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Jman03

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  1. I just got my January bill. My electricity usage is more than double what it was this time last year (before I got my Infinity tub from Costco). The difference is just under 800 kWh, which I am attributing to hot tub usage. I live in Albuquerque where it doesn't get much below freezing at night this time of year. I keep my tub on economy mode whenever I'm not using it. Could my tub alone really be using almost 800 kWh per month? Should I have a technician look at it? My Master Spa has cost me an average of $75 per month in the coldest months of the winter. I have an LSX700 which is approximately 400 gallons. I live in New England where it gets cold in the winter. Master Spas aren't known for being the most energy efficient Spas, but I have taken some measures to insulate. We pay a flat rate of about $0.15/KWh. Your costs don't seem that high to me, but I am not sure how cold it gets in the winter where you are.
  2. That's great news Brian. I think you are the perfect kind of person for this tub. I can think of some people (e.g. my Mother) that should NOT buy a tub like this online. It's not that I'm an plumber or electrician or anything, but if you have common sense and are willing to take the panel off and poke around a bit, you can handle 99% of the types of problems that these tubs can have. They are not rocket engines... How did you supplement the insulation Brian? I found that the foam-in-a-can from Home Depot was hard to apply and I didn't feel like I was probably making much of a difference overall. I was considering installing full foam pads like the guy earlier in this thread. Also, have you checked to see if any water is backing into the ozonator tube or the air system? It's great that your tub is working from the get-go. That was essentially my experience as well. I would definitely make sure you can at least access the front panel when the tub is fully installed in your deck. Maybe leave a small space on that side and hide it with some steps for the tub or something.
  3. My experience with calling infinity has been typical of most places...sometimes you get someone really nice and helpful and sometimes you get someone that, well...should be fired. The free spa care kit is a pretty good deal btw, though I understand you may not feel like it fully compensates for the stress and hassle you'be been through. You all heard from me a while back in this thread. I haven't checked on this thread for a while because, frankly, my tub has been working ok and I haven't been thinking about it. I just finished a nice soak with my girlfriend...and I've been really enjoying the tub. With the zip-ties I added, the ozonator tube no longer becomes disconnected. I don't know if the water backing up into the tube keeps my ozonator from doing its job, but frankly I don't really care. The ozonators on this model of tub are a cheap gimmick anyway. The "banging" I heard when I turned the air on (not the blower) is from water backing into the air system. I found that I could make the sound stop by simply turning the jets on high for a moment to flush the system. Not a big deal. I got some foam-in-a-can insulation from Home Depot and patched up the insulation on the two sides of my tub that I still have good access to. I doubt it will make much of a difference. My first electric bill showed a $20-$30 difference from last month. It's tough to tell the real difference because my electric bill fluctuates so much anyway. A few more months may give me a better picture. If it gets crazy during the winter I might take more drastic measures to improve the insulation. The bottom line is still this. I'm a first-time tub owner and the Laguna is giving me the tubbing experience I was looking for and I saved over $2000 on the purchase price. If some major disaster happens in the next year or two, I might change my tune...but for now, I'm lovin' life. Side note: I initially laughed at the idea of paying extra to have a small built-in TV and/or radio in my tub, but now I'm thinking that could be pretty sweet. Next house maybe...
