Greg D.

Iflych52, I've had a Grandee for 9 months with not one problem except for the cheap cover lifter my dealer included failing. I recall for my model in 2008 Hotsprings said that the Grandee is so big and heavy that it had to be installed on a concrete pad (which I did) for the warranty to remain in effect. So I would double check with Hotsprings about the installation requirements for the Vanguard as well.. Good luck, you won't regret the Hotspring purchase whether it's the Grandee or the Vanguard. I special ordered mine to get the textured sand colored shell to avoid the slipperiness of the gloss. Greg. PS: On energy usage, my electric bill was lower last month than it was last year without the hot tub. I can only figure that it was colder last year and I ran my heat pump some.

CNW, You could also use a type of gravel mix called 3/4" crusher run, or in some places it's called quarry process. It's got gravel and stone dust mixed together, and if you dampen it, and run a compactor over it will make a nice firm base for the tub. You'll just have to fool around with several additions of the material or scrapings to remove some in places between compactions to get it nice and level. It's not very pretty to look at though, but if you want to remove the tub it could be dug up with hand tools. Greg.

I'll chime in with the Winter preference, I definately overheat too much this time of year when in the tub - just short soaks to loosen up the knees. The only drawback is the extra shoveling here in Rochester NY to make a path to the tub in the winter. Note to Steeler Pete: After seeing your photos it's too bad your female friend does not follow Hillbilly Hot Tubs' swimsuit rules. . Greg.

Stevie, My plumber told me that I should run the hose for 1 hour and then shut it off for 1 hour and follow this schedule to fill the tub. This lets the well pump cool down, and it prevents the water level in the well from dropping too much. This method also minimizes the muck that is sometimes stirred up when running the hose too long. Greg.

I've put two tubs on pavers with no problems except the joint sand has a habit of working loose and being tracked in to the tub on people's feet. Just make sure you have a few inches of compacted crusher run (sometimes called quarry process) stone under the sand or stone dust the pavers are set in. You should definately check with the manufacturer - my new Hot Springs Grandee had to to on concrete as per the manufacturer. Greg.

As said earlier, I would be careful that the smaller pumps can suck water through a filter that the tub was not designed for. The 1 micron pore size will definately cause the filter to clog up sooner. We used the same type of filter in photo processing equipment and when they were left in the soup too long and clogged, even a small pump had enough pull to cause the filter to collapse. Once the filter was this dirty we had overheat problems due to lack of circulation. The big jet pumps on hot tubs may do a number on these filters if not changed out often enough. A smaller micron rating will mean many more filter changes. Greg.

http://www.leisureconcepts.com/main.php?page=22 Look at these. If you mount it high enough the bar can rotate to assist getting in and out spas. Building steps would be more sturdy than the plastic ones everyone seems to make. Thanks for the photo PS558, I'm a little reluctant to screw anything to the skirt of the tub, especially when it's going to be leaned on quite heavily. I don't trust the plastic material to hold a lag screw of any size large enough to stabilize a bar like that. As I type though, it seems that I might be able to screw such a bar to the pressure treated lumber I plan to use. Thanks again, Greg.

My 80 year old father in law is having difficulty getting in and out of our new Hot Springs Grandee tub that is sitting on a concrete slab. I've got 3 feet of concrete space on the side of the tub where I plan on constructing some heavy duty steps and railings to assist him in getting in and out. Any photos or commentary on this type of project would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance, Greg.

Nevermind, The dealer sent the wrong GFCI breaker panel - one for 110V convertible spas. I didn't look at it too carefully, installed it, had 110V at all the terminals but I didn't bother to check for 220V. Greg.

Please Help! My dealer's service dept is closed for the night, and I'm trying to fire up a new Hot Springs Grandee for the first time. I've got power to the tub, the little circulation pump and ozone are working, but when I turn on the jet pumps, I hear the relays actuate, but no pump turns on. A sales person over the phone told me that I should have filled the tub by sticking the garden hose down the grey standpipe to prevent an air lock. Thus far I have reset breakers a few times, and bled air and water from the large jet pumps by loosening the rings that connect the hoses to the pumps. There are no error messages or flashing lights on the panel. The red power light stays on steadily. I'd really love to fire this puppy up tonight and not wait for service tomorrow. Any suggestions would be welcome. Thanks in advance, Greg.

