easman61

Sinker - this looks great! What an awesome setting you have. My problems is both - too much slope - which your solution addresses and uneveness. The uneveness causes the support frame not to sit squarely on the patio. This can cause the shell to crack evidently. I've shimmed it underneath the frame with some pressure treated trim strips and got stability. When I filled the tub however, I discovered way too much slope. There is probably 2 1/2 to 3" slope in just a 7 ft hot tub. I'm waiting for the spa set up guy from the retailer to come and look at this and sign off on it before I decide what to do. The spa retailer recommended the concrete guy and the concrete guy knew exactly where I was going to put the spa.

We just had our patterned stained concrete patio completed and I took delivery of my Caldera Aspire Spa. When the delivery guys showed up we realized the patio is uneven. The back end of the spa (about the last foot of the base) is probably 1/4 to 1/2" off of the patio as it falls away on that end of the spa. My question is - will that have to be shimmed or will the spa settle and be OK with water weight in it? Thanks for any advice you can give me.

The warranty is for a new spa and is from date of delivery. There is a remote for the stereo.

My wife and I have narrowed down our spa search to Caldera - primarily from what I've read here and a very reputable dealer being just down the road from where we live. We made an offer on what we thought was a 2005 leftover Aspire with a sound system. When I went in to pay a deposit to hold the spa until our patio can be constructed, I noticed that the spa did not have an auxilary control panel like the 2005 and 2006 catalogue showed the unit having as standard. Everything else seems to be the same. I asked if this could be a 2004. The manager (very nice/very helpful/no pressure/no bad mouthing competition) said she didn't think so but would check. Several hours later she called and said that it was in fact a 2004 model. I asked what kind of discount she could offer up on the tub. She said make her an offer. I had made an offer which was accepted of $6395 including wood steps and a cover lifter when I believed I was getting a 2005 tub. Assuming we get comfotable with the fact that there is not an auxillary control panel (seems like a cool feature to me - to be able to adjust jets from both sides of the tub) would I be crazy to buy a 2004 model? To you sales people out there, how much of a discount should I expect? Are there any watchouts to buying a tub that has been sitting on a sales floor since December 2004? The tub has some very fine scratches on the seats that the manager told me would rub out before I took delivery. I doubt you could see them once there was water in the tub. I know it has had water in it before as there is some down in the volcano jet. I would definitely want a wet test given the age of the tub. Thanks for any advice you can give me.