asharerin

Whenever you return an item to Costco then Costco receives a credit back for their cost of the unit from the manufacturer. Costco is out a bit of labor cost in originally processing and then returning your order but that is it. Most of the time the manufacturer does not want the item back so then the employees get to buy the returned item at a good discount. Everybody wins except the manufacturer of the inferior product (the way it should be). If you need to return a hot tub to Costco call them up and they will organize to pick it up for free. They have the resources to really take care of their members and staff which is why they are so successful. If you are going to buy a tub with the intent of returning it then I would advise purchasing from Costco. If you want a tub that lats more than 3 years then obviously look elsewhere. If you live in an area with high electricity costs then you will come out about even in buying and returning from Costco or buying a better quality brand from a dealer.

The return policy is not transferable. Having the receipt will not help (you do not even need a receipt to perform a return). The purchase is linked to your Costco account. Your only chance would be to have the private party return the spa for you. In the future purchase directly from Costco so you are covered by the lifetime satisfaction guarantee.

What size is your filter and how long are you filtering? I discovered with my parents tub that after heavy use the water would produce foam and leave a disgusting scum line around the tub and on the bromine floater the next day. It was nasty. We treated the water as per the directions and all the levels were fine. We couldn't figure it out. Then I did some reading and found out we did not have the filter cycles set long enough for heavy use. Their tub is a free flow 230 gallon and has a small 35 sq. foot filter. It was set to automatically filter every 12 hours for 4 hours. With 4 adults crammed in there for 1.5 hours it had no chance at removing the contaminants that produce scum and foam. So after heavy uses we set it to filter continuously and the next day no foam and no scum. We shock after each use as well. With lighter use we change the cycle to 6 hours every 12 hours and it manages fine. Also make sure to open your jets all the way so you agitate the water as much as possible when filtering. This will cause the contaminants that produce scum and foam to get filtered as much as possible and come in contact with your sanitizer as much as possible. We have found water agitation is the biggest key.....we tried filtering just as long with the jets open half way but it did not do as agood as job as having the jets open all the way for filtering. If your tub has the small circ. pump to filter it may no be strong enough to agitate the water effectively enough after heavy uses to get rid of all the scum and foam unfortunately.

Just got some more interesting info. Just for kicks I contacted the next closest Hot Springs dealer about 15 miles away. They told me they needed to move a 2007 Bengal and they would sell it for $5600. This was the same model as the one from the other dealer that wanted $6600. Long story short it turns out it would in fact be that exact same Bengal tub. This was all over the phone on the second try so maybe let your fingers do the walking and put in some calls and you may be able to negotiate a lower price for that Caspian. Good luck.

PJ that sounds like a pretty good deal to me. Last weekend we went to our local Hot Springs dealer and they were selling the 2007 Bengal (the model down from the Caspian) that they needed to move for $6600. This was their absolute bottom price.....surprisingly the sales person told me that their dealership was the most expensive in the area and to go check other Hot Springs dealers and I would get a better price for the same spa. So if you are indeed set on this model it would not hurt to go visit other Hot Springs dealers and see what their bottom price would be. Each dealership has different overhead costs and volume of sales so you may be able to score the same Caspian for $6500 somewhere close by. We are now set to purchase a 2005 Sumatran that the owner originally paid $6500 for (way too high I know) but it goes to show different locations and negotiations can yield wildly different pricing for the same product. Our sales guy told us there is no difference between the 2007s and 2008s except they where phasing out the Ocean Wave color as it hasn't proven to be very popular.

Maybe they print multiple versions of Consumer Reports????: " Consumer Reports magazine says that "bug-ridden redesigns" caused Toyota Motor of Japan to drop unexpectedly to third, from first, in its annual vehicle reliability rankings. Consumer Reports removed high-end versions of three Toyota models - the Camry and Lexus GS sedans and the Tundra pickup - from its list of recommended vehicles, released Tuesday, and said it would stop recommending new or redesigned Toyota vehicles without data showing that past years' versions were reliable. It is the first time since the current format of the ratings began in 1996 that a version of the Camry, which is the best-selling car in the United States, has not been recommended. The survey, published in the magazine's "Best & Worst New Cars 2008" issue that goes on sale in November, is the latest bump in the road for Toyota, whose sterling reputation for vehicle quality helped it surpass General Motors this year to become the world's largest automaker. The number of vehicle recalls by Toyota has surged, and several top executives have left its American operation in recent months for positions with the Detroit automakers." Hondas now rattle and roll just like their US counterparts as well. Our 1993 Civic owns the 2008 Civic without any major mods.....they don't make em like they used to. Anyway back to hot tubs......it's unfortunate Marquis is lowering their level of service for 2008. Luckily working on hot tubs seems very simple for the average Joe who is willing to do some reading and follow some rules. After a few hours on the net I was able to install an ozone sytem on my folks freeflow tub. It cost me $79 and the dealer wanted $399 for the same job! I don't know why everyone makes a huge deal over insulation it looks like a quick and cheap job to add your own or am I wrong?

Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately our current house is ancient and it is going to cost north of $1500 to upgrade the electric and have the 230V installed. I prefer to soak without jets so that would not really be an issue.

We are thinking of purchasing a 2005 Tiger River Sumatran. The current owner had it converted to 230V. We do not have a 230V line but would like to use 110V. Can we convert the spa back to 110V? Can we do that ourselves or would we need an electrician? Will there be a huge hole in the side of the tub where the 230V wiring went? Apparently the spa is in like new condition but the warranty cannot be transferred. What would be a fair price for this spa?

We are thinking of purchasing a 2005 Tiger River Sumatran. The current owner had it converted to 230V. We do not have a 230V line but would like to use 110V. Can we convert the spa back to 110V? Can we do that ourselves or would we need an electrician? Will there be a huge hole in the side of the tub where the 230V wiring went? Apparently the spa is in like new condition but the warranty cannot be transferred. What would be a fair price for this spa?

We are thinking of purchasing a 2005 Tiger River Sumatran. The current owner had it converted to 230V. We do not have a 230V line but would like to use 110V. Can we convert the spa back to 110V? Can we do that ourselves or would we need an electrician? Will there be a huge hole in the side of the tub where the 230V wiring went? Apparently the spa is in like new condition but the warranty cannot be transferred. What would be a fair price for this spa?

In the northwest prices are $5 per sf for aggregate concrete. Pavers run around $7.50 per sf. I'd get some more quotes $10 sounds high to me even for the east.

Nice tub thanks for the pic! Hey if you ever need to return the tub to Costco call up custy service. You will pay upfront to freight it back but Costco will reimburse you for that cost once they receive it. Yes.....Costco rocks. That is all.

We decided to purchase the sunpeak from Costco as we will be returning it in a few years for a refund when it needs its first big repair not covered under warranty. Also electricity is very cheap in our city (its actually only 5 cents per kwh flat rate) and it never gets too cold in the Portland area. Now we are trying to find the best deal on getting a 220V circuit installed. So far the bids have been in excess of $1k. This extra cost blows the deal as we would be in the tub $4-$4.5k and from there we can go a Tiger River Bengal 110/220 convertible for $1k more and make it up on resale. 5-6 y.o. Bengals are going for ~ $3.5k in Portland. We have a few more local electricians coming out this week so we will know by this weekend.

Hi spamom we have also decided on the sunpeak from Costco. It seems from hard data on the east coast you are looking at 300-400kw hours per month for this tub. Check you cost per kw hour to estimate how much it is going to cost you per month. A few members have reported paying as high as 15 cents per kwH which is outrageous. Your electricity may be less if your city owns the electric utility....in Canby oregon we pay 6 cents per kwH which sounds more reasonable. To get it from the curb to your back yard ask the delivery drivers if they will move it for $100. I cannot believe they will not be willing to do this for that kind of money. If not hand out a few beers and get your neighbors to lend a hand. Before you sign the freight bill make sure the tub is unwrapped and inspect for any damage/missing parts. Make sure everything is documented. If it is not to your liking simply refuse delivery and sign nothing. Don't fret too much Costco takes care of its members so give custy service a call if you are unsure of anything. We are going to invest in a thermal blanket to save as much energy as possible. If your electric rates are high it might also pay to invest in a top quality spa cover. Oh and if you decide on this purchase make sure to checkout my other thread on how to get 5% cashback on this tub. That is $150 you can give to the drivers to place it for you. I would also checkout more energy efficient tubs to get a comparison since you guys have cold weather and high energy costs on the east coast.

OK we have finally decided to go for the Infinity Sun Peak from costco.com after much debating. We should have our mastercard in a few days making this purchase $2850 delivered (costco takes all credit cards online unlike their instore policy of only accepting debit/amex). I am guessing the saved $150 will go to the delivery guys to set it on our deck in the backyard. Will be transferring to a 0% offer on another card and stretch out the payments as long as possible in US pesos. I am guessing we will have to take advantage of their satisfaction guarantee if it requires a labor intensive repair between years 1 and 5. Now to find a deal on a thermal blanket!