Test the pump. you have to take it apart though. you run them with a dry seal. remove the impeller. how long does it run before blowing the fuse? I just removed the the pump. I'll take the impeller off next. It moves freely now. Somes times the fuse would blow imediately and some times it would run for 10 to 20 minutes. And it didn't matter whether it was a 20 amp fuse or a 30 amp fuse. I visually inspected the cord and the molded connector. It appears tha there was some slight over heating going on and one of the prongs feels a little loose. More later once I find a motor shop and put on a bench test. Thanks Ralphyboy, I know it sounds stupid and I don't want to insult you, but are you using the right kind of fuses? Motors with a high starting amperage vs. the running amperage usually require a time delay fuse. Maybe someone sold you the wrong type. Greg.

Eric, The cabinet (the fake wainscotting looking stuff) overhangs the base that actually sits on the ground by a couple of inches. The power cord at my dealer's showroom ran up the inside of the cabinet where the overhang is. I don't think they intend the conduit to run up inside the cabinet within the perimeter of the base. I'm going to my dealer tomorrow to double check the measurements for the Grandee I'm planning for. I can check the measurements on the Vanguard while I'm there. Greg.

It will still be a few weeks till we get ours - just put money down for now. Need to have the concrete poured and give it time to cure first. But hopefully I should have it in 3 weeks or so. We wanted the White Marble with the gray skirt. But when we wet tested one - it was also the white marble. Both my wife and I slipped a little getting in since that surface is so smooth. So we changed it to the charcoal since it has a little bit of texture to it. We have two little girls (3 and 6) that will be using the spa, so I wanted to make sure that I wouldn't have to worry about one of them slipping on the smooth surface. Eric Eric, I agree, we were concerned about how smooth it was too, and almost got the Sand, but our kids are grown, and the Pearl looked sooooo good in comparison, we could not pass it up! Now, I am literally digging the trench for my electrical tonight, and I thought I had the measurements, but I don't. So, could some helpful Vanguard owner please make a quick trip outside and measure how far from the left side the opening is? THANKS! Randy Guys, I was digging a conduit trench for my Grandee slab last night. If you go to the Hotsprings website under predelivery or site preparation or some such thing, they have cut sheets with the measurements. Maybe the Vanguard specs are more accurate than for the Grandee - for my tub they had many detailed measurements except the placement of the conduit. Greg.

Jimmy, This $$ seems very high. We were quoted $9995 for the same except the stereo and vac in Rochester NY. This was an inital quote with no haggling. We just bought a Grandee for 5% less - supposedly some factory discount that has been passed along due to low sales volume. Greg.

Hi Greg, Congratulations on your purchase. Some municipalities are enforcing the 2005 NEC code which requires an equipotential grid for permanently installed pools or hot-tubs. The specific code states: " 680.26 Equipotential Bonding. (snip) To properly mask stray voltage, an equipotential (stray voltage) grid must extend under walking surfaces for 3 ft horizontally from the water, Figure 680-23. The equipotential (stray voltage) grid must be formed from one or more of the following: (1) Structural Reinforcing Steel. Structural reinforcing steel of the concrete permanently installed pool, outdoor spa, or outdoor hot tub." A good discussion of this can be found in this thread. It could be if your local municipality enforces this specific requirement. The thread above talks about some various work-arounds, including, having a non-conductive mat around the tub. A really good source of information on code requirements for hot-tubs can be found at Mike Holt's web-site that has summarized the 2005 NEC requirements into a nice pamphlet and added some author's comments. It can be found here. Regards, Ken Ken, Hopefully on a new pour I won't need a work around lilke some cheesy mats around the tub. A grounding rod, and some wires (if required) should be a far cleaner, and less expensive option. I installed a tub in the same town 6 years ago on concrete pavers and they were only concerned with the normal requirements for the GFCI breaker, service disconnect, 120 v outlet near by, bonding between the spa's components, and the highly secure locking hot tub cover. I'll keep the forum notified of my trevails with the building department to help other readers in the future. Thanks to Dr. Spa too. Greg.