TonyF

While spa shopping, a huge difference I noticed for overall comfort for the height of the seat off the floor of the spa. I am 6'1" and felt like my knees were up to my chin due to the seat height. You may want to check out Hot springs Envoy or Grandee, Caldera Geneva or C-45 and the Jucuzzi line. I got into the spa's in the showrooms without my shoes and could get a good impression of how they would fit when wet testing. Bought a Caldera and my wife and I both love the lounger model. Tony

What is the make, model and age of your spa and the current water temperature. Check your owners manual for location or method of restting the spa. Iwould not be too quick to empty the spa; there is good insulation and it probably would not freeze if it is somewhat tepid. As suggest, put some really hot water into the spa. IN any event, whether you empty it or not, I would put a 100 watt lighted bulb in the pump area to keep some warmth in there. Tony

Tried to find the buble wrap at home Depot and they didn't have a clue as to what I was talking about. Maybe they only sell it in certain regions. Tony

Steve: Thanks for the enthusiastic comments. We have had our C-45 for 1 1/2 month and love it. We didn't realize that some of the rotating jets can be set to be stationary or can be set to rotate just be moving them from center toward the outside. The lounge is one of the best features of the spa and you get a lot of spa for the money with Caldera quality. Tony

The mystic led light is what I found was the cause of my problem. As Chas suggested, you can unplug the light to see if that fixes the problem. Turn off the breaker, follows the light wire from the tunnel where it is installed into the tub to the power box. Take the cover off the box and there shouod be two plugs to unplug. After unplugging it and before putting everything back together, turn the break on to see if the pump and heater start. When I unplugged my light, the spa started right up. Tony

I recently had a similar problem with the three line led display and the heater off. The dealer indicated that there was a batch of faulty underwater spa lights. I quick swap out of the light fixed the proble. My spa is a 2007, but maybe the fix would be similar. Ask your dealer. Tony

Wireman: Sent you a message with my email address. Tony

We have had one for two different spa's and love them. They really do help with heat loss and sometimes when it is really cold ( 10 degrees or less), we take the spa cover off, but leave the buble blanket on and just pull back the area by the seat we are using. It even is enjoyable to just get under the spa blanket when face and ears get cold. So yes, it is worth it. Tony

wireman: It might be nice to see the photos, so please post here if possible. I have been concerned about the same problem. Tony

Yet another reason I am so greatful that I bought a waterproof remote sensor to place in my spa three weeks ago. I check the spa water temp once or twice a day from inside the house to see if everything is OK. Just recently, the spa kicked off (the power was still on) and the water temp overnight got down to 92 degrees as it was 9 deagrees outside. I went to the spa control panel and it just regisitered straight lines. I called the dealer and he siad it was probably caused by a faulty light circuit which they immediately replaced and it fixed the problem. Someone on another forum did the research and came up with the Oregon Scientic Weather Forecaster model BAR122HGLA and as a separate compatible option, the waterproof senor model THC268. Found them on the internet for $60. WELL WORTH IT FOR PEACE OF MIND!!! Not only can I tell the spa temperature, but outside humidty, temp, and 24 hour wesather forecast and trend.

Check with your bank to see if you can still place a stop payement and get the money back out of his account. Also, alert your Bank's fraud department and they might be able to give you some tips for recovery or for prosecution. Tony

Just checked the wind gusts with a meter from my sailboat and it was registering 60mph. My spa is a little over a month old and when it was new, I tried some tie down strap from an auto parts store. It only took a few hours for the straps to loosen up. I didn't want to keep worrying about the cover every time high winds were forecast, so I opted to put a canvas cover over the spa. One side is permanently attached to the side of the deck with some hooks. I then just fold the canvas accordian style onto the edge of the spa. When the winds are supposed to be bad, I just pull it over the spa and tie the other end down. It is a pain to have to do this, but at least I don't worry about the spa. I had a spa 10 years ago and used to put 2 x 4's on top when it was windy. One time, the 2 x 4's blew off, the cover tie down straps ripped off, and the cover was out in the yard. Tony

SteveH; You are going to love your Caldera C-45. My wife and I use our once or twice a day and kep saying how glad we are that we chose this spa. Tony

I liked the Caldera seating over Sundance as the Sundance made us feel like our knees were too high. Also like to Eupgoria jet as you can get a good message for your thighs but shifting out of the seat a little. We previously had a lounger in a 15 year old spa and were not going to get another. After wet testing and all the improvements over the years, we decided to get another lounger. Now that we have it, it lounger is the coveted spot that everyone prefers. Tony