  4. Well, at first it was just stupid things. The light wasn't plugged in...fixed that in 2 seconds. Took me a while longer to figure out that the blower (which I never use anyway) wasn't wired correctly. There is a cable coming out of the control box (not the panel but the big box down inside the cabinet) ending in a large plastic 4-pin connector. The cable from the blower comes around from the side of the tub and plugs into this first cable with a matching connector. The cables only consist of 3 wires, so, so one pin on each connector is empty. Some idiot at infinity wired the two halves of the connector so that the white wires coming in from each side "missed" each other. The mistake was plainly visible and once I noticed it, I just clipped off the connectors and replaced them with some from home depot. This was a random manufacturing goof that nobody else on this forum will probably ever experience. Instead, you'll probably have some other goof that you'll have to identify and fix. Or you'll be lucky and have a perfect tub. The biggest problem I've had has been water pumping back from the footwell jet into the .5" tube that comes from the ozonator. This water was pushing back against the flow-valve that keeps water from flowing all the way back into the ozonator. Eventually this pressure would "spit" the .25" feed tube from the ozonator out of the .5" tube that connects it to the footwell jet. This would leave the .5" tube spewing water all over the inside of the cabinet. Fortunately I would notice the sound of the spewing water (and the reduction in water level), jump out, unscrew the cabinet, and plug the ozonator feed tube back in. Unfortunately, it would just happen again the next night. I now have some zip-ties on the tubes to keep them from disconnecting, but this doesn't solve the problem of the water backing up from the footwell jet. I'm wondering if the ozonator is hooked up incorrectly or if there is something wrong with the footwell jet. If there is anybody out there with a Laguna (or familiar with one), I would like to compare notes. Last night I noticed a banging sound coming from the side of the tub when I turn on the air to that side. I have yet to diagnose this problem. I would definitely go get some insulation foam and supplement the insulation on your tub before putting it into its final enclosure.
  5. That's exactly what I was hoping. I figured only the people that had problems posted in the forums, and that for every one of those people, there were probably 99 people out there that had no problems and you just don't hear from them. Well, I bought the tub and guess what, it had problems. For all you people out there waiting for the tub to arrive, or wondering whether to buy the tub, just make sure you EXPECT there to be issues, but take comfort that the issues will be fixable and that you will have saved $2K. I think that a much smaller percentage of people will have bigger issues that they won't be able to fix themselves. This may be a real hassle because you will have to work with Infinity long distance to get it resolved and, depending on where you live, this could range from "kind of a hassle" to "major pain in the arse." Personally, I'd say $2K is worth this gamble. Call Infinity and ask them to look up in their computer the local service company that they contract with in your area. Then call this local company and ask them what kind of service they do. In my case, there is only one local company that Infinity knows about and when I called them, they said they ONLY do shell repair. If I have problems with my electrical or plumbing that I can't fix myself, I'm going to be in a pickle. Infinity said they would figure something out, but it would take a while. I haven't heard from them in a couple of weeks and when I call them I just get put on hold forever. Fortunately, my tub is working ok right now and I have been really enjoying it, but there is a potential disaster brewing here.
  6. I bought the Infinity Laguna from Costco and have been using it for a couple of weeks now. This can be a great tub for anyone with a budget and managed expectations. Yes, installation required some friends and a couple of furniture dollies and plywood sheets from work. It's very true that the insulation is sad (haven't got my first electric bill yet so don't know what's going to happen). The tub makes a noisy hum when the pump is on. I also had my share of manufacturing errors that I had to find and then fix. In my case, the light wasn't connected (easy), the blower cable was wired wrong, and water backs up into the ozonator tube. I plugged in the light, rewired the blower cable, and put a zip-tie on the ozonator tube to keep it from disconnecting. My guess is that each tub comes with a few different manufacturing goofs and that you just have to be handy and prepared to find them and remedy them. Fortunately mine didn't have any serious plumming issues or leaks that I couldn't fix myself. That would have been a pain because I live in Albuquerque and Infinity apparently doesn't have someone here to do plumming or electrical repairs. You might want to check in your area before you buy in case you're in the same situation. Now that I'm past the initial bumps in the road, I am very happy to have my tub. The tub looks nice and is very roomy and comfortable. Plus, if you turn off the jets to all but one seat, you really get blasted! Other coments: The "blower" that the Laguna has in place of the second pump is loud and stupid. Air bubbles come through the normal jets anyway, so the blower is just an extra gimmick that I will probably never use. I suppose if you just like your spa to feel and sound like armageddon, then the blower is for you. Also, unless you're pretty short, you will not fit in the seat with the shoulder jets unless you slouch big time. I wouldn't have been willing to pay $2K more for a tub from a local dealer, so the Laguna is the tub for me. Even if it only lasts a few years, by then I will probably be looking to buy a new house and/or be sick of tubbing all the time. I hear a lot of people talking about adding insulation to the Infinity spas. Are you guys just getting the foam from Home Depot (or whatever) and applying it yourself, or did you find somebody in the yellow pages.... or what?
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