would put down a $500 deposit. Can't blame the guy, that is his job but my wife and I make these types of decisions together. But it got me thinking that he must stand to make a decent commission if he sells me. Anyways, how does this work? Does the dealer net the same if I work with the factory guy. Will the service team treat me the same even if I didn't buy from the local sales guy but rather the factory rep? Thanks
  9. I'm interested in what innovations/features people see coming with next years hot tub models. Also, when do the 2007s start showing up in your stores. Does the cycle run similar to new cars where the new models are available 3-4 months prior to the end of the calander year? Thanks - Doug
  10. All good points. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. My goal is to have a worry free tub. I'd rather have fewer features but a solid built tub. Sounds like the general consensus is that a factory warranty return and refurbed tub is not a good path towards achieving this goal. My hope was some of these issues would be minor and not a problem. Your points are valid. If they were minor, the factory would not replace them. The quest continues..... Doug
  11. Great posts...thanks for the advice. What I liked about this tub is that in 10 years it has been trouble free. She replaced each of the pumps once and the cover every 3 years or so. That is my dream. A low maintenance tub that just runs and runs and doesn't cause headaches. Sounds like $2,000 is a bit high for the tub. Not sure what I will do. Perhaps the best route is to wait and keep looking for that 3-5 year old tub. The good news about this search is that it seems people keep their brand name hot tubs once they buy them. Don't see many of them on sale in my area (Utah). Thanks for the help, Doug PS - Do older units typically have higher energy costs? Has there been alot of innovation/advancement in insulating of the tubs over the last decade. Probably sounds like a silly question to most but I really don't know.
  12. Great point. This is the type of feedback I am looking for. I live in Park City and rent out my house over Xmas and Sundance. The worst thing that could happen to me is for the tub to go down while I am out of town for 10 days. It would be one big ice cube! Any other stories....good or bad. Doug
  13. Would you have concern buying a 10 year old hot tub from the original owner? She has receipts for everything and obviously took good care of it. Wood skirt seems in good condition as well. Kudos to Sundance. In 10 years, all she has had to do is to replace each of the pumps one time. Other than that it has run like a champ. My question is....how long does a tub like this last. Can I expect another 10 years of relatively maintenance free operation or do these tubs start to age and get leaks/cracks. Thanks Doug
  14. What do you think. Would you buy a hot tub that has been returned under warranty, fixed and resold by the manufacturer? The unit comes with a full warranty...just fewer years based on the age. For example, if the tub had a 5 year warranty and was returned after 1 year, I would get the remaining 4 years. In writing from the factory. Reasons for Returns: 1. Shipping damage to fake wood skirt -- No issue in my book, I dont mind 2. Discoloration of shell -- I don't think this is an issue 3. Shell cracked at top and repaired -- sounds pretty bad to me. Probably not buy 4. Microcracks in surface of tub -- don't know, what do you think? 5. Small delaminations on surface of tub -- dont think this would be a big deal unless on a seating surface. Thanks Doug
  15. I was quoted $8795 plus sales tax for a similar setup on an Optima. Sounds like you got a good price. Whether or not you got a good deal will be determined by the first couple of times you need service. Hopefully they do it with a happy heart and fix it right the first time. I was very impressed with the Sundance store in Salt Lake. So far, they get the highest marks for service.... Doug
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