From my experience in canoe camping and also with our house in the woods in the country, I have not seen nor heard of any effective remedy to keep racoons at bay. They are usually are attracted to food or perhaps lotions that may attract them. I surmise that someone must have either been handling food or had lotion on the hands when they opened the cover thereby leaving the scent on the cover. I tried everything on camping trips from hanging food between trees to putting our food into the canoe and floating it out in the water holding the end of the rope underwater with a rock. They have found the ropes, pulled the canoe into shore, and gotten the food. We sprayed pepper spray and other repellants on the ropes and around camp and it didn't stop them. When we had our sail boat, they even climbed aboard from the dock, lifted the screen in our hatch and got into the galley. I believe they have a new racoon doctorate program that the racoons can take free of charge including many filed trips. So just keep the cover and area around it clean. If they do end up chewing the cover, you can get heat shrink plastic from any marina, take the insulation out of the cover and wrap/shrink the plastic with a hair dryer. Some marinas also sell vinyl repair that can be ironed or sewn onto a cover. Tony

The organic ice melt would also track into your spa, and may not be good to introduce more into your water. When we got our first spa 18 years ago, I remember the ice getting pretty sharp in some spot and rough to walk on. We used boating shoes or slippers with a good gummy non-slip sole and that was ok until ice built up in between thaws. We finally went barefoot on a 12' length of 26'" outdoor carpet which we rolled up and put by the fireplace to dry between uses. Just got back into spas last month and will probably go with the rug again. Tony

Steve: I agreed about foot well jets and we liked that feature. However, we have been more than pleased with the C-45 beacuse there is a Euphoria jet in the foot well that can be reached from every seat for a fantastic foot massage. Also, the Europhia jets does a great job on your thighs and calves if you move your legs over it. The lounghe seat has a lot of jets for your feet and they can be turned on to the point that they are almost too strong when air is added. Our old spa never had these feautres and I didn't appreciate what we got until the wet test and getting it home. Good luck in your search.

I was also interested in the Niagara, but didn't like the seats next to the filter as they seemed confining. As I mentioned in an earlier post, we did not want to get another spa with a lounge, but when wet testing the C-45, we found it very comfortable, great therapy and we can have a person sit at each end of the loung and be comfortable therfore accomodating 7 people.

Caldera does not show the C series spas in their catalogues as the C line was created for a few select dealers as a competitive tool. They sold so well that most dealers are now able to stock them. The C-45 is almost identical to the Geneva (Utopia series top of the line) with the exception that it has two less jets, does not have a continuous circulating pump (not really necessary in my opinion) no outside cabinet lights, and a different light system inside the tub. Due to no circulating pump, they use a different control panel. It runs about $1200 - $1500 less than the Geneva, but same warranty. The Aspite Aquatic Series is one step down in quality than the Utopia Series. I don't recall what the C-30 is equivalent to but it was about $500 less in cost that the C-45 and the C-45 had a lot more bang for the buck. SWEET DEAL and SPA

Previously own another brand of spa for 12 years. Decided to upgrade and after looking at several of the top brands, decided on a Caldera C45 (similar to the Geneva). The c series is similar to their top line of spas without a few unnecsaary features to keep the price competitive. I have been extremely pleased with the quality of construction, assortment of jets and ability to control the flow at all the jets. You might want to ask the dealer if they have a C-30. I had a lounge before and decided not to get one on whatever new spa I buy. After wet testing the Caldera's, my wife and I both found the lounge extremely comfortable and bargain as to who gets the lounge first. We love the seat height of the Caldera and the C series acrries the same warranty as the Geneva.

Just purchased my Spa from PETTIS Pools & Spa in Rochester, NY and have been extremely pleased with every aspect of the dealer both before during and after delivery. Prior to purchasing the Spa, I called the store with a few questions. If the person answering the phone did not know the answer, I received a return call within 10 minutes with a thorough answer. When the delivery crew brought the Spa, they went through a complete explanation of filling and using the chemical treatments to make sure we understood everything. The dealer supplied a bottle to bring in for a water test and reviewed all the results in writing with recommendations. Every person at the dealership seems very well educated in their products and is more than willing to spend time making sure they answered the questions. It has been a long time since I have experienced such an excellent dealership which is probably why they have been chosen as the top pooland spa dealer in our area for several years. Tony

Your explanation sounds feasible, kind of like cavitation noise. Is there an easy way to take out the valve on top to see if there might be something lodged there from manufacturing?

What type of noise do you hear from the value? I noticed that on my Caldera, one Diverter value seems to have noise like air bubbles but the other valve does